Updated November 2026. Rent figures reflect October 2026 estimates from Apartment List's November report.
Apartment List's November 2026 Rent Index estimates Boston's median monthly rent at $2,453, 1.6% higher than a year earlier, with one-bedrooms at $2,359 and two-bedrooms at $2,484. If you're searching for a one-bedroom, use the one-bedroom median rather than the median for all apartment sizes. These bedroom-specific medians give you a starting point for comparing apartments in the neighborhoods you're considering.
Boston rents have been above their year-earlier level for 64 consecutive months, according to Apartment List's estimates, and the October 2026 median was $61 below the July 2026 high, the highest reading in Apartment List's series for the city, which begins in 2017, and 9.7% above the July 2019 pre-pandemic high. Below, see which way prices are moving, how availability has changed, whether the time of year matters, and where rent runs lower nearby.
Median Monthly Rent, Boston and U.S., October 2026
| Apartment size | Boston | U.S. | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| All sizes | $2,453 | $1,384 | Boston $1,069 higher |
| One-bedroom | $2,359 | $1,215 | Boston $1,144 higher |
| Two-bedroom | $2,484 | $1,369 | Boston $1,115 higher |
Source: Apartment List's November 2026 release; October 2026 rent estimates.
Boston ranked 8th among the 100 largest U.S. cities for overall median rent in October 2026, according to Apartment List's estimates, at about 77% above the national median and between Jersey City, New Jersey ($2,529) and Santa Clarita, California ($2,447). It also ranked 8th for one-bedroom and 9th for two-bedroom median rent.
A median calculated from apartments advertised on one listing site describes that site's available inventory, which can differ from Apartment List's estimate for new leases across the whole city. Compare the listings you're considering with the median for your bedroom count rather than expecting them to match it.
Up from a year ago and up since January, down from last month. Boston's overall median rent was 1.6% higher in October 2026 than in October 2025 and 5.6% higher than in January 2026, according to Apartment List's estimates, and it fell 1.6% in October, the third monthly decline in a row. For scale, Apartment List's national median fell 0.3% in October and was 0.1% higher than a year earlier, while Massachusetts's median was 0.8% higher than a year earlier.
The gap between the 5.6% and the 1.6% is Boston's seasonal swing. According to Apartment List's estimates, the median fell 5.6% from September 2025 to January 2026, then rose in every month from February through July before easing in August, September, and October. The same shape appeared in 2025, when the median rose 8.6% from January to July and then fell in each month from August through December.
Yes, and it has been for 64 months running. October 2026 was the 64th consecutive month in which Boston's overall median rent came in above the same month a year earlier, in Apartment List's estimates; the run began in July 2021. The margin has stayed small, between 0.7% and 1.6% in every month of 2026, and October 2026 was the sixth October in a row to come in above the one before.
The 2026 months show the climb from the winter low and three months of easing. According to Apartment List's estimates, Boston's overall median rose from $2,323 in January 2026 to $2,514 in July, with the largest monthly increases in April (1.8%) and May (2.3%), then eased to $2,511 in August, $2,493 in September, and $2,453 in October.
Boston Median Monthly Rent and Year-over-Year Change, January to October 2026
| Month | Boston median | Boston year over year | U.S. year over year |
|---|---|---|---|
| October 2026 | $2,453 | +1.6% | +0.1% |
| September 2026 | $2,493 | +1.3% | -0.4% |
| August 2026 | $2,511 | +1.1% | -0.8% |
| July 2026 | $2,514 | +1.2% | -1.0% |
| June 2026 | $2,492 | +1.0% | -1.2% |
| May 2026 | $2,451 | +0.9% | -1.4% |
| April 2026 | $2,395 | +0.7% | -1.6% |
| March 2026 | $2,354 | +0.8% | -1.5% |
| February 2026 | $2,328 | +1.3% | -1.4% |
| January 2026 | $2,323 | +1.5% | -1.3% |
Source: Apartment List rent estimates, overall median; November 2026 release, data through October 2026.
The two months before that were the end of the fall decline. Boston's overall median fell from $2,363 in November to $2,325 in December 2025, according to Apartment List's estimates, while staying 1.1% to 1.2% above year-earlier levels.
Boston Median Monthly Rent and Year-over-Year Change, November and December 2025
| Month | Boston median | Boston year over year | U.S. year over year |
|---|---|---|---|
| December 2025 | $2,325 | +1.2% | -1.2% |
| November 2025 | $2,363 | +1.1% | -1.1% |
Source: Apartment List rent estimates, overall median; November 2026 release, data through October 2026.
