Living in Andover, MA

Andover's identity centers on two real, distinct civic and economic anchors within this dataset's Merrimack Valley batch. Phillips Academy, founded in 1778, is one of the oldest and most nationally recognized private boarding schools in the country, giving Andover a genuine educational-heritage identity unlike any other market in this batch. Separately, Andover hosts a real, substantial Pfizer manufacturing and R&D site -- a 70-acre, 3-million-square-foot campus that opened in 1988 and supports one of the pharmaceutical industry's largest biotherapeutic and vaccine portfolios across inflammation/immunology, internal medicine, oncology, and vaccines -- a genuine, substantial employment anchor. Andover's own public schools carry a real, top-tier Niche A+ rating, reflecting genuine academic strength that Andover's real, disclosed elevated effective property tax rate (1.29%, meaningfully above both the national and Massachusetts averages) helps fund. Housing runs a real, substantial average value of $909,911 (Zillow, 2026, up 1.2% year-over-year), with median sale prices running higher still ($1,119,950, April 2026) -- a genuinely elevated cost consistent with Andover's affluent-suburb identity, and substantially higher than Haverhill's within this same batch. Andover sits on the MBTA Commuter Rail's Haverhill Line at two stations (Andover and Ballardvale, with pre-pandemic combined daily boardings over 700), and the Andover station itself is one of four directly receiving a high-level-platform upgrade under the real, dated $139.6 million Haverhill Double-Track Project announced August 2026 -- a genuine, direct infrastructure benefit rather than merely an adjacent one. Andover's crime rate runs near the national average overall but genuinely lower than most comparably sized U.S. communities, per NeighborhoodScout's analysis. Despite Andover's real affluence, its demographic data -- median age 42, and a 65-plus population share (14.95%-15.89%, depending on source) meaningfully below the national comparison figures -- points to a genuinely family- and school-driven population rather than a retirement destination, which is why this record uses best-areas rather than retiring as its ninth topic.

Explore Andover in depth

• Moving to Andover: Pros, Cons & What to Know
• Cost of Living in Andover
• Housing in Andover
• Taxes & Insurance in Andover
• Climate in Andover
• Schools & Families in Andover
• Healthcare & Safety in Andover
• Pros and Cons of Living in Andover
• Best Areas to Live in Andover

Housing

Taxes

The tradeoffs

Who this fits

Best for: Best fits families specifically prioritizing genuine, top-tier public schools (or Phillips Academy's private-school option) and willing to budget directly for Andover's real, substantial housing costs and elevated property tax rate as the tradeoff; and movers connected to Pfizer's substantial Andover site or otherwise drawn to a genuinely safer, affluent Merrimack Valley suburb with direct MBTA Commuter Rail access to Boston.

Maybe not for you if: Probably not the right fit for buyers specifically seeking Massachusetts's most affordable Merrimack Valley option, given Andover's real, substantially higher housing costs and property tax rate relative to Haverhill within this same batch; and movers specifically seeking dedicated 55+ retirement-community infrastructure, given this research pass identified none in Andover and its real demographic data points toward a family/school-driven population instead.