State hospital quality · CMS Hospital Compare

Best CMS-rated hospitals in Massachusetts

According to PlainHospital's state average CMS-star ranking, Massachusetts ranks #28 of 54 states and territories by average overall star rating among rated hospitals (highest = #1).

84
Hospitals: #28 of 54
Corpus placement: 3.2★
Avg (54 rated): 9
Five-star: 60
With ER

Massachusetts vs all states by Medicare hospital count

Where this state's Medicare-certified hospital inventory sits among every tracked state and territory (inventory signal, not a quality ranking)

84 29th of 56 higher than 27 of 56 states

States and territories, banded by Medicare-certified hospital count

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more states. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source CMS Hospital Compare · 2026-08-14

The state picture

According to PlainHospital's state average CMS-star ranking, Massachusetts ranks #28 of 54 states and territories by average overall star rating among rated hospitals (highest = #1). Among 54 rated hospitals, the state averages 3.2 of 5 stars.

3.2 / 5
state average among rated (level with 3.2 national): #28 of 54
state corpus placement by avg star: 9
five-star hospitals: 54 of 84 rated
hospitals with a CMS overall rating

CMS star ratings are composite quality scores; 54 of 84 Massachusetts hospitals had enough reporting volume to receive one. Not medical advice.

Massachusetts hospital quality

Massachusetts averages 3.2/5 CMS stars across 54 rated hospitals (level with the 3.2 national average), with 9 five-star facilities of 84 Medicare-certified hospitals.

PlainHospital ranks Massachusetts hospitals from CMS Hospital Compare overall star ratings (mortality, safety, readmission, patient experience, timely care). Corpus placement: #28 of 54 states and territories by average overall star among rated hospitals. 54 of 84 facilities had enough volume to receive a star; the rest stay unrated. Not medical advice - open a hospital page for the measure-level detail.

5★

9
4★

12
3★

16
2★

15
1★

2

What this shows 9 Massachusetts hospitals reach five stars; the state's 3.2-star average sits level with the 3.2-star national mark.

What the Data Shows About Hospitals in Massachusetts

Massachusetts has 84 Medicare-certified hospitals tracked by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Hospital Compare program. Of these, 60 facilities operate an emergency department, an important signal for communities that rely on nearby acute-care access. The statewide average CMS overall star rating is 3.2 out of 5 , calculated across the 54 of 84 hospitals with enough reporting volume to generate a composite rating.

At the top of the quality distribution, 9 hospitals have earned the highest 5-star CMS overall rating in Massachusetts. The single highest-rated facility in the state registry is Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital - Needham in Needham, currently listed at 5/5 stars. Star ratings are composite scores built from mortality, safety of care, readmission, patient experience (HCAHPS), and timely & effective care domains, so a single number conceals meaningful per-domain variation that matters for specific procedures.

Showing 84 of 84 hospitals on this page (page 2 of 2). Hospital quality varies materially within a state, urban academic centers, rural critical-access hospitals, and specialty facilities report against different baselines, so comparing individual facility profiles before choosing planned care is more useful than relying on the statewide average alone. All figures reflect the CMS Hospital Compare release from 2026-08-14, and nothing on this page is medical advice, consult a qualified clinician before making care decisions.

Hospitals

3.2

Avg (54 rated)

Five-Star

With ER

Top-Rated in Massachusetts

Highest CMS star ratings among Medicare-certified hospitals in Massachusetts.

🥇1 Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital - Needham Needham, MA · Acute Care Hospitals ★★★★★
🥈2 Brigham and Women Faulkner Hospital Jamaica Plain, MA · Acute Care Hospitals ★★★★★
🥉3 Brigham and Women's Hospital Boston, MA · Acute Care Hospitals ★★★★★
4 Emerson Hospital - W Concord, MA · Acute Care Hospitals ★★★★★
5 Fairview Hospital Great Barrington, MA · Critical Access Hospitals ★★★★★
6 Massachusetts General Hospital Boston, MA · Acute Care Hospitals ★★★★★

Compare Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital - Needham vs Brigham and Women Faulkner Hospital →