Yes, in September 2021, and it has set new highs since, most recently in July 2026. According to Apartment List's monthly rent estimates, Boston's overall median rent reached $2,237 in July 2019, its pre-pandemic high, and fell to $1,734 by December 2020. It passed the 2019 high in September 2021 after rising 23.7% during 2021. October 2026's $2,453 is $216, or 9.7%, above the 2019 high and $61 below the July 2026 series high.
The available share is below the national figure, and apartments that lease are taking longer than the national median. In October 2026, 6.10% of units in the Boston apartment buildings covered by Apartment List's Vacancy Index were listed as available, compared with 6.25% a year earlier and 6.96% nationally. Apartments that leased in October 2026 had been listed for a median of 42.0 days, according to Apartment List's time-on-market data, compared with 41.7 days in October 2025 and 35.7 days nationally.
Listing Time and Available Share, Boston and U.S., October 2025 and October 2026
| Measure | Boston, October 2025 | Boston, October 2026 | U.S., October 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median days listed before leasing | 41.7 days | 42.0 days | 35.7 days |
| Share of apartments listed as available | 6.25% | 6.10% | 6.96% |
Source: Apartment List's November 2026 release; Vacancy Index and time-on-market data through October 2026.
The available share reached 6.95% in July 2026, its highest reading since July 2021, then fell in August, September, and October. Ask about availability and the application timeline when you arrange a tour.
Fall and winter, if price matters most. Boston's overall median rent ended January below the previous September in all nine fall-to-winter periods from 2017-18 through 2025-26, according to Apartment List's analysis of its monthly estimates, by 2.8% to 9.3%. The most recent decline was 5.6%, or about $137, from September 2025 to January 2026, after a 6.3% decline the winter before. Apartment List's research on rental seasonality names Boston as a market where the seasonal pattern has held steady in recent years and the swing between summer and winter rent growth is large.
Summer, by about three and a half weeks. Apartment List's time-on-market data, averaged over 2019 to 2025, puts the median listing time for Boston apartments that leased in June at 22.5 days, against 48.2 days for apartments that leased in February. February's median exceeded June's in each of those seven years.
Boston Seasonal Listing Times, 2019 to 2025
| Apartments leased in | Average monthly median listing time |
|---|---|
| February | 48.2 days |
| June | 22.5 days |
Source: Apartment List analysis of its time-on-market data, Boston city, 2019 to 2025.
Those figures describe apartments that already leased, not how long a listing you are looking at will stay open.
Lawrence, for a one-bedroom. It had the lowest one-bedroom median of the 13 Boston metro area cities with published estimates in Apartment List's November 2026 release, $1,295; Lowell had the lowest overall median, $1,781, and the lowest two-bedroom median, $1,870. Eleven of the other 12 cities had a lower one-bedroom median than Boston's $2,359, and eight of those also had lower overall medians; Watertown Town, Somerville, and Norwood were the exceptions.
Metro Area Cities With a One-Bedroom Median Under $2,000, October 2026
| City | All sizes | One-bedroom | Two-bedroom | Change in overall median from a year earlier |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lawrence, MA | $1,963 | $1,295 | $1,970 | +1.0% |
| Lowell, MA | $1,781 | $1,356 | $1,870 | +0.6% |
| Framingham, MA | $1,921 | $1,622 | $2,142 | -1.6% |
| Everett, MA | $2,168 | $1,764 | $2,241 | +0.9% |
| Weymouth Town, MA | $2,019 | $1,859 | $2,241 | -0.4% |
| Peabody, MA | $2,088 | $1,884 | $2,260 | +2.5% |
| Waltham, MA | $2,382 | $1,994 | $2,542 | +0.3% |
Source: Apartment List's November 2026 release; October 2026 rent estimates. Cities sorted by one-bedroom median; each row covers that city's own boundaries.
Boston and five other cities had one-bedroom medians of $2,000 or more, according to Apartment List's November 2026 release. Among the 13 cities with published estimates, Cambridge was the only one with a higher one-bedroom median than Boston, at $2,835.
Boston and Metro Area Cities With a One-Bedroom Median of $2,000 or More, October 2026
| City | All sizes | One-bedroom | Two-bedroom | Change in overall median from a year earlier |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quincy, MA | $2,266 | $2,087 | $2,463 | +0.7% |
| Watertown Town, MA | $2,550 | $2,114 | $2,689 | +2.1% |
| Somerville, MA | $2,670 | $2,133 | $2,822 | +0.5% |
| Norwood, MA | $2,471 | $2,149 | $2,597 | +2.5% |
| Boston, MA | $2,453 | $2,359 | $2,484 | +1.6% |
| Cambridge, MA | $3,122 | $2,835 | $3,435 | +3.2% |
Source: Apartment List's November 2026 release; October 2026 rent estimates. Cities sorted by one-bedroom median; each row covers that city's own boundaries.
