Which Massachusetts counties score best for off-grid living?

Of the 13 Massachusetts counties we have scored, Essex County scores highest at 91 and Barnstable County lowest at 81. Massachusetts ranks 22nd of 50 overall, at 88 out of 100 (Good with caveats). Buildability separates its counties most: 6 to 9 out of 10.

Updated 2026-09-27 · 13 counties · 206 spots of private rural land scored

Good with caveatsMassachusetts ranks 22nd of 50, 88 out of 100, in the Best States ranking: the typical parcel on the state's private rural land, with each scored spot weighted by the land it stands for. On a fresh draw of counties it would rank between #18 and #25. City counties with little private rural land have no page, and any parcel can be scored, free, below.

Every scored county in Massachusetts, best score first

Find a county13 counties


Essex → 1645 people / sq mi	91	25	17	13	14	13	9
Hampshire → 308 people / sq mi	91	24	18	13	15	12	9
Bristol → 1052 people / sq mi	90	25	17	13	14	13	8
Dukes → 202 people / sq mi	90	25	18	13	13	12	9
Middlesex → 1986 people / sq mi	90	25	17	13	15	12	8
Berkshire → 137 people / sq mi	89	24	19	12	15	12	7
Hampden → 746 people / sq mi	88	24	19	13	14	12	6
Plymouth → 813 people / sq mi	88	25	17	13	14	11	8
Worcester → 574 people / sq mi	88	24	18	13	15	12	6
Franklin → 101 people / sq mi	86	23	19	12	15	11	6
Norfolk → 1837 people / sq mi	86	25	17	13	14	11	6
Nantucket → 313 people / sq mi	84	25	16	12	14	9	8
Barnstable → 588 people / sq mi	81	25	16	12	11	10	7

Score is out of 100: Water 25, Legal 20, Solar 15, Hazard 15, Food 15, Buildability 10. Green cells score 80% or better of their maximum; amber cells under 70%.

Where the good land is

89% of Massachusetts's private rural land scores Good with caveats or better (80 or more). The strongest counties are Essex, Hampshire and Bristol. The weakest are Barnstable, Nantucket and Franklin. Where the land falls short, it is most often on building (slope, septic and land price) and growing food (season, soil and water for crops).

What separates them

Buildability: Essex County scores 9 of 10, Norfolk County 6. Slope, the septic the ground needs, footings, and the county's land price. A steep or soggy lot that fails a septic test is the dealbreaker photos hide.
Hazard: Hampshire County scores 15 of 15, Barnstable County 11. Flood, wildfire, seismic, and severe-weather exposure: the risks that raise insurance and build cost or strand a parcel.
Food: Essex County scores 13 of 15, Nantucket County 9. Soil quality, frost-free growing days, and rainfall: what decides whether you can actually feed yourself and your animals.
Legal: Berkshire County scores 19 of 20, Barnstable County 16. Whether you can reach the land and live on it: road access, distance to emergency care, internet and cell, and how built up the area is, which decides how many lot-size, livestock, and zoning rules you will meet.

Water and Solar barely move across the sample: the counties score within two points of each other there, so those are state-level facts, not county choices.

The state's soft spot

Buildability is Massachusetts's weakest dimension, at 7 of 10 for the state as a whole. Slope, the septic the ground needs, footings, and the county's land price. A steep or soggy lot that fails a septic test is the dealbreaker photos hide. Getting a parcel here off-grid runs $35k to $85k by our estimates across these counties, before the house. The full Massachusetts row in the Best States ranking has the state-wide spread and how the popular off-grid guides rank it.

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Before you buy in Massachusetts

The scores read the physical land. Whether you may legally live on it is a separate question, and it changes at the county line: Is it legal to live off-grid in Massachusetts? covers zoning, building code, septic, and wells for the state, with the counties that opt out. For the reason water carries a quarter of the score, how you get water on off-grid land is the read. And the five-point check is the order to do it in.

Good with caveatsMassachusetts: 88 of 100, 22nd of 50. A good state is not a good parcel. Score the one you are looking at, free, in about a minute.

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