All Hospitals

Showing 51–84 of 84 hospitals

Hospital	City	Type	Rating	ER
Miravista Behavioral Health Center Holyoke	Holyoke	Psychiatric	N/A	No
Mount Auburn Hospital Cambridge	Cambridge	Acute Care Hospitals	4	Yes
Nantucket Cottage Hospital Nantucket	Nantucket	Acute Care Hospitals	3	Yes
Nashoba Valley Medical Center Ayer	Ayer	Acute Care Hospitals	N/A	Yes
New England Baptist Hospital Boston	Boston	Acute Care Hospitals	5	No
Newton-Wellesley Hospital Newton	Newton	Acute Care Hospitals	5	Yes
North Adams Regional Hospital Corporation North Adams	North Adams	Critical Access Hospitals	N/A	Yes
North Shore Medical Center - Salem	Salem	Acute Care Hospitals	5	Yes
Northampton VA Medical Center Leeds	Leeds	Acute Care - Veterans Administration	N/A	No
Northeast Hospital Corporation Beverly	Beverly	Acute Care Hospitals	3	Yes
Norwood Hospital Norwood	Norwood	Acute Care Hospitals	N/A	Yes
Saint Anne's Hospital Fall River	Fall River	Acute Care Hospitals	3	Yes
Signature Healthcare Brockton Hospital Brockton	Brockton	Acute Care Hospitals	3	Yes
South Shore Hospital South Weymouth	South Weymouth	Acute Care Hospitals	2	Yes
Southcoast Behavioral Health Dartmouth	Dartmouth	Psychiatric	N/A	No
Southcoast Hospitals Group Fall River	Fall River	Acute Care Hospitals	4	Yes
St Vincent Hospital Worcester	Worcester	Acute Care Hospitals	2	Yes
Sturdy Memorial Hospital Attleboro	Attleboro	Acute Care Hospitals	3	Yes
Taravista Behavioral Health Center Devens	Devens	Psychiatric	N/A	No
Taunton State Hospital Taunton	Taunton	Psychiatric	N/A	No
The Shriners' Hospital for Children - Boston Boston	Boston	Childrens	N/A	No
Tufts Medical Center Boston	Boston	Acute Care Hospitals	2	Yes
Umass Memorial Health - Harrington Hospital Southbridge	Southbridge	Acute Care Hospitals	3	Yes
Umass Memorial Healthalliance Hospitals Leominster	Leominster	Acute Care Hospitals	3	Yes
Umass Memorial Healthcare-Marlborough Hospital Marlborough	Marlborough	Acute Care Hospitals	2	Yes
Umass Memorial Medical Center/University Campus Worcester	Worcester	Acute Care Hospitals	3	Yes
VA Boston Healthcare System - Jamaica Plain Jamaica Plain	Jamaica Plain	Acute Care - Veterans Administration	4	Yes
Valley Springs Behavioral Health Hospital Holyoke	Holyoke	Psychiatric	N/A	No
Walden Behavioral Care, LLC Dedham	Dedham	Psychiatric	N/A	No
Westborough Behavioral Healthcare Hospital LLC Westborough	Westborough	Psychiatric	N/A	No
Westwood Pembroke Health Systems Westwood	Westwood	Psychiatric	N/A	Yes
Whittier Pavilion Haverhill	Haverhill	Psychiatric	N/A	No
Winchester Hospital Winchester	Winchester	Acute Care Hospitals	3	Yes
Worcester Recovery Center and Hospital Worcester	Worcester	Psychiatric	N/A	No

Hospital Quality in Massachusetts

Massachusetts has 84 Medicare-certified hospitals tracked by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Of these, 9 have earned the highest 5-star overall quality rating, reflecting strong performance across mortality, safety of care, readmission rates, patient experience, and timely and effective care measures.

The average CMS star rating across the 54 rated of 84 Massachusetts hospitals is 3.2. 60 facilities have emergency departments, an important factor for communities that depend on nearby acute care. Hospital quality can vary significantly within a state, so comparing individual facility ratings before choosing care is recommended.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best hospital in Massachusetts? ▼

The highest-rated hospital in Massachusetts is Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital - Needham in Needham with a CMS star rating of 5/5. There are 9 five-star hospitals in the state out of 84 Medicare-certified facilities.

How are hospitals rated? ▼

CMS rates hospitals on a 1-to-5 star scale based on quality measures including mortality, safety, patient experience, readmission rates, and timely care. In Massachusetts, the average star rating is 3.2 across rated hospitals.

How many hospitals are in Massachusetts? ▼

Massachusetts has 84 Medicare-certified hospitals, of which 60 have emergency departments. 9 hospitals have earned the highest 5-star CMS rating.

Data from CMS Hospital Compare; patient-experience scores from the HCAHPS survey. Last refreshed: 2026-08-14. About PlainHospital and our data sources

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

Compiled by PlainHospital, Hospital Quality Editorial Process · August 14, 2026

Every figure on PlainHospital is rendered directly from federal source data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on federal source data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.