Rents rose over the year in 11 of the 13 cities and fell in two. For the newest monthly figures, see Apartment List's Boston rent report, which updates each month.
A higher citywide median doesn't necessarily mean higher rent for the apartment size you need, because the overall median pools all apartment sizes while the bedroom medians describe separate groups. Somerville shows the difference: its overall median of $2,670 and two-bedroom median of $2,822 were both above Boston's, but its one-bedroom median of $2,133 was $226 lower.
Lowell and Lawrence are north of Boston in the Merrimack Valley. Everett, Somerville, Cambridge, and Watertown Town border Boston to the north and west; Quincy and Weymouth Town are south along the coast; Framingham and Waltham are west; Peabody is north and Norwood southwest. Whether a lower rent works for you also depends on where you need to go regularly.
Use the $2,359 one-bedroom and $2,484 two-bedroom medians for Boston from Apartment List's November 2026 report to set a price reference, then compare what apartments in that range actually offer.
For example, a Boston one-bedroom listed at $2,600 would be $241 above the $2,359 one-bedroom median. Its condition, location, lease terms, required monthly charges, and included utilities can help you judge whether that difference is worthwhile.
If your moving date is flexible, include fall and winter listings in your search; if it is fixed, compare the apartments available when you need to move.
Build a shortlist of places that meet your needs and compare their total monthly costs side by side. That gives you a practical next step: deciding which apartments deserve a tour and what to ask before applying.
For help fitting rent into your broader budget, see our Boston cost of living guide.
Rent, vacancy, and listing-time figures on this page come from Apartment List's November 2026 release, with data as of October 2026. Earlier months are shown as revised in that release.
Data Sources and Calculation Methods Behind This Page
| Source or method | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Rent estimates | Median rent on new leases signed in the month. Percentage changes are Apartment List's published figures, calculated before medians are rounded to whole dollars, so they can differ slightly from a change worked out from two rounded medians. |
| Vacancy Index | Share of units listed as available in buildings of 10 or more units that list on Apartment List. |
| Listing time | Median days from first listing to lease, for apartments leased in the month. |
| Historical rent figures | Monthly medians are Apartment List's published rent estimates for each month, as revised in the November 2026 release. The series begins in 2017, and July 2026 is its highest month. |
| Seasonal comparisons | September-to-January changes in that series, nine periods from 2017-18 through 2025-26. |
| Geographic scope | City figures cover Boston only. Metro figures cover Boston-Cambridge-Newton, which spans Massachusetts and New Hampshire and includes the city. |
| Rankings | The 100 largest U.S. cities by population. |
| National Rent Report | Nationwide rent figures; November 2026 report, October 2026 data. |
| Peak-season research | How leasing activity and rents move through the year, with Boston among the markets discussed. |
All three data series are published on Apartment List's data and rent estimates page.
Apartment List's November 2026 Rent Index puts Boston's median rent at $2,453 across all apartment sizes, and $2,359 for a one-bedroom. Apartment List reports the median, the midpoint of new-lease rents signed in the month, so a figure another source labels an average rent is not directly comparable.
Using 30% of gross household income as a starting point for rent alone, the $2,453 Boston median rent from Apartment List's November 2026 report works out to an income of about $98,100 a year. The $2,359 one-bedroom median works out to about $94,400 and the $2,484 two-bedroom median to about $99,400. Utilities and other housing costs need additional room in that budget. For the broader budget, see our Boston cost of living guide.
About $39 a month, or 1.6%. Apartment List's estimates put Boston's overall median rent at $2,414 in October 2025 and $2,453 in October 2026.
About 14%. Compared with March 2020, Boston's median rent was 14.2% higher in October 2026, while the national median was 19.2% higher, according to Apartment List, in dollar terms without adjusting for inflation. Boston's net change includes a 19.1% decline between February and December 2020, a 23.7% rise during 2021, and smaller increases each year since.
The city figure covers the City of Boston; the metro figure covers the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area, which spans Massachusetts and New Hampshire and includes the city. In October 2026, according to Apartment List's estimates, Boston's overall median of $2,453 was 9.9% above the metro's $2,233, its one-bedroom median 24.3% above the metro's $1,898, and its two-bedroom median 5.2% above the metro's $2,362. Because the metro figure includes the city, it says nothing on its own about what any one surrounding city costs.
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