Orange, Connecticut

Area Profile

14,315 residents. Public schools, jobs, income, housing cost, climate and natural-hazard risk for Orange, in South Central Connecticut Planning Region.

55out of 100
Area Score
Bottom 37% of 4,203 profiles measured

How we calculate this

How this area ranks

Data updated · 12 sources
Opportunity3,664th of 4,206 cities measured37
SchoolsTop 1% of 4,162 cities measured95
Growth3,634th of 4,224 cities measured29
Housing affordability2,610th of 4,225 cities measured61
Climate2,713th of 4,225 cities measured65
Physical resilience2,758th of 4,226 cities measured44
Access3,557th of 4,226 cities measured75
Economic stabilityTop 4% of 4,226 cities measured80
The quick read

Employment conditions sit below most comparable cities measured: unemployment is 5.9% and the Opportunity signal places Orange in the bottom 13%. The unemployment rate is published for South Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT, which contains Orange, rather than for Orange alone.

Public schools test above most of the state: 72% of students met the mathematics standard, placing the area in the top 1% of published profiles for schools.

783 housing units were authorized over the past twelve months, within 9% of the prior year — steady rather than turning. The permit count and 1 other measure here are published for South Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT, which contains Orange, rather than for Orange alone.

These sentences are written by fixed rules from the measurements below — a statement appears because a number crossed a stated threshold, and the values behind it are stored with it. No figure anywhere on this site is invented, estimated or inferred to fill a gap. How this works.

At a glance

Population
14,315
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$142,325
Top 5% nationally
Density
833/sq mi
17.2 sq mi of land
Median age
45.6
2024 ACS 5-Year
Metro area
Nearest major airport
BDL
48 mi · Bradley Intl
Median home value
$491,500
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment across South Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT, which contains Orange, is 5.9% — higher than in all but 9% of the 4,226 measured US cities.

Employment across South Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT, which contains Orange, fell 4.0% over the past year, to 285,826 employed residents.

59% of adults hold a four-year degree, higher than 93% of measured US cities.

Median household income of $142,325 is higher than in 95% of measured US cities.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Income of new arrivalsSouth Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$74,90854th percentileof 4,101filing years 2022–2023
Income of those who leftSouth Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$83,73769th percentileof 4,101filing years 2022–2023
Median household income ±$10,4582024 ACS 5-Year$142,325Top 5%of 29,3262024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$5,5072024 ACS 5-Year$68,078Top 7%of 31,4202024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year3.7%Top 18%of 31,7732024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute ±2.7 min2024 ACS 5-Year28.4 minBottom 41%of 31,5432024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year59.4%Top 7%of 31,9192024 ACS 5-Year
Drove alone to work ±4%2024 ACS 5-Year75.4%44th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year
EmploymentSouth Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT’s figureJuly 2026285,826Top 26%of 4,226July 2026
Employment change (3 years)South Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT’s figureJuly 2026−4.5%Bottom 5%of 4,226July 2026
Employment change (year over year)South Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT’s figureJuly 2026−4.0%Bottom 3%of 4,226July 2026
Labor forceSouth Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT’s figureJuly 2026303,89874th percentileof 4,226July 2026
Labor force participation ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year86.0%Top 21%of 31,5132024 ACS 5-Year
Mean annual wageNew Haven, CT Metro Area’s figure2025 OEWS$75,620Top 27%of 3,7292025 OEWS
Median annual wageNew Haven, CT Metro Area’s figure2025 OEWS$60,060Top 20%of 3,7292025 OEWS
Public transit to work ±0.7%2024 ACS 5-Year0.8%83rd percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment change (year over year)South Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT’s figureJuly 2026+1.4%Bottom 1%of 4,226July 2026
Unemployment rateSouth Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT’s figureJuly 20265.9%Bottom 9%of 4,226July 2026
Worked from home ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year15.6%77th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year

Median household income, successive ACS releases

2021202220232024146k128k
Each point is a separate five-year estimate, most recently $142,325 in the 2024 ACS 5-Year. Consecutive releases share four years of sample, so AreaProfile shows them as a record of successive estimates and does not compute a year-over-year change from them.

Largest occupations — New Haven, CT

OccupationPeople employedMedian annual wage
Registered Nurses10,050$104,490
Stockers and Order Fillers9,430$43,840
Home Health and Personal Care Aides7,370$39,720
Retail Salespersons6,810$35,950
Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners6,210$37,890
Fast Food and Counter Workers5,900$35,290

Searches the 40 largest occupations here that have a published wage.

