Living in Somerville, Boston
Neighboring CitiesSomerville, a separate city just north of Cambridge with its own mayor and school system, packs some of the region's densest, most walkable squares into under five square miles. Davis Square's used bookstores, restaurants, and the Somerville Theatre draw crowds around the Red Line's outdoor plaza most evenings, while Union Square's Bow Market, a converted warehouse holding more than two dozen small food and retail stalls, anchors a commercial cluster a couple of miles southeast. The Prospect Hill Monument's stone tower looks out from a park a block off Union Square, marking the spot where tradition holds an early version of the American flag was first raised in 1776. Somerville's triple-deckers and narrow streets pack the city's neighborhoods more tightly than most of Boston's, a density built up over generations of streetcar-era growth. The Red Line's Davis station and the Green Line Extension's Union Square branch give the city's two main squares direct rides into Cambridge and Boston.
Somerville's dense, narrow streets leave little room for off-street parking, so most residents compete for the same spots along the curb.
An afternoon browsing Davis Square's bookstores, a plate from one of Bow Market's stalls, and a climb up Prospect Hill's tower for the skyline view give Somerville's own identity, distinct from both Cambridge and Boston, its full due.
Rent & move-in cost
Typical upfront cash for a 1-bed in Boston — the toughest in our lineup: first month, last month, and a security deposit are all standard. Broker fees are typically paid by whoever hired the broker — usually the landlord.
≈ $8,700 to move in
Safety
Somerville is a separate municipality outside Boston's open-data feeds, so Settle uses its curated rating: 81/100.
Getting around
Nearest station: Davis (Red) — about 1 min walk.
MBTA subway lines that stop nearby — the colors match the T's line names. The subway blankets the urban core; some outer neighborhoods rely on buses or other services instead.
Livability
Somerville files its own service requests — the host city's 311 feed doesn't cover it.