Dartmouth vs Fairhaven
You are paying about $100k more for a 4BR in Dartmouth, and in exchange you get the stronger schools. That is the trade in plain terms: $100k for one tier of schooling.
Fairhaven is about 5 minutes closer to downtown Boston at peak. Over a decade of commuting that gap is worth more than most people price it at.
Choose Dartmouth if you want the stronger schools of the two.
All Dartmouth numbers →Choose Fairhaven if you want the lower price, or the commute matters most.
All Fairhaven 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.
| Dartmouth | Fairhaven | |
|---|---|---|
| School tier | solid schoolsT3 | mixed schoolsT4 |
| MCAS percentile | 72nd | 56th |
| Niche district rank | 87th of 236 | 84th of 236 |
| 4BR house | $625kT2 | $525kT1 |
| 2BR condo | $350k | $300k |
| Commute to Boston | 93 minT4 | 88 minT4 |
| MBTA rail | No MBTA rail | No MBTA rail |
| Tax rate | $8.03T1 | $10.00T2 |
| Est. tax bill on that 4BR | ≈$5,000 | ≈$5,300 |
| 3BR rent | $2,110/mo | $1,770/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.