Occupational employment and wages are published for metropolitan areas rather than for individual cities or ZIP areas, so these describe the wider labor market this location sits in. 2025 OEWS, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes city-level labor data only for places of 25,000 or more. This is the figure for South Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT, which contains this city.

72% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 78% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.

There are 11.7 students for every full-time teacher across 5 public schools, fewer than in most measured places.

Public schools
5
2024-25 school year
Students per teacher
11.7
across all schools here
Math proficiency
71.5%
Top 3% in Connecticut
Reading proficiency
78.0%
Top 6% in Connecticut
All 5 public schools on record, largest first.
SchoolDistrictStudentsPer teacherMathReading
Peck Place SchoolOrange School District38611.773%77%
Amity Middle School: OrangeRegional School District 0538011.578%83%
Race Brook SchoolOrange School District37511.463%74%
Turkey Hill SchoolOrange School District29711.472%78%
Mary L. Tracy SchoolOrange School District19513.9——

15.6% of students here are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. That describes the circumstances families arrive with, not how the schools perform, so it is shown and not scored.

Public schools only, from the NCES Common Core of Data, placed by ZIP code — which schools are in this place, not which one a particular address is zoned for. A dash in a proficiency column is a gap in the federal file, not a bad result. Proficiency is measured against Connecticut’s own standard, so it is ranked within state. How to read school figures.

Prices for everything a household buys run about 5% above the national average — the Bureau of Economic Analysis index reads 105.4, against 100 for the nation. Nationally, housing drives most of the spread between places in this index; other goods vary far less.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency’s house price index for the New Haven, CT Metro Area is up 55% over five years, and up 6.0% over the last year. It follows repeat sales of the same homes, so it measures price change rather than which homes happened to sell.

Homeowners here who pay a tax bill pay a median of $8,988 a year in real estate taxes, about 1.83% of the median home value.

The typical renter household here spends 35% of its income on rent, above the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $2,172 a month.

A median home at $491,500 costs 3.2 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $155,625, above the historic benchmark of about 3 times income.

Cost of living
105.4

Prices here run about 5% above the national average. The spread between places is driven mostly by housing — goods vary far less — and this excludes taxes.

Published for the New Haven, CT Metro Area as a whole. Prices are regional — people shop, commute and rent across a metropolitan area rather than within a city boundary — so this describes the cost of living around this place better than a figure drawn to its own limits would.

Rent as a share of income
35.2%
Above the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
3.2×
median home value ÷ owner household income
Median gross rent
$2,172
what tenants now pay · 2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$491,500
2024 ACS 5-Year

The figures above are measured against Orange’s median household income of $142,325, which describes the place rather than you. Enter your own and the ratio is recomputed against it. It stays in this browser.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Cost of living indexthe New Haven, CT Metro Area’s figure2023105.4Bottom 33%of 3,7002023
Home price change (1 year)the New Haven, CT Metro Area’s figure2026 Q2+6.0%87th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price change (5 years)the New Haven, CT Metro Area’s figure2026 Q2+54.9%89th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price change (10 years)the New Haven, CT Metro Area’s figure2026 Q2+91.2%48th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price to income ±0.42024 ACS 5-Year3.2Bottom 31%of 26,9012024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year89.2%77th percentileof 31,8402024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±2432024 ACS 5-Year5,54489th percentileof 32,3302024 ACS 5-Year
Median gross rent ±$1612024 ACS 5-Year$2,172Bottom 5%of 23,2172024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$16,7302024 ACS 5-Year$491,50088th percentileof 29,1112024 ACS 5-Year
Median property taxes ±$1832024 ACS 5-Year$8,98899th percentileof 26,4402024 ACS 5-Year
Owner household income ±$21,2092024 ACS 5-Year$155,625Top 6%of 27,5482024 ACS 5-Year
Property tax rate ±0.07%2024 ACS 5-Year1.83%89th percentileof 20,5432024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income ±5%2024 ACS 5-Year35.2%Bottom 20%of 23,0522024 ACS 5-Year
Seasonal and second homes ±462024 ACS 5-Year4481st percentileof 32,3302024 ACS 5-Year
Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year0.8%60th percentileof 31,8952024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year2.1%22nd percentileof 31,8952024 ACS 5-Year
Vacant housing units ±772024 ACS 5-Year15874th percentileof 32,3302024 ACS 5-Year

These measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with. They compare housing cost with local earnings only: transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not in them. How to read affordability, the two rent figures and the cost-of-living index.

