Newark, New Jersey

Area Profile

310,178 residents. Public schools, jobs, income, housing cost, climate and natural-hazard risk for Newark, in Essex County.

53out of 100
Area Score
Bottom 29% of 4,196 profiles measured

How we calculate this

How this area ranks

Data updated · 15 sources
Opportunity3,232nd of 4,199 cities measured43
Schools3,411th of 4,162 cities measured25
GrowthTop 14% of 4,224 cities measured71
Housing affordability3,185th of 4,218 cities measured53
ClimateTop 48% of 4,225 cities measured71
Physical resilience2,404th of 4,226 cities measured50
AccessTop 16% of 4,226 cities measured99
Economic stability3,666th of 4,226 cities measured33
The quick read

Employment conditions sit below most comparable cities measured: unemployment is 6.9% and the Opportunity signal places Newark in the bottom 23%.

In the public schools here, 32% of students met the state standard in mathematics, with 16.7 students for every teacher.

2,472 housing units were authorized over the past twelve months, within 5% of the prior year — steady rather than turning.

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
310,178
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$52,060
Bottom 26% nationally
Density
12,847/sq mi
24.1 sq mi of land
Median age
34.7
2024 ACS 5-Year
County
New Jersey
Nearest major airport
EWR
2 mi · Newark Liberty Intl
Median home value
$373,700
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment of 6.9% — higher than in all but 4% of the 4,226 measured US cities.

Employment grew 1.8% over the past year, to 131,416 employed residents.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Income of new arrivalsEssex County, NJ’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$96,31778th percentileof 4,101filing years 2022–2023
Income of those who leftEssex County, NJ’s figurefiling years 2022–2023$92,11077th percentileof 4,101filing years 2022–2023
Median household income ±$1,7722024 ACS 5-Year$52,060Bottom 26%of 29,2232024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$1,0212024 ACS 5-Year$27,193Bottom 27%of 31,4202024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year23.5%Bottom 17%of 31,7732024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute ±0.8 min2024 ACS 5-Year35.3 minBottom 16%of 31,5432024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher ±0.9%2024 ACS 5-Year19.7%Bottom 48%of 31,9192024 ACS 5-Year
Drove alone to work ±2%2024 ACS 5-Year49.1%6th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year
EmploymentJuly 2026131,416Top 39%of 4,226July 2026
Employment change (3 years)July 2026+1.8%Top 22%of 4,226July 2026
Employment change (year over year)July 2026+1.8%Top 10%of 4,226July 2026
Labor forceJuly 2026141,15461st percentileof 4,226July 2026
Labor force participation ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year75.0%Bottom 39%of 31,5132024 ACS 5-Year
Mean annual wageNew York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ Metro Area’s figure2025 OEWS$86,310Top 17%of 3,7292025 OEWS
Median annual wageNew York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ Metro Area’s figure2025 OEWS$61,430Top 19%of 3,7292025 OEWS
Public transit to work ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year19.3%99th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment change (year over year)July 2026−2.0%Top 1%of 4,226July 2026
Unemployment rateJuly 20266.9%Bottom 4%of 4,226July 2026
Worked from home ±0.7%2024 ACS 5-Year7.3%48th percentileof 31,4332024 ACS 5-Year

Unemployment rate

2021/072022/072023/072024/072025/072026/07114.8
Monthly unemployment rate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, most recent value 6.9% in July 2026. It has been rising for the last 3 months, over a series running from 2020-01 to 2026-07. A break in the line is a month the Bureau of Labor Statistics did not publish for this area — it is left empty rather than estimated.

Median household income, successive ACS releases

202120222023202452k41k
Each point is a separate five-year estimate, most recently $52,060 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 York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ

OccupationPeople employedMedian annual wage
Home Health and Personal Care Aides644,700$39,680
Retail Salespersons202,080$38,280
Registered Nurses197,740$119,720
Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners183,030$42,840
General and Operations Managers177,850$157,000
Cashiers173,830$35,950

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.

32% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 44% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.

There are 16.7 students for every full-time teacher across 78 public schools, more than in most measured places.

