Dorchester, MA

Single-footprint Census roll-up for Dorchester, MA: 3 USPS ZIPs, population 82,752. Open the primary ZIP for household income, housing tenure, and commute from ACS 2023 5-Year Estimates.

U.S. Census Bureau, SimpleMaps US ZIP Code Database, delivery-area ZIP coverage

ACS city ledger plate

Sheet DORCHESTER-MA · Dorchester, MA 3 ZIPs · 82,752 pop · #12954/25278 · Suffolk County

INC-MID · RANK-MID · PHOTO-FINISH · BOOK-FEW · OWN-RENT · POP-SMALL · SPREAD-WIDE · HOME-HIGH

  • INC-MID $70,746
  • RANK-MID #12954/25278
  • PHOTO-FINISH ≈ Chelsea
  • BOOK-FEW 3 ZIPs
  • OWN-RENT 34% owners
  • POP-SMALL 82,752
  • SPREAD-WIDE 02121→02122
  • HOME-HIGH $639,067

Nearest income peer: Chelsea, MA (+ $1,433 income $)

Instrument codes from this city’s ACS household income, national rank, county-peer gap, ZIP book, owner tenure, population scale, intra-city income spread, and home-value band, not a moving recommendation.

Income neighbourhood around Dorchester

Lowest/highest poles plus county-sharing cities nearest Dorchester on average ZIP median household income. Full ladder: /cities.

median HH income

What this shows County-sharing peers only, not the full US city board. Open a near peer when the gap is small; open the poles when the mosaic is wide.

Source U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 5-Year Estimates As of 2026-08-25

National city placement

According to ACS 5-Year Estimates, Dorchester, MA sits among US cities with a below-median household income, on a small-city population base, across a handful of delivery areas.

49th pct
household income vs 25,278 US cities
82,752
city population (Census)
3
USPS ZIP codes covered
$70,746
avg ZIP median income

Income percentile ranks this city's average ZIP median household income against 25,278 US cities with ACS income on at least one ZIP. Scale and ZIP-spread words come from Census population and USPS ZIP coverage.

Below-median income with few delivery areas (3): read cost-of-living from the primary ZIP. Household income $70,746 and poverty 20.3% concentrate in 02125.

Owner-occupancy is comparatively low (34.3%) for this income tier, rent $1,828 may matter more than the home-value average.

Within Massachusetts, Thorndike is the closest lower-income city and Amherst the closest higher-income city by average ZIP household income. Their 1 and 1 ZIP footprints are the immediate statewide comparison set for Dorchester.

Within-city ZIP comparison

Where the ZIP codes inside Dorchester differ

Income is the clearest internal divide in Dorchester. ZIP 02121 reports $43,136 in median household income, while ZIP 02122 reports $86,150. The city average sits between those published endpoints, so it is a starting point rather than a substitute for the ZIP records.

Income high-to-low ratio
2.0×

02121 to 02122

Home-value high-to-low ratio
1.1×

02121 to 02122

Poverty-rate spread
12.2 points

02122 to 02121

Derived from the published ACS 2023 ZIP-level records shown on this site. A high-to-low ratio compares the highest and lowest available ZIP values; it is not a score or forecast.

Population concentration

Dorchester residents split across a short ZIP set

No ZIP owns Dorchester: the largest, 02125, is only about 40% of 82,752 residents across 3 codes. Compare at least two ZIPs before treating the city roll-up as a neighborhood answer.

Census ZBP business roll-up

Balanced ZBP roll-up inside compact Dorchester

Citywide ZBP: 1,351 establishments, 20,660 employees , annual payroll $1,350,597k (~16 establishments per 1,000 residents) across 3 of 3 ZIPs. Peak business ZIP 02122 (558 units) ; leading NAICS Retail trade (218) · also Other services (except public administration) · Health care and social assistance .

View your shortlist →

ZIP Codes in Dorchester, MA

These ZIP codes sit in Suffolk County, which covers 33 ZIP codes in all; 3 of them fall in Dorchester. See the Suffolk County roll-up →

Dorchester sits in the lower half of Suffolk County on income: Boston, Revere and Dorchester Center report more, and only Mattapan reports less. South Boston marks the far end of that range at $164,387, 132% above Dorchester.

Side-by-side: Compare 02125 vs 02121 →

ZIP Code Population Median income Establishments Density
02125 33,295 $82,953 518 6,029
02121 25,978 $43,136 275 5,747
02122 23,479 $86,150 558 4,455

Dorchester roll-ups here are for informational purposes only and do not constitute financial or relocation advice. ACS and Census ZBP figures are estimates; confirm the current table against Census before a money or move decision involving Dorchester, .