Development Momentum

29/ 100
Ranks 3,634 of 4,224 published city profiles

An AreaProfile calculation combining permit volume per resident, its direction over one and three years, population change and employment growth. Permit volume alone is not the measure.

67% of the 783 units permitted over the past twelve months are in buildings of five or more homes, so new supply is concentrated in apartments and condominiums rather than detached houses. The multifamily share is published for South Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT, which contains Orange, rather than for Orange alone.

Federal tax returns show South Central Connecticut Planning Region, which contains Orange, lost about 0.4% of its residents through moves within the US in the most recent year, counting those who arrived against those who left. Households that moved in reported an average income of $74,908, below the $83,737 of households that moved out.

At 1.4 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is below the median for measured US cities. The permit rate is published for South Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT, which contains Orange, rather than for Orange alone.

Units permitted
783
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
1.4
Bottom 32% nationally
Year over year
−9%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
67.3%
units in 5+ unit buildings

People moving in and out

Net migration
−0.4%
of residents, in a year
Arrivals from another state
56%
of people moving in
Income of arrivals
$74,908
average per tax return
Income of those who left
$83,737
average per tax return

Where newcomers came from

  1. Naugatuck Valley Planning Region, CT 2,326 people · 12% of arrivals
  2. Greater Bridgeport Planning Region, CT 2,248 people · 11% of arrivals
  3. Capitol Planning Region, CT 1,719 people · 8.6% of arrivals
  4. Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region, CT 1,100 people · 5.5% of arrivals
  5. Western Connecticut Planning Region, CT 1,072 people · 5.4% of arrivals

Where people who left went

  1. Naugatuck Valley Planning Region, CT 2,715 people · 13% of departures
  2. Capitol Planning Region, CT 2,229 people · 10% of departures
  3. Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region, CT 1,574 people · 7.3% of departures
  4. Greater Bridgeport Planning Region, CT 1,273 people · 5.9% of departures
  5. Western Connecticut Planning Region, CT 720 people · 3.3% of departures

Based on the address on federal tax returns, compared with the same filers a year earlier. It counts people who file, and sees a move only when the address on a return changes. Domestic moves only: people arriving from abroad are left out. This is the figure for South Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT. IRS Statistics of Income, filing years 2022–2023.

The Census Bureau's Building Permits Survey lists only jurisdictions that issue their own permits, and Orange, CT is not one. This is the figure for South Central Connecticut Planning Region, CT, which contains this city.

Weather & climate

5 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 82°F and January a low of 23°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 41.8 inches.

10°30°50°70°90°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station NEW HAVEN TWEED AP, 7.3 miles from this location.

Precipitation

JFMAMJJASOND4.2"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals41.8"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low1991-2020 Normals23°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high1991-2020 Normals82°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals51991-2020 Normals
Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals43°F1991-2020 Normals

Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. How to read climate and air quality.

Physical risk

44 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, hurricane and coastal flooding, with inland flooding alone responsible for 62% of it.

HurricaneElevated
Inland floodingModerate
Ice stormModerate
Coastal floodingElevated
EarthquakeModerate
Heat waveModerate
LandslideModerate

Low or minimal exposure: lightning, winter weather, strong wind, tornado, cold wave, wildfire, hail, drought, volcanic activity, tsunami, avalanche.

Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA publishes at county level. City values are the population-weighted mean of the counties the city overlaps, using AreaProfile place-to-county land-area weights. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.

Violent crime
7
per 100,000 residents · 2025 calendar year
Property crime
3,667
per 100,000 residents · 2025 calendar year

Below these are deaths rather than offenses, published for the county. The two measure different things and are not comparable with each other.

Orange's police department reported 7 violent offenses per 100,000 residents, lower than most places with a department reporting. Property crime runs at 3,667.

Firearm deaths count every intent together, and nationally the majority are suicides rather than homicides, so the firearm figure and the homicide figure above it count some of the same deaths twice over. They overlap and should not be added together.

Offenses are reported to the FBI by Orange’s own police department and shown only where it reported every month of the year; a partial year is withheld rather than scaled up. Reported crime is what police recorded, which is not the same as what happened. Death rates are crude rates — deaths divided by population, not adjusted for age — except where a count was too small for the CDC to publish and it modeled the rate, which the card marks. They come from provisional death certificate records, published by the CDC by county and not below it. So they describe the county around Orange (South Central Connecticut Planning Region) rather than Orange itself. Neither is part of the Area Score. How to read crime rates and death rates.

