Marlborough A Top Small City In U.S., Ranking Says

MARLBOROUGH, MA — Marlborough scored well in a new ranking of small cities and towns across the U.S., according to the personal finance website Wallethub.

The study rated towns and cities in five categories: affordability, the local economy, education and health, quality of life and safety. The study took into account factors like the median local income, crime rates and nearby amenities like museums and parks.

Marlborough scored high marks in the education and health category, making the top 25 of all U.S. cities in that category. The city lost points for a high cost of living and possible quality-of-life issues like long commute times and low amenities (the study did not specify which factors caused a community to lose points).

Marlborough's overall score was 63.54. The top city on the list — Sammamish, Wash., a suburb of Seattle — had a total score of 72.55. The lowest ranking community on the list with a score of 35.92 was Pine Bluff, Ark.

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In Massachusetts, the study ranked Marlborough ahead of Gloucester, Beverly and Danvers, and close behind Framingham and Milford. Lexington was the top-ranked Massachusetts town on the list followed closely by Reading, Milton and Melrose. The study only considered communities with populations between 25,000 and 100,000.

Here's where Marlborough ranked in individual categories among the more than 1,300 cities and towns on the list:

• Affordability — No. 884
• Economic health — No. 442
• Education and health — No. 23
• Quality of life — No. 727
• Safety — No. 320

You can read the full report here on the Wallethub website.