Postal Codes

02472 ZIP Code

Advertisement

English Español

ZIP code 02472 covers Watertown, Massachusetts, with a population of about 35,317 and a median household income of $123,383.

Population
35,3178,763 per square mile
Median age
38.8about the US average
Median household income
$123,3831.2× the Massachusetts median
Poverty rate
6.1%6.3 points below the US average
Typical home value
$838,285up 19% in five years
Median rent
$2,3561.4× the Massachusetts median
Degree or higher
67.1%32.1 points above the US average
Homeownership
48.8%16.2 points below the US average
Time zone
Eastern UTC-05:00observes daylight saving time
Businesses
1,048

Where 02472 is

Watertown, Massachusetts — the area the Census Bureau draws for this ZIP code. ZIP codes are sets of delivery routes rather than areas, so this is the Census approximation of one, not a Postal Service boundary.

People and households

American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates

Population35,317
Median age38.8
Family households53.1%
Born outside the US26.5%
Speaks a language other than English at home31.3%
White (non-Hispanic)69.7%
Black (non-Hispanic)4.1%
Asian (non-Hispanic)12%
Hispanic or Latino6.4%
Veterans3.4%
Population by age
MaleFemale0-45-910-1415-1920-2425-3435-4445-5455-6465-7475-8485+
Income and poverty

American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates

Median household income$123,383
Income per person$72,808
Poverty rate6.1%
Households on SNAP or cash assistance6.6%

Household income distribution

Under $10k4.9%
$10–15k1.7%
$15–20k2.2%
$20–25k0.8%
$25–30k1.5%
$30–35k1.6%
$35–40k1.4%
$40–45k3.1%
$45–50k0.9%
$50–60k3.2%
$60–75k6.8%
$75–100k12.1%
$100–125k11.2%
$125–150k10.2%
$150–200k12.5%
$200k or more26.1%

Income as declared to the IRS

Filed returns rather than survey responses, so this counts tax units and not households.

Tax returns filed19,270
Mean adjusted gross income$119,479
Returns declaring $200,000 or more14.1%
Returns, under $25k17.4%
Returns, $25k–$50k15.2%
Returns, $50k–$75k16.5%
Returns, $75k–$100k12.7%
Returns, $100k–$200k24.1%
Returns, $200k or more14.1%
Housing

American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates

Median home value$737,600
Median gross rent$2,356
Rent as a share of household income27%
Owner-occupied48.8%
Vacant homes5%
Median year built1945

What the homes are

Detached house18.3%
Attached house10.4%
2 to 4 units41.1%
5 to 19 units8.4%
20 or more units21.8%
Home values and rents today

Zillow Home Value Index and Zillow Observed Rent Index, courtesy of Zillow. Monthly and current, where the Census figures above are a five-year average and are capped at $2,000,000.

Typical home value$838,285as of 2026-07
Typical home value, 1 yearup 1.2%
Typical home value, 5 yearsup 19%
Typical home value, 10 yearsup 58.7%
Typical asking rent$3,167as of 2026-07
Typical asking rent, 1 yearup 1.5%
Typical asking rent, 5 yearsup 27.8%
Typical asking rent, 10 yearsup 47.2%
Typical home value since 2000
200020132026$838,285$276,416

$276,416 in 2000 to $838,285 in 2026.

Typical asking rent
201620212026$3,167$2,152

$2,152 in 2016 to $3,167 in 2026.

Work, commuting and education

American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates

Unemployment rate5.5%
Bachelor's degree or higher67.1%
High school diploma or higher95.2%
Works from home26.6%
Drives to work alone49.2%
Takes public transport8.2%
Commutes 45 minutes or more16.6%
Health

CDC PLACES 2025 release, model-based estimates. These are modelled small-area estimates for adults, not counts of diagnosed cases.

