Buzzards Bay, MA
Barnstable County · Massachusetts · United States
Home to 854 people across 28.545 square miles.
At a glance
02542 by the numbers
Every figure below comes from the 2019–2023 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, the Census Gazetteer, or is computed from those. Margins of error are shown where they matter.
Location
Where 02542 is
| Coordinates | 41.707839, -70.54552 |
|---|---|
| Time zone | America/New_York |
| County | Barnstable County |
| State | Massachusetts (MA) |
| Land area | 28.545 mi² |
| Coordinate source | Census ZCTA internal point |
Local time
America/New_York
Current weather
Live from the National Weather Service
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Distance to major cities
Straight-line, computed from coordinates
| Boston, MA | 52.2 mi |
|---|---|
| New York, NY | 192.5 mi |
| Philadelphia, PA | 270.2 mi |
| Chicago, IL | 878.7 mi |
People
Who lives in 02542
854 residents in 256 households, averaging 3.34 people per household. The largest age group is 25-34 at 32.6% of residents, and 89.8% of households are families.
Age distribution
Share of residents by age band
Households
Composition and size
| Total households | 256 |
|---|---|
| Average household size | 3.34 |
| Family households | 89.8% |
| Living alone | 0.0% |
| Median age | 26 years |
| Households with internet | 97.7% |
Race & ethnicity
Census race categories. Hispanic or Latino origin is asked separately and overlaps these groups.
Income & work
What people earn in 02542
The median household here earns $55,000 a year, below the US median of $70,109, which puts 02542 ahead of 23% of American ZIP codes. 0.8% of residents live below the poverty line.
Compared to the US
This ZIP against the national median
| Median household income | $55,000 ±$14,742 |
|---|---|
| Per capita income | $23,740 |
| Poverty rate | 0.8% |
| Unemployment rate | 5.4% |
| Labor force participation | 63.9% |
Household income distribution
Share of households in each bracket
Educational attainment among residents 25 and older: 36.4% hold a bachelor's degree or higher, 95.9% finished high school.
Housing
Homes and rent in 02542
median rent runs $1,830 a month. This is a renter-majority area — 100.0% of occupied homes are rented, and the typical building went up in 1956.
Costs
Typical values
| Median home value | — |
|---|---|
| Median gross rent | $1,830/mo |
| Median year built | 1956 |
| Housing units | 380 |
| Vacancy rate | 32.6% |
Own vs. rent
Of 256 occupied units
| Owner households | 0 |
|---|---|
| Renter households | 256 |
Building types
Units by structure size
Getting to work
How 02542 commutes
93.1% of workers drove alone, and the average one-way trip takes 18.9 minutes.
Mode of transport
Workers 16 and older
Travel time
Mean commute 18.9 minutes
Overview
Understanding ZIP code 02542
ZIP code 02542 is assigned to Buzzards Bay, MA, and falls within Barnstable County. Like every US postal code, it began as a mail-routing device rather than a geographic boundary — the US Postal Service groups delivery routes under a single code so carriers and sorting equipment can process mail efficiently. Today it also serves as a practical shorthand for the area itself: roughly 854 people live inside it.
At 30 residents per square mile spread over 28.545 square miles, 02542 reads as a rural area. It is a sparsely populated postal code, and density shapes almost everything else on this page — how people get to work, whether they own or rent, and what housing costs.
Household earnings run below the national median. At $55,000, 02542 sits in the lower half, ahead of 23% of them. The US median for comparison is $70,109. Bear in mind that median income describes the midpoint household, not the average — it is not pulled upward by a handful of very high earners the way a mean would be.
Living here
What life in Buzzards Bay looks like
The building stock is dominated by detached single-family houses, which account for 73.2% of housing units here. The median construction year is 1956, making the housing here mid-century. The vacancy rate of 32.6% is high, which in many places reflects seasonal or second-home use rather than abandonment.
The population skews notably young, with a median age of 26 against 42 nationally. Households are relatively large at 3.34 people on average, with 89.8% classified as family households.
Getting to work takes 18.9 minutes on average one way. The dominant mode is drove alone at 93.1% of workers.
Where to stay
Where to stay in Buzzards Bay, MA
02542 covers a rural area, and accommodation within the postal code itself is likely to be sparse — perhaps a country inn, a lodge or a vacation rental rather than a conventional hotel. Widening the search radius is usually the practical approach, and it also opens up more availability at short notice.
Median rent in 02542 is $1,830 a month, which sits in the middle of the national range; accommodation pricing locally tends to be similarly mid-market. For reference, Boston, MA is about 52.2 miles away in a straight line, which is worth factoring in if you are comparing a stay here against one closer to the city centre.
Availability and pricing change constantly, so the live search below will give you a more accurate picture than any figure we could publish here. It opens results for this area on Booking.com.
Opens Booking.com in a new tab. We are not affiliated with Booking.com and receive nothing from this link.
Practical uses
What ZIP code 02542 is used for
Beyond addressing mail, 02542 does a lot of quiet administrative work. Retailers use it to calculate shipping and sales tax at checkout. Insurers use it to set premiums, since risk profiles vary geographically. Employers and marketers use it to define service areas. Government agencies use it to route benefits and organise reporting. If you have ever been asked for a postal code by a form that clearly does not intend to send you anything, this is why.
For anyone weighing a move, 02542 offers a compact profile of Buzzards Bay: 854 residents, a median household income of $55,000, 36.4% of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher, and an unemployment rate of 5.4%. A handful of figures like these answer more relocation questions than most neighbourhood guides do.
One caution worth repeating: a postal code is not a neighbourhood. 02542 may cover parts of several distinct areas, and a single neighbourhood in Buzzards Bay may be split across more than one code. Boundaries also shift as USPS adjusts delivery routes. Treat the figures here as describing a delivery area, which is what they actually measure.
Nearby
ZIP codes near 02542
The eight closest postal codes by centroid distance, each with its own full profile. You can also browse every Massachusetts ZIP code or use the ZIP Express Lookup to search by city, county or time zone.
Other ZIP codes in Buzzards Bay
Buzzards Bay is served by 2 postal codes.
More in Barnstable County
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Questions
Common questions about 02542
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Methodology
Where this data comes from
- Postal geography — GeoNames open postal code database (CC BY 4.0), cross-checked against the US Census Gazetteer.
- Demographics, income, housing, commute — US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2019–2023 5-Year Estimates, ZIP Code Tabulation Area 02542. Tables B01001, B01002, B01003, B02001, B03003, B08301, B08303, B11001, B15003, B17001, B19001, B19013, B19301, B23025, B25002, B25003, B25024, B25035, B25064, B25077, B28002.
- Land and water area — US Census Bureau 2023 Gazetteer Files.
- Weather — NOAA National Weather Service, fetched live in your browser.
- Map — OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).