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Hinsdale, Massachusetts

Hinsdale is a small town of about 1,900 people in Berkshire County, Massachusetts. Its population has held about steady since 2020. A typical home costs about 3.4 years of the typical household's income, compared with 4.1 across the U.S. The nearest metro area of about a million people or more, Hartford, is about 51 miles away as the crow flies.

Population
1,880
down 1.2% since 2020
Typical home, 2020-24
$267,600
Berkshire County prices up 23% since 2022
Household income
$77,845
U.S.: $80,734
Prices, Pittsfield area
95.1
U.S. average = 100
Emergency room
7 miles
Pittsfield, MA
To Hartford
51 mi
straight line

The book's checklist

  • Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 4.9% below the U.S. average in the Pittsfield metro area.
  • More house for the moneyA typical home costs 3.4 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
  • A safer neighborhood5 violent crimes were reported in 2025, about 2.7 per 1,000 people (U.S.: 3.3). Property crime: 0.5 per 1,000 (U.S.: 15.3).
  • Schools in town3 public schools: 1 elementary, 1 middle and 1 high school.
  • A hospital close byBerkshire Medical Center in Pittsfield, about 7 miles away, has the nearest emergency room.
  • Within reach of a big cityHartford is about 51 miles away as the crow flies. The book suggests staying within about 60 miles if you'll miss big-city sports, concerts and theater.

A check means Hinsdale meets the rule of thumb from Frank and Dave's book. An empty box isn't a deal breaker: it's something to weigh for your family. A question mark means there isn't enough data.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024
$267,600U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then
Up 23%Berkshire County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities
$1,109 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income
$77,845U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them
79%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill
$3,065 a yearMassachusetts: $5,992
Homes built before 1940
35%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010
4%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes
13%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices
95.1U.S. average = 100 (the Pittsfield metro area)

Home values and rents are what households told the Census Bureau across 2020 to 2024, so they trail today's market: county prices have moved up 23% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the Pittsfield metro area, not Hinsdale alone. Check current listings before you budget.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates; Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions); U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.

The people

Population, 2025 estimate
1,8802020: 1,902
Median age
43.8 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older
22%U.S.: 17%
Under 18
15%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more
24%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year
6%U.S.: 6%
College students
8%share of all residents

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Work

Biggest lines of work
Schools, health care and social services (24%); manufacturing (14%); arts, recreation, lodging and restaurants (12%)
Unemployment rate
5%U.S.: 5%
Average commute
23 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home
8%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line
3%U.S.: 12%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Berkshire Medical Center, Pittsfield, MA, about 7 miles away. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 4 of 5 stars.

Look up doctors, clinics and the hospitals themselves on Medicare's Care Compare. Ask where the most serious cases are sent.

Sources: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information.

Schools

3 public schools in Hinsdale, run by Central Berkshire.

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on Massachusetts's school report card.

Sources: National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal); National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024.

Internet

Homes with cable, fiber or DSL internet
73%U.S.: 76%
Homes with any internet subscription
85%U.S.: 91%

Before you buy, look up the address on the FCC's National Broadband Map to see which providers serve it.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Weather

January average low
14°F
July average high
79°F
Days 90°F or hotter
2 a year
Nights at or below freezing
153 a year
Rain and melted snow
54.1 inches a year
Snow
77 inches a year
Elevation
1,442 feet

Weather stations: Pittsfield Muni Ap (9 miles away) and Worthington (10 miles away, rain and snow). Averages for 1991 to 2020.

Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020; U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program.

Getting around

Straight-line miles. The road is always longer, and as the book says, an interstate at 70 is a different trip from a farm road at 45. Check the real drive: Berkshire Medical Center, Chicopee, Hartford.

Berkshire County is in a metro area of fewer than 250,000 people (USDA rural-urban code 3, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

National Park Service sites within about an hour:

  • Appalachian National Scenic Trail2 miles
  • Martin Van Buren National Historic Site30 miles
  • New England National Scenic Trail32 miles
  • Springfield Armory National Historic Site35 miles
  • Saratoga National Historical Park45 miles

Read about Hinsdale's history on Wikipedia.

Know Hinsdale?

Tell us what a visitor shouldn't miss, and what living there is really like. Write to Main Street at mainstreet@smalltownguide.com. The best notes from people who know the town will be added here.

Nearby

Straight-line miles.

Small towns

Smaller places

  • Peru, MA791 people, 4 miles
  • Washington, MA502 people, 5 miles
  • Middlefield, MA392 people, 7 miles
  • Windsor, MA817 people, 7 miles
  • Cummington, MA803 people, 10 miles
  • Plainfield, MA643 people, 11 miles
  • Savoy, MA655 people, 12 miles
  • Hancock, MA748 people, 12 miles

Sources

  1. U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025)
  2. U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates
  3. Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions)
  4. U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024
  5. FBI, Crime in the United States, Table 8 (offenses known to law enforcement by city)
  6. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information
  7. National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal)
  8. National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024
  9. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020
  10. U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program
  11. National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places listings
  12. National Park Service, park unit boundaries
  13. USDA Economic Research Service, Rural-Urban Continuum Codes, 2023
  14. U.S. Census Bureau, 2025 Gazetteer files and 2020 urban areas

Census survey figures are estimates with a margin of error; we leave out any figure whose margin is too wide to be useful. Data last gathered October 5, 2026. See something wrong? Write to mainstreet@smalltownguide.com.