Chatham vs Harwich
Chatham and Harwich are not two school districts that happen to look alike — they are one. Both are Monomoy Regional, down to the same elementary buildings, so every school figure on this page is identical for the two. Schools cannot decide this one, which makes everything below the whole of it.
Harwich is about 6 minutes closer to downtown Boston at peak. Over a decade of commuting that gap is worth more than most people price it at.
Choose Chatham if you prefer the town itself — the numbers do not separate them.
All Chatham numbers →Choose Harwich if you want the lower price, or the commute matters most.
All Harwich numbers →Side by side
The better of the two is highlighted on each row. Where a row is not highlighted, the two are close enough that calling a winner would be false precision.
| Chatham | Harwich | |
|---|---|---|
| School tier | solid schoolsT3 | solid schoolsT3 |
| MCAS percentile | 56th | 56th |
| Niche district rank | 71st of 236 | 71st of 236 |
| 4BR house | $1.1MT3 | $750kT2 |
| 2BR condo | $590k | $425k |
| Commute to Boston | 114 minT4 | 108 minT4 |
| MBTA rail | No MBTA rail | No MBTA rail |
| Tax rate | $5.00T1 | $7.50T1 |
| Est. tax bill on that 4BR | ≈$5,500 | ≈$5,600 |
| 3BR rent | $2,840/mo | $3,063/mo |
Prices are estimates calibrated to the Zillow Home Value Index and Redfin; tax rates are FY2026 residential rates and the bill applies that rate to the town’s own median 4BR estimate; commutes take the rail leg from the MBTA timetable and still model the drive; rents are HUD FY2026 Small Area Fair Market Rents. School tiers are editorial and shown next to the state’s own MCAS figures. Data last reviewed — see the methodology. This comparison never uses demographics as an input.
