Commuter rail towns near Boston, line by line

The commuter rail is how much of Greater Boston gets downtown without the subway. The MBTA runs 12 regular lines out of two downtown terminals: North Station for lines heading north and northwest, and South Station (most with a stop at Back Bay) for lines heading west and south. If you are choosing a town by commute, start with which terminal is closer to your office, then look at the stations within reach of the homes you’d consider.

Station lists and fare zones below are from the MBTA’s route and stop data, checked October 8, 2026. We list only the stations in or next to the cities, towns and Boston neighborhoods that have area guides on this site. Commuter rail runs on a timetable, so for train times use each line’s schedule on mbta.com. We don’t quote travel times here.

How the fare zones work

The MBTA puts each station in a zone from 1A (downtown and inner Boston) out to 10, and a fare is priced by the zones you travel between. As of October 8, 2026, the commuter rail fares page lists one-way fares from $2.40 to $13.25. Zones are noted in brackets below.

Lines from South Station and Back Bay

Framingham/Worcester Line

The western line along the Mass Pike corridor, running through Back Bay to South Station.

1. South Station
2. Back Bay
3. Lansdowne
4. Boston Landing
5. Newtonville
6. West Newton
7. Auburndale
8. Wellesley Farms
9. Wellesley Hills
10. Wellesley Square
11. Natick Center
12. West Natick

Area guide	Stations [zone]
Brighton	Boston Landing [1A]
Fenway	Lansdowne [1A]
Newton	Newtonville [1], West Newton [2], Auburndale [2]
Wellesley	Wellesley Farms [3], Wellesley Hills [3], Wellesley Square [3]
Natick	Natick Center [4], West Natick [4]

Beyond Natick the line continues to Framingham, Ashland, Southborough, Westborough, Grafton and Worcester. Near these stations you’ll find Newton’s Victorian and Colonial Revival village centers, Wellesley’s Colonial, Tudor and Shingle-style single-families, and Victorians and Colonials near Natick Center, with condo complexes along Natick’s main roads.

Needham Line

The Needham Line leaves the Back Bay corridor at Forest Hills and runs southwest through Boston’s southern neighborhoods.

1. Forest Hills
2. Roslindale Village
3. Bellevue
4. Highland
5. West Roxbury
6. Hersey
7. Needham Junction
8. Needham Center
9. Needham Heights

• Forest Hills [1A], in Jamaica Plain, also on the Orange Line.
• Roslindale Village [1] in Roslindale, where Victorian and Colonial Revival single-families, two-families and triple-deckers surround Roslindale Square.
• Bellevue, Highland and West Roxbury [1] in West Roxbury, mostly single-family Colonials, Capes, Tudors and Victorians on their own lots.
• Hersey, Needham Junction, Needham Center and Needham Heights [2] in Needham, a town of Colonials, Capes and ranches with many newer replacement homes.

Franklin/Foxboro Line

Franklin/Foxboro trains normally run via Back Bay and Ruggles, with some trips also stopping at Forest Hills, and the MBTA’s route patterns show some trips routed over the Fairmount Line instead. Stations in area-guide places:

1. Back Bay
2. Ruggles
3. Hyde Park
4. Readville
5. Endicott
6. Dedham Corporate Center

• Hyde Park [1] and Readville [2] in Hyde Park.
• Endicott and Dedham Corporate Center [2] in Dedham, where First Period and Federal-era houses, Victorians and Colonials sit near Dedham Square.

The line continues through Westwood (Islington), Norwood, Walpole, Norfolk and Franklin to Forge Park/495, with a branch to Foxboro.

Providence/Stoughton Line

From South Station and Back Bay, this line stops at Ruggles, Hyde Park [1] and Readville [2] before Route 128 in Westwood, then splits toward Stoughton and toward Providence and Wickford Junction in Rhode Island.

1. South Station
2. Back Bay
3. Ruggles
4. Hyde Park
5. Readville
6. Route 128

Fairmount Line

The Fairmount Line runs entirely within Boston, from South Station to Readville, and every station except Readville is in zone 1A.

