New Bedford, MA
Bristol County · Massachusetts · United States
Home to 12,549 people across 1.301 square miles.
At a glance
02744 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 02744 is
| Coordinates | 41.606252, -70.913632 |
|---|---|
| Time zone | America/New_York |
| County | Bristol County |
| State | Massachusetts (MA) |
| Land area | 1.301 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 | 52.6 mi |
|---|---|
| New York, NY | 172.3 mi |
| Philadelphia, PA | 250.0 mi |
| Chicago, IL | 860.6 mi |
People
Who lives in 02744
12,549 residents in 5,239 households, averaging 2.4 people per household. The largest age group is under 18 at 27.9% of residents.
Age distribution
Share of residents by age band
Households
Composition and size
| Total households | 5,239 |
|---|---|
| Average household size | 2.4 |
| Family households | 60.0% |
| Living alone | 34.9% |
| Median age | 34.1 years |
| Households with internet | 80.2% |
Race & ethnicity
Census race categories. Hispanic or Latino origin is asked separately and overlaps these groups.
Income & work
What people earn in 02744
The median household here earns $54,841 a year, below the US median of $70,109, which puts 02744 ahead of 23% of American ZIP codes. 15.5% of residents live below the poverty line.
Compared to the US
This ZIP against the national median
| Median household income | $54,841 ±$3,424 |
|---|---|
| Per capita income | $26,724 |
| Poverty rate | 15.5% |
| Unemployment rate | 10.4% |
| Labor force participation | 62.7% |
Household income distribution
Share of households in each bracket
Educational attainment among residents 25 and older: 13.4% hold a bachelor's degree or higher, 71.8% finished high school.
Housing
Homes and rent in 02744
A typical home is valued at $344,800, and median rent runs $1,133 a month. This is a renter-majority area — 65.9% of occupied homes are rented, and the typical building went up in 1938.
Costs
Typical values
| Median home value | $344,800 |
|---|---|
| Median gross rent | $1,133/mo |
| Median year built | 1938 |
| Housing units | 5,609 |
| Vacancy rate | 6.6% |
Own vs. rent
Of 5,239 occupied units
| Owner households | 1,789 |
|---|---|
| Renter households | 3,450 |
Building types
Units by structure size
Getting to work
How 02744 commutes
73.7% of workers drove alone, and the average one-way trip takes 27.1 minutes.
Mode of transport
Workers 16 and older
Travel time
Mean commute 27.1 minutes
Overview
Understanding ZIP code 02744
ZIP code 02744 is assigned to New Bedford, MA, and falls within Bristol 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 12,549 people live inside it.
At 9,646 residents per square mile spread over 1.301 square miles, 02744 reads as a densely built-up area. It is a mid-sized postal code by population, 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 $54,841, 02744 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 New Bedford looks like
Housing in 02744 costs well above the national median. A typical home is valued at $344,800 against a US median of $207,500, and median gross rent runs $1,133 a month. This is firmly renter territory — 65.9% of occupied homes are rented, a pattern typical of city centres, student areas and neighbourhoods with a lot of apartment stock.
The building stock is dominated by small multi-family buildings of two to four units, which account for 58.9% of housing units here. The median construction year is 1938, making the housing here largely pre-war.
The population skews younger than the country as a whole, with a median age of 34.1 against 42 nationally. The average household holds 2.4 people, and 60.0% are family households.
Getting to work takes 27.1 minutes on average one way. The dominant mode is drove alone at 73.7% of workers.
Where to stay
Where to stay in New Bedford, MA
New Bedford is a built-up area, so you will generally find a mix of chain hotels near the main approach roads and a smaller number of independent properties closer to the centre. Staying in 02744 itself often costs less than an equivalent room in the nearest downtown while keeping you close to it.
Median rent in 02744 is $1,133 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 52.6 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.
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Practical uses
What ZIP code 02744 is used for
Beyond addressing mail, 02744 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, 02744 offers a compact profile of New Bedford: 12,549 residents, a median household income of $54,841, 13.4% of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher, and an unemployment rate of 10.4%. 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. 02744 may cover parts of several distinct areas, and a single neighbourhood in New Bedford 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 02744
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 New Bedford
New Bedford is served by 6 postal codes.
More in Bristol County
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Questions
Common questions about 02744
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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 02744. 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).