Massachusetts County Map

Massachusetts has 14 counties. Together they cover 7,801 sq mi of land and 7,154,084 people.

Neighbouring areas are given different colours so their shared borders read clearly. These colours carry no data.

Boundaries from the 2025 Census cartographic boundary file, generalised so that no point moves by more than half a pixel at this width. Select any area to open its page.
Counties
14
44th most of the 51 states and DC
Population
7,154,084
16th largest
Land area
7,801
square miles
Density
917.1
people per square mile, computed

Sources: US Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program, Vintage 2025 Population Estimates, released 26 March 2026; US Census Bureau, Gazetteer Files, 2025 Gazetteer Files, released 10 September 2025. Retrieved 30 August 2026.

Download this map

Free to use and redistribute. The boundaries are public-domain Census Bureau data; attribution to County Maps US is appreciated but not required.

Satellite view

Aerial imagery of Massachusetts with the state boundary drawn on top. County lines are not drawn here: at this scale they would bury the picture, and the map above already carries them.

Aerial view of Massachusetts from the USGS National Map, with its boundary outlined
Imagery: USGS National Map, USGS Imagery Only, public domain, requested from USGS by your browser when you reach this point on the page, at 800 by 529 pixels. The boundary is the 2025 Census cartographic boundary file, reprojected to Web Mercator to match the imagery. You can also open the USGS National Map viewer.

The extremes of Massachusetts

Most populous

Middlesex County

1,669,979

Least populous

Nantucket County

14,758

Largest by land area

Worcester County

1,511 sq mi

Smallest by land area

Nantucket County

46.2 sq mi

Most densely populated

Suffolk County

13,593 per sq mi

Highest median household income

Nantucket County

$139,688

Which is the largest county in Massachusetts? The answer depends on whether you mean area or population.

The counties, by shape

Every one, drawn to its own scale so the small ones stay recognisable. Shape alone is not a size comparison; the table below carries the areas.

What the map does not say

The counties of Massachusetts are nowhere near the same size. Worcester County covers 1,511 sq mi of land, 32.7 times the 46.2 sq mi of Nantucket County. People are spread even less evenly: Suffolk County packs 13,593 per sq mi while Franklin County holds 101 per sq mi.

They were not drawn in one sitting either. Nantucket County dates to 1641, and the boundaries were still being redrawn when Hampden County was organised in 1812, 171 years later. Founding years come from Wikidata and are worth checking against the county's own history before citing.

Water is part of the picture too: 84.8% of Nantucket County is water, the most in the state, which is why its land area and total area disagree. And 9 of the 14 counties here share their names with counties in other states, so searching by name alone can land in the wrong place; the A to Z index lists every duplicate.

All 14 counties of Massachusetts

Sortable on any column. This table doubles as the text alternative to the map above: every area is a link, in alphabetical order, whether or not the map renders.

The 14 counties of Massachusetts, with population, land area, density, median household income, county seat and FIPS code.
NamePopulationLand areaDensityMedian incomeSeatFIPS
Barnstable County233,539394.2 sq mi592 per sq mi$95,241Barnstable25001
Berkshire County128,224926.9 sq mi138 per sq mi$76,013Pittsfield25003
Bristol County593,640553.1 sq mi1,073 per sq mi$85,625Taunton25005
Dukes County21,219103.2 sq mi206 per sq mi$125,786Edgartown25007
Essex County826,653492.5 sq mi1,678 per sq mi$101,883Salem25009
Franklin County70,698699.2 sq mi101 per sq mi$74,907Greenfield25011
Hampden County464,338617 sq mi753 per sq mi$71,306Springfield25013
Hampshire County164,065527.2 sq mi311 per sq mi$87,001Northampton25015
Middlesex County1,669,979817.9 sq mi2,042 per sq mi$130,847Cambridge25017
Nantucket County14,75846.2 sq mi319 per sq mi$139,688Nantucket25019
Norfolk County739,749396.1 sq mi1,868 per sq mi$130,739Dedham25021
Plymouth County546,829658.5 sq mi830 per sq mi$114,201Plymouth25023
Suffolk County791,89158.3 sq mi13,593 per sq mi$95,631Boston25025
Worcester County888,5021,511 sq mi588 per sq mi$95,939Worcester25027

Sources: US Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program, Vintage 2025 Population Estimates, released 26 March 2026; US Census Bureau, Gazetteer Files, 2025 Gazetteer Files, released 10 September 2025; US Census Bureau, American Community Survey, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-Year Estimates, released 29 January 2026; Wikidata (CC0), Wikidata. Retrieved 30 August 2026.

The ten most populous

  1. Middlesex County1,669,979
  2. Worcester County888,502
  3. Essex County826,653
  4. Suffolk County791,891
  5. Norfolk County739,749
  6. Bristol County593,640
  7. Plymouth County546,829
  8. Hampden County464,338
  9. Barnstable County233,539
  10. Hampshire County164,065

Data on this page last rebuilt 30 August 2026. How these figures are produced.