What this profile does not cover

Each of these is absent for a reason, not by oversight. The Area Score is calculated without them; the weighting is on the methodology page.

Death-certificate rates
The CDC publishes these rates by county, and no county figure could be attached to this page.
Air quality
The EPA publishes an air-quality index only where a monitor sits. There is none in this county, and a modeled value would be a different kind of number from the measured ones everywhere else on this page.
Taxes
Income and sales taxes are not published: no source covers them nationally with a method open enough to check. Property taxes are shown in the housing section but are not part of the score. The cost-of-living index above is a price level for all consumption, not a household budget, and it excludes taxes. Nothing here is individualized tax advice.
Anything about a specific address
Every figure describes an area, not a street or a house.

Access

7 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest Bradley Intl at 48 miles.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Broadband access ±0.8%2024 ACS 5-Year96.0%Top 20%of 31,7112024 ACS 5-Year
Distance to major airportNASR current cycle48 miBottom 13%of 4,226NASR current cycle
Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle7Top 13%of 4,226NASR current cycle
No internet access ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year2.0%Top 19%of 31,7112024 ACS 5-Year
AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Bradley IntlBDL48 mi9,510 ft
New York Stewart IntlSWF58 mi11,817 ft
John F Kennedy IntlJFK59 mi14,511 ft

Airport identity, position and runway data come from the FAA. “Major airport” is an AreaProfile classification — a public-use civil airport with a paved runway of at least 8,000 feet — not an FAA hub designation. Distances are straight-line, not driving distance.

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Area Score
55
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—

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Other cities in New Haven, CT

Same metropolitan area, measured the same way
CityCountyPopulationArea ScoreCompare
New HavenSouth Central Connecticut Planning Region134,34943New Haven vs Orange
MeridenSouth Central Connecticut Planning Region60,54547Meriden vs Orange
West HavenSouth Central Connecticut Planning Region55,35147West Haven vs Orange
MilfordSouth Central Connecticut Planning Region51,02354
East HavenSouth Central Connecticut Planning Region27,80648
North HavenSouth Central Connecticut Planning Region24,33655
Wallingford CenterSouth Central Connecticut Planning Region18,20853

Every city here is measured on the same scale from the same source releases, so the comparison is like for like. A higher Area Score reflects AreaProfile’s standardized weighting rather than a judgment about which is the better place to live.

Compare

Put Orange side by side with a similar place.

Orange vs North HavenOrange vs Trumbull Center

Moving to Orange from somewhere else?

You get the difference in prices, rent and weather, and the income that would keep pace.

Data & methodology

Used forSourceSource period
AccessFederal Aviation Administration
Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service
NASR current cycle
SafetyFederal Bureau of Investigation, Crime Data Explorer
Summarized offense counts by law enforcement agency
2025 calendar year
Physical riskFederal Emergency Management Agency
National Risk Index
National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0)
Demographics, IncomeInternal Revenue Service, Statistics of Income Division
U.S. Population Migration Data (county to county)
filing years 2022–2023
ClimateNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly)
1991-2020 Normals
HousingU.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis
Regional price parities and county personal income
2023
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
2025 OEWS
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Local Area Unemployment Statistics
July 2026
Access, Demographics, Housing, Income, JobsU.S. Census Bureau
American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File)
2024 ACS 5-Year
DevelopmentU.S. Census Bureau
Building Permits Survey
12 months ending July 2026
SchoolsU.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics
Common Core of Data and EDFacts assessments
2018-19 school year; 2024-25 school year
HousingU.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency
House Price Index (traditional, all-transactions)
2026 Q2
Current conditionsNOAA National Weather Service
National Weather Service current conditions
Live observation, read when the page opens

Profile recalculated September 26, 2026. Recalculation is not the same as new source data — each figure above shows the period its source actually covers. Read the full methodology, or every source with how often each updates.

ZIP codes in Orange

1 ZIP area

Every ZIP area in Orange with census figures of its own, largest first. The ones linked below diverge enough from the city as a whole to carry a full profile; the rest track Orange closely, so their figures are here rather than on a page that would repeat this one. An Area Score is calculated for published profiles only, which is why it is blank on those rows.

ZIPPopulationMedian household incomeMedian home valueArea Score
0647714,315$142,325$491,500—