{"id":4618,"date":"2023-06-26T09:12:42","date_gmt":"2023-06-26T09:12:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/townsvillages.com\/us\/?p=4618"},"modified":"2026-07-31T18:30:17","modified_gmt":"2026-07-31T18:30:17","slug":"worcester-county-massachusetts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/townsvillages.com\/us\/worcester-county-massachusetts\/","title":{"rendered":"Worcester County, Massachusetts"},"content":{"rendered":"

Worcester County is a county in Massachusetts, United States, about 40 miles west of Boston. It had a population of 862,111 at the 2020 census, an estimated 888,502 by 2025, and covers 1,511 square miles (3,913 km2) of land centred near 42\u00b021\u2032N 71\u00b055\u2032W. It is the largest county in Massachusetts by land area and the second-most populous.<\/p>\n

Worcester is the county seat, or shire town, and its own most populous city; its postal code is 01608. Massachusetts abolished county government statewide in stages, and Worcester County’s own government ended on July 1, 1998 — the sheriff, courts, and registries of deeds still operate under county names, but there is no elected county council or county budget. The county today is a geographic and judicial region made up of 60 municipalities: 5 cities and 55 towns, all of them fully incorporated with no unincorporated territory. It runs on Eastern Time. Its FIPS code is 25027.<\/p>\n

Towns & Villages in Worcester County<\/h2>\n

All 60 of Worcester County’s municipalities are incorporated — five cities and 55 towns — and every acre of the county sits inside one or another. There are no unincorporated communities and no townships as a separate layer of government; a “town” in Massachusetts is a full municipality with its own government, not a subdivision. Worcester is marked as the seat below; population figures are from the 2020 census.<\/p>\n

\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Place<\/th>\nType<\/th>\nPop.<\/th>\nZIP<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Worcester<\/td>\nCity · seat<\/td>\n206,518<\/td>\n01608<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Fitchburg<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n41,946<\/td>\n01420<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Leominster<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n43,782<\/td>\n01453<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Gardner<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n21,287<\/td>\n01440<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Southbridge<\/td>\nCity<\/td>\n17,740<\/td>\n01550<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Shrewsbury<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n38,325<\/td>\n01545<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Milford<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n30,379<\/td>\n01757<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Westborough<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n21,567<\/td>\n01581<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Grafton<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n19,664<\/td>\n01519<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Holden<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n19,905<\/td>\n01520<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Webster<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n17,776<\/td>\n01570<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Northbridge<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n16,335<\/td>\n01534<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Auburn<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n16,889<\/td>\n01501<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Northborough<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n15,741<\/td>\n01532<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Clinton<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n15,428<\/td>\n01510<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Uxbridge<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n14,162<\/td>\n01569<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Oxford<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n13,347<\/td>\n01540<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Charlton<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n13,315<\/td>\n01507<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Millbury<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n13,831<\/td>\n01527<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Spencer<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n11,992<\/td>\n01562<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Athol<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n11,945<\/td>\n01331<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Dudley<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n11,921<\/td>\n01571<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Lunenburg<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n11,782<\/td>\n01462<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Leicester<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n11,087<\/td>\n01524<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Southborough<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n10,450<\/td>\n01772<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Winchendon<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n10,364<\/td>\n01475<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Rutland<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n9,049<\/td>\n01543<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Sutton<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n9,357<\/td>\n01590<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Sturbridge<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n9,867<\/td>\n01566<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Douglas<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n8,983<\/td>\n01516<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Templeton<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n8,149<\/td>\n01468<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Westminster<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n8,213<\/td>\n01473<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Upton<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n8,000<\/td>\n01568<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Sterling<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n7,985<\/td>\n01564<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
West Boylston<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n7,877<\/td>\n01583<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Harvard<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n6,851<\/td>\n01451<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Ashburnham<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n6,315<\/td>\n01430<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Mendon<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n6,228<\/td>\n01756<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Hopedale<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n6,017<\/td>\n01747<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Bolton<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n5,665<\/td>\n01740<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Barre<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n5,530<\/td>\n01005<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Paxton<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n5,004<\/td>\n01612<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Warren<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n4,975<\/td>\n01083<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
North Brookfield<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n4,735<\/td>\n01535<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Boylston<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n4,849<\/td>\n01505<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Hubbardston<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n4,328<\/td>\n01452<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Lancaster<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n8,441<\/td>\n01523<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
West Brookfield<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n3,833<\/td>\n01585<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Brookfield<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n3,439<\/td>\n01506<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Princeton<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n3,495<\/td>\n01541<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Millville<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n3,174<\/td>\n01529<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Berlin<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n3,158<\/td>\n01503<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Blackstone<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n9,208<\/td>\n01504<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Hardwick<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n2,667<\/td>\n01037<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
East Brookfield<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n2,224<\/td>\n01515<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Phillipston<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n1,726<\/td>\n—<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Oakham<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n1,851<\/td>\n01068<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Royalston<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n1,250<\/td>\n01368<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Petersham<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n1,194<\/td>\n01366<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
New Braintree<\/td>\nTown<\/td>\n996<\/td>\n01531<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n

Blackstone is often confused with the Blackstone River and Blackstone Valley, a name shared by the whole watershed running south into Rhode Island — the town of Blackstone (pop. 9,208, ZIP 01504) is one of several valley towns, along with Millville and Uxbridge. North Grafton, South Grafton, Fiskdale, Baldwinville, and Whitinsville are recognized village centers inside Grafton, Sturbridge, Templeton, and Northbridge respectively, not separate municipalities, and are not counted in the 60.<\/p>\n

ZIP Codes<\/h2>\n

Worcester itself carries more than a dozen ZIP codes split by neighborhood, from 01602 through 01610 plus PO-box-only codes; 01608 covers City Hall and downtown. Smaller towns typically hold a single ZIP tied to their own post office:<\/p>\n