1. South Station
2. Newmarket
3. Uphams Corner
4. Four Corners/Geneva
5. Talbot Avenue
6. Blue Hill Avenue
7. Morton Street
8. Fairmount
9. Readville

• Newmarket, Uphams Corner, Four Corners/Geneva and Talbot Avenue in Dorchester and along its edges, where wood triple-deckers and two-families fill most streets.
• Morton Street and Blue Hill Avenue near Mattapan.
• Fairmount [1A] and Readville [2] in Hyde Park.

Kingston, Greenbush and Fall River/New Bedford Lines

These three South Shore lines share the same inner stops: South Station, JFK/UMass [1A] in Dorchester (also on the Red Line) and Quincy Center [1] in Quincy, where the Red Line also stops. From there:

1. South Station
2. JFK/UMass
3. Quincy Center

• Kingston Line: Braintree, South Weymouth, Abington, Whitman, Hanson, Halifax and Kingston.
• Greenbush Line: Weymouth Landing/East Braintree, East Weymouth, West Hingham, Nantasket Junction, Cohasset, North Scituate and Greenbush.
• Fall River/New Bedford Line: Braintree, Holbrook/Randolph, Brockton’s three stations, Bridgewater, Middleborough, East Taunton and Freetown, then splitting to Fall River Depot and to Church Street and New Bedford.

Lines from North Station

Fitchburg Line

Heading northwest from North Station, the first stop is Porter [1A] in Cambridge, a transfer to the Red Line. Then:

1. North Station
2. Porter
3. Belmont
4. Waverley
5. Waltham
6. Brandeis/Roberts
7. Kendal Green
8. Silver Hill

Area guide	Stations [zone]
Belmont	Belmont [1], Waverley [1]
Waltham	Waltham [2], Brandeis/Roberts [2]
Weston	Kendal Green [3], Silver Hill [3]

Past Weston the line serves Lincoln, Concord, Acton, Littleton, Ayer, Shirley, Leominster and Fitchburg, ending at Wachusett. Belmont’s stations sit near Colonial, Victorian and Tudor-style single-families and many two-family houses; Waltham’s are near two- and three-family houses and mill and factory loft conversions; Weston is single-family homes on large lots.

Lowell Line

The Lowell Line runs north along the I-93 corridor:

1. North Station
2. West Medford
3. Wedgemere
4. Winchester Center
5. Anderson/Woburn

• West Medford [1A] in Medford, near single-family Colonials, Victorians and Capes.
• Wedgemere and Winchester Center [1] in Winchester, with Victorian, Colonial Revival, Tudor and shingle-style single-families and condos near the center.
• Anderson/Woburn [2] in Woburn, which per our Woburn guide is also an Amtrak Downeaster stop.

Beyond Woburn: Wilmington, North Billerica and Lowell.

Haverhill Line

1. North Station
2. Malden Center
3. Oak Grove
4. Wyoming Hill
5. Melrose/Cedar Park
6. Melrose Highlands

The Haverhill Line shares two stations with the Orange Line in Malden, Malden Center and Oak Grove [both 1A], then runs through Melrose at Wyoming Hill, Melrose/Cedar Park and Melrose Highlands [all 1]. Melrose’s stations are surrounded by Queen Anne and Colonial Revival Victorians, early 1900s Colonials and two-families. The line continues through Wakefield, Reading, Wilmington, Andover and Lawrence to Haverhill.

Newburyport/Rockport Line

1. North Station
2. Chelsea
3. Lynn Interim
4. Swampscott
5. Salem
6. Beverly

The first stop out of North Station is Chelsea [1A] in Chelsea, where triple-deckers, brick rowhouses and loft conversions dominate. The line then serves Lynn (currently at the Lynn Interim station), Swampscott, Salem and Beverly before splitting toward Newburyport and toward Gloucester and Rockport.

Things to check before you buy near a station

If you’d rather be on the subway, see our guides to the Red Line, the Green Line, the Orange Line and the Blue Line.

Talk to us about a commuter rail town

The Pettengill Group can help you compare towns along a line and pull recent sales near the stations you’d use. Start a home search or reach out with your office location and we’ll start from there.