Obesity23.4% 10 pts below the national average of 33.4%
Diagnosed diabetes7.3% 4.7 pts below the national average of 12%
Currently smokes8.2% 5 pts below the national average of 13.2%
High blood pressure25.8% 8.3 pts below the national average of 34.1%
Fair or poor general health11.9% 8.4 pts below the national average of 20.3%
No health insurance (18–64)3.6% 7.7 pts below the national average of 11.3%
Depression24.7% 2.8 pts above the national average of 21.9%
No leisure-time physical activity16.3% 9.1 pts below the national average of 25.4%
Arthritis22.2% 2.9 pts below the national average of 25.1%
Binge drinking17.7% 1.7 pts above the national average of 16%
Taking blood pressure medication71.9% 2.8 pts below the national average of 74.7%
Cancer (non-skin)8.3% 0.6 pts above the national average of 7.7%
Current asthma11.3% 0.9 pts above the national average of 10.4%
Coronary heart disease4.4% 1.8 pts below the national average of 6.2%
Routine check-up in past year79.5% 2.8 pts above the national average of 76.7%
Cholesterol screening91.1% 5.2 pts above the national average of 85.9%
Cognitive disability11.5% 3.3 pts below the national average of 14.8%
Colorectal screening73.1% 8.8 pts above the national average of 64.3%
COPD4.1% 2.5 pts below the national average of 6.6%
Visited a dentist74.2% 12.9 pts above the national average of 61.3%
Any disability22.5% 8.2 pts below the national average of 30.7%
Lacks emotional support20.1% 4.7 pts below the national average of 24.8%
Food insecurity8% 9.1 pts below the national average of 17.1%
Received food stamps8.8% 5.5 pts below the national average of 14.3%
Hearing disability4.9% 1.8 pts below the national average of 6.7%
High cholesterol33.6% 2.6 pts below the national average of 36.2%
Housing insecurity8.1% 5.7 pts below the national average of 13.8%
Independent living disability5.7% 2.7 pts below the national average of 8.4%
Lacks transport5.8% 3.4 pts below the national average of 9.2%
Loneliness33.4% 1 pts below the national average of 34.4%
Mammography use83.5% 7.6 pts above the national average of 75.9%
Poor mental health (14+ days)14.7% 2.1 pts below the national average of 16.8%
Mobility disability8.4% 5.6 pts below the national average of 14%
Poor physical health (14+ days)9.3% 4.2 pts below the national average of 13.5%
Self-care disability2.1% 1.9 pts below the national average of 4%
Utility shut-off threat4.9% 3.9 pts below the national average of 8.8%
Sleeps under 7 hours30.8% 5.6 pts below the national average of 36.4%
Stroke2.3% 1.1 pts below the national average of 3.4%
All natural teeth lost7.3% 5.7 pts below the national average of 13%
Vision disability2.9% 2.7 pts below the national average of 5.6%
Advertisement
Business and employment

Census ZIP Code Business Patterns 2022

Business establishments1,048
People employed20,955
Annual payroll$2,499,340,000
Natural hazard risk

FEMA National Risk Index, estimated for this ZIP code from census tract data — the NRI is not published per ZIP.

Overall riskHigher than 13.1% of US census tracts
FEMA ratingVery Low to Relatively Low across the 15 census tracts this ZIP code covers
Expected annual loss18 out of 100
Community resilience83.7 out of 100

By hazard

Score is out of 100 and is the area-weighted average across the census tracts this ZIP code covers. The rating beside it is the highest any one of those tracts carries.

