Boston/Compare
Dorchester vs East Boston
Dorchester and East Boston are two official planning neighborhoods in Boston. East Boston is the calmer Part I map (58 vs 21). Dorchester wins the errand count. Dorchester has the lower ACS median ($1,812).
Data vintage. ACS 2024 5-year · BPD Oct 2025 – Sep 2026 · OSM Sep 2026 · updated Sep 2026
Scores
Fit axes among official Boston planning neighborhoods.
| Axis | Dorchester | East Boston |
|---|---|---|
| Safety | 21 | 58 |
| Schools | 14 | 29 |
| Walk | 100 | 65 |
| Cost fit | 100 | 100 |
| Vibe | 46 | 57 |
| Median rent | $1,812 | $1,918 |
| Median home | $660,954 | $664,819 |
| Population | 126,527 | 40,017 |
| Commute to Downtown | 22 min | 18 min |
| Commute to Seaport | 20 min | 16 min |
| Commute to Longwood | 26 min | 32 min |
Living numbers
Who rents, how old, how much crime, how many shops — beside the scores.
| Fact | Dorchester | East Boston |
|---|---|---|
| Renters | 63% | 71% |
| Median age | 36.2 | 35.2 |
| Median income | $80K | $86K |
| Part I per 1k | 24.7 | 13.4 |
| Groceries / 800m | 24 | 66 |
| Transit stops / 800m | 431 | 130 |
| Parks / 800m | 120 | 92 |
| 311 last 14 days | — | — |
Rent
Rent since 2014
ACS 5-year median gross rent for Boston city. Up 65% since 2014. Dot is 16% below the 2024 city median. Eastie is 11% below the 2024 city median.
Overlapping 5-year ACS windows (B25064), not asking rent. Census does not publish a rent series for each official neighborhood, so the line is the city place. Dashed marks are each area’s ACS 2024 median.
Which to pick
The same numbers as the table, in sentences. Nobody wins the city.
Pick Dorchester if you want the errands on foot and the rent gap is the point. Walk is 100 vs 65. ACS median rent is $1,812 vs $1,918. Read both pages before you decide.
Pick East Boston if the quieter map matters more than the scene and the school rating nearby is the point. Safety is 58 vs 21. Schools score 29 vs 14. Vibe is 57 vs 46. Read both pages before you decide.
Dorchester
The largest official neighborhood in the set. Dot Ave, Savin Hill, Fields Corner, and Ashmont are searches inside one BPDA line. A median here hides a lot of different 10 p.m.s.
$1,812 median rent · safety 21 · walk 100
East Boston
Eastie: the airport, the water taxi, and streets that still feel like a neighborhood that was not supposed to get this expensive. Maverick and Orient Heights are the T stops.
$1,918 median rent · safety 58 · walk 65
Common questions
Same pair, said in questions. The numbers are in the tables.
Which is cheaper, Dorchester or East Boston?
Dorchester is the lower ACS median: $1,812 vs $1,918. About 63% rent in Dorchester vs 71% in East Boston. Survey medians, not a listing you can message tonight.
Is Dorchester more walkable than East Boston?
Dorchester wins the errand count (walk 100 vs 65). Groceries inside 800 meters: 24 vs 66. Not a Walk Score license.
Which is safer on this map, Dorchester or East Boston?
East Boston is the calmer Part I read (58 vs 21). Combined rate 13.4 vs 24.7 per 1,000. Visitors count in those numbers.
Which scores higher for families, Dorchester or East Boston?
East Boston leads the school axis (29 vs 14). Nearby rating is 6.2 / 10 vs 5.8 / 10. Median age 35.2 vs 36.2. Neither number is a school assignment.
Which has the shorter commute to Downtown?
22 minutes from Dorchester to Downtown, 18 from East Boston. East Boston is the shorter weekday. Not this hour's traffic.
If you drop both
Closest official planning neighborhood that is not Dorchester or East Boston: South Boston. Southie. Broadway is one 10 p.m.; the Seaport search is another, and the waterfront is its own BPDA polygon we fold here as an alias. The beach is real. The parking is also real.
Scores are relative among official Boston planning neighborhoods with the same editorial weights. Read the method.