Oak Bluffs, Massachusetts

Community in Dukes County · population 2,324 (2020 Census)

Jan low / Jul high: 23° / 79°
Snow a year: 25 in
Tornadoes ≤10 mi since 1950: 2
Median age: 53.8

Oak Bluffs is a community of 2,324 people in Dukes County, Massachusetts. It ranks more seaside character than 96% of Massachusetts towns, better for a vacation home than 90% of Massachusetts towns, more walkable than 70% of Massachusetts towns.

How Oak Bluffs ranks

Percentile among Massachusetts towns with at least 500 people on The Town Files lifestyle rankings. 50 is typical for the state; 90 means better than 90% of Massachusetts towns.

The Town Files lifestyle rankings, built from federal demographic, school, crime and housing data (2025).

Homes and cost of living

Median rent is $1,077 a month. 59.8% of households own their home.

Census ACS 5-year estimates, 2020–2024. "Typical town" = median of Massachusetts towns with 500+ people.

Housing	Oak Bluffs	Typical Massachusetts town
Median home value	—	$510,150
Median rent	$1,077	$1,561
Median household income	—	$108,622
Home value ÷ income	—×	4.5×
Homeownership	59.8%	80.7%
Median year built	1943	1968
Seasonal / vacation homes	69.9%	—

Who lives in Oak Bluffs

People	Oak Bluffs	Typical Massachusetts town
Median age	53.8	44.8
Age 65 and over	35.0%	20.7%
Under 18	15.4%	—
Bachelor's degree or higher	35.8%	45.7%
Below the poverty line	3.7%	6.3%
Veterans	4.5%	—
Born outside the U.S.	3.0%	—
Work from home	8.9%	17.7%
Average commute	— min	30.1 min
Homes with broadband	82.3%	93.9%

Weather in Oak Bluffs

July highs average 79.1°F and January lows 23.4°F. About 42.1 inches of rain and melted snow fall a year, with 25.3 inches of snow (typical Massachusetts town: 49.5 in). Expect about 2 days a year at 90°F or hotter and 115 nights at or below freezing.

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals: average daily high and low by month; precipitation and snowfall in inches. Temperatures from the Vineyard Haven Ap station (4.9 mi away); snow from Edgartown (5.3 mi).

Tornadoes, storms and disasters

2 tornadoes have passed within 10 miles of Oak Bluffs since 1950, compared with 8 for the typical Massachusetts town. 1 rated (E)F2 or stronger. The strongest, an F2, struck on December 18, 1951 about 6.1 miles from the town center. The most recent was on October 29, 2018.

NOAA Storm Events Database, tornado tracks (start to end point) passing within 10 miles of the town center, 1950–2026.

Hail of 1 inch or larger has been reported within 10 miles 5 times; the largest was 2.00 inches on July 2, 2009.

Severe weather in Dukes County since 1996

NOAA Storm Events Database, Dukes County, 1996–2026 (all event types recorded since 1996). 1 deaths recorded.

Dukes County has been included in 22 federal disaster or emergency declarations since 1953, most often for flood, hurricane, snowstorm.

Declared	Incident	Declaration
September 15, 2023	Hurricane	EM-3599: Hurricane Lee
March 27, 2020	Biological	DR-4496: Covid-19 Pandemic
March 13, 2020	Biological	EM-3438: Covid-19
April 13, 2015	Severe Storm	DR-4214: Severe Winter Storm, Snowstorm, And Flooding
April 19, 2013	Severe Storm	DR-4110: Severe Winter Storm, Snowstorm, And Flooding

Jobs and pay in Dukes County

Dukes County had 9,176 jobs in 2024, paying an average of $71,428 a year. Unemployment was 4.4% in 2023; in Oak Bluffs itself the ACS puts it at 5.2%.

BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2024, private-sector jobs and average annual pay.

Annual average unemployment rate (BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics via USDA ERS).

Towns near Oak Bluffs

Oak Bluffs, MA
0.5 mi · 5,341 people · home $923,100
Vineyard Haven, MA
2.2 mi · 2,747 people · home $847,400
Tisbury, MA
3.0 mi · 4,815 people · home $993,600
Edgartown, MA
5.0 mi · 1,107 people · home $2,000,001
West Tisbury, MA
6.3 mi · 3,555 people · home $1,302,100
Edgartown, MA
6.9 mi · 5,168 people · home $1,199,300
Falmouth, MA
7.1 mi · 3,818 people · home $837,900
Woods Hole, MA
7.4 mi · 834 people · home $877,500

Oak Bluffs questions

Is Oak Bluffs, Massachusetts a good place to retire?

On The Town Files lifestyle rankings, Oak Bluffs scores better for retirees than 55% of Massachusetts towns and quieter than 52%. 35.0% of residents are 65 or older (median age 53.8).

What is the weather like in Oak Bluffs?

July highs average 79.1°F and January lows 23.4°F (NOAA 1991–2020 normals). It gets about 42.1 inches of precipitation a year and 25.3 inches of snow.

Does Oak Bluffs get tornadoes?

2 tornadoes have passed within 10 miles of Oak Bluffs since 1950 (NOAA Storm Events); the strongest was a F2 on December 18, 1951. The typical Massachusetts town has had 8.

How this page is made. Every number comes from public data, matched to Oak Bluffs's Census boundary (GEOID 2550425). Comparisons use the median of Massachusetts towns with at least 500 people. Weather comes from the nearest NOAA normals station; storm counts use NOAA tornado tracks within 10 miles of the town center.

U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2020–2024)
U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Census and 2025 Gazetteer (2020 / 2025)
NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals (1991–2020)
NOAA NCEI Storm Events Database (1950–2026)
FEMA OpenFEMA Disaster Declarations (this product uses the FEMA OpenFEMA API but is not endorsed by FEMA) (1953–2026)
NCES Common Core of Data (2023–24)
BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages; USDA ERS county unemployment (BLS LAUS) (2000–2024)
The Town Files lifestyle rankings, built from federal demographic, school, crime and housing data (2025)

Data snapshot 2026-11-13.