Ice storm68.1Relatively Moderate at its worst in this ZIP code
Hurricane67.2Relatively Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Earthquake49.6Relatively Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Lightning28.5Relatively Moderate at its worst in this ZIP code
Cold wave27.3Relatively Low at its worst in this ZIP code
River flooding26.9Relatively High at its worst in this ZIP code
Landslide26.6Very Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Tornado26.2Relatively Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Strong wind25.8Relatively Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Heat wave21.9Relatively Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Winter weather19.2Relatively Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Coastal flooding18.3Relatively Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Hail4.4Very Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Wildfire4.4Very Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Drought0Relatively Low at its worst in this ZIP code
Compared with Massachusetts and the United States

State and national columns are figures for those areas, not for this ZIP code. American Community Survey 2019–2023 five-year estimates

This ZIPMassachusettsUnited States
Median household income$123,383$101,341$78,538
Income per person$72,808$56,284$43,289
Poverty rate6.1%10%12.4%
Median home value$737,600$525,800$303,400
Median gross rent$2,356$1,687$1,348
Homeownership48.8%62.6%65%
Bachelor's degree or higher67.1%46.6%35%
Unemployment rate5.5%5.1%5.2%
Works from home26.6%16.7%13.5%
Born outside the US26.5%17.7%13.9%
Median age38.84038.7
Climate

NOAA US Climate Normals 1991-2020, from the nearest weather station with a full year of records. The station and its distance are named above, because a station forty kilometres away describes somewhere else.

Weather stationJAMAICA PLAIN, MA US8.6 km away
Rain in a year49 in

Average high and low by month

January37°F / 19.4°F3.87 in rain
February39.6°F / 21°F3.59 in rain
March46.6°F / 28.4°F4.49 in rain
April58.8°F / 38.1°F4.32 in rain
May69.4°F / 48.2°F3.64 in rain
June78.8°F / 57.9°F4.18 in rain
July84.7°F / 64°F3.49 in rain
August83.1°F / 62.5°F3.72 in rain
September75.5°F / 54.9°F3.96 in rain
October63.7°F / 43°F5.03 in rain
November52.6°F / 34.2°F3.99 in rain
December42.4°F / 25.7°F5.08 in rain
Access to food

USDA Food Access Research Atlas, estimated for this ZIP code from census tract data. Each figure is the share of the ZIP code's land area that falls in a tract carrying that flag.

Low income and far from a supermarketNone of this ZIP code
Far from a supermarketNone of this ZIP code
No vehicle and far from a supermarket50% of this ZIP code's area
School districts

NCES Geographic Relationship File 2025, which states the association between each district and each ZIP code tabulation area directly. Elementary and secondary districts can cover the same ground, so shares need not total 100%.

Watertown School District99.2% of this ZIP code's land area
Community and walkability

CDC/ATSDR Social Vulnerability Index 2022 and the EPA National Walkability Index, both estimated for this ZIP code from census tract data. Vulnerability figures are national percentile ranks, not measurements.

Overall social vulnerability32more vulnerable than 32% of US census tracts
Socioeconomic status23more vulnerable than 23% of US census tracts
Household characteristics36more vulnerable than 36% of US census tracts
Racial and ethnic minority status46more vulnerable than 46% of US census tracts
Housing type and transport49more vulnerable than 49% of US census tracts
Walkability15.5 out of 20Most walkable
Nearby ZIP codes

The closest ZIP codes by centre point, which is not the same as sharing a border.

02471 Watertown, MA0.5 km away
02477 Watertown, MA0.5 km away
02479 Waverley, MA2 km away
02458 Newton, MA2.1 km away
02495 Nonantum, MA2.2 km away
02455 North Waltham, MA2.5 km away
02478 Belmont, MA2.9 km away
02135 Brighton, MA3 km away
Location, counties and time zone

County shares from Census 2020 ZCTA relationship files. Time zone from the USDOT National Transportation Atlas, which renders the boundaries written into 49 CFR Part 71.

Middlesex County100% of this ZIP code's land area
Time zoneEastern (UTC-05:00 standard)
Daylight saving timeObserved
Land area4.03 sq mi
Water area0.13 sq mi
Population density8,763 people per sq mi
Latitude, longitude42.3700, -71.1773

Figures are published for this ZIP code or its Census tabulation area unless a section says otherwise. Estimates whose margin of error made them unreliable are omitted rather than shown. Sources: US Census Bureau, CDC, IRS.

Advertisement