Public schools
83
2024-25 school year
Students per teacher
16.7
across 78 of them
Math proficiency
32.3%
Bottom 22% in New Jersey
Reading proficiency
43.7%
Bottom 20% in New Jersey
The 12 largest of 83 public schools, by enrollment.
SchoolDistrictStudentsPer teacherMathReading
North Star Academy Charter School · charterNorth Star Academy Charter School6,71435.565%75%
TEAM Academy Charter School · charterTEAM Academy Charter School6,40622.135%50%
Great Oaks Legacy Charter School · charterGreat Oaks Legacy Charter School2,16933.937%48%
East Side High SchoolNewark Public School District2,04615.38%17%
Barringer High SchoolNewark Public School District1,89417.25%9%
Marion P. Thomas Charter School · charterMarion P. Thomas Charter School1,41024.319%29%
Ann Street SchoolNewark Public School District1,29416.248%55%
Essex County Donald M. Payne Sr. School of TechnologyEssex County Schools of Technology1,23013.230%65%
Lafayette Street SchoolNewark Public School District1,21316.240%50%
First Avenue SchoolNewark Public School District1,08414.354%60%
Central High SchoolNewark Public School District1,05113.62%15%
Oliver Street SchoolNewark Public School District1,03413.443%63%

81.7% 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 New Jersey’s own standard, so it is ranked within state. How to read school figures.

Prices for everything a household buys run about 13% above the national average — the Bureau of Economic Analysis index reads 112.6, 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 Newark, NJ Metropolitan Division is up 54% over five years, and up 6.3% 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 $7,262 a year in real estate taxes, about 1.94% of the median home value.

HUD’s Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom, set near the 40th percentile of recent new leases, is $2,205, some 58% above the $1,392 tenants already here pay.

At HUD’s Fair Market Rent of $2,205 a month for a two-bedroom, keeping rent to 30% of income takes a household income of about $88,200 a year, about 169% of the median household income here of $52,060.

The typical renter household here spends 34% of its income on rent, above the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened. Median gross rent runs $1,392 a month.

A median home at $373,700 costs 4.1 times the median income of its owner-occupied households, $90,482, above the historic benchmark of about 3 times income.

Cost of living
112.6

Prices here run about 13% 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 York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ 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
33.7%
Above the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
4.1×
median home value ÷ owner household income
Market rent, two bedroom
$2,205
what a new lease costs · FY2026
Median gross rent
$1,392
what tenants now pay · 2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$373,700
2024 ACS 5-Year

The figures above are measured against Newark’s median household income of $52,060, 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 York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ Metro Area’s figure2023112.6Bottom 16%of 3,7002023
Home price change (1 year)the Newark, NJ Metropolitan Division’s figure2026 Q2+6.3%93rd percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price change (5 years)the Newark, NJ Metropolitan Division’s figure2026 Q2+53.7%88th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price change (10 years)the Newark, NJ Metropolitan Division’s figure2026 Q2+90.1%46th percentileof 4,1542026 Q2
Home price to income ±0.42024 ACS 5-Year4.1Bottom 16%of 26,8152024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year24.4%2nd percentileof 31,7172024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±1,6832024 ACS 5-Year121,54699th percentileof 32,1772024 ACS 5-Year
Market rent, one bedroomFY2026$1,822Bottom 26%of 4,072FY2026
Market rent, three bedroomFY2026$2,761Bottom 27%of 4,072FY2026
Market rent, two bedroomFY2026$2,205Bottom 24%of 4,072FY2026
Median gross rent ±$212024 ACS 5-Year$1,392Bottom 23%of 23,1202024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$10,8572024 ACS 5-Year$373,70080th percentileof 29,1112024 ACS 5-Year
Median property taxes ±$2422024 ACS 5-Year$7,26297th percentileof 26,4402024 ACS 5-Year
Owner household income ±$7,3572024 ACS 5-Year$90,482Top 36%of 27,5482024 ACS 5-Year
Property tax rate ±0.09%2024 ACS 5-Year1.94%91st percentileof 20,5432024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income ±0.8%2024 ACS 5-Year33.7%Bottom 24%of 22,9502024 ACS 5-Year
Seasonal and second homes ±1312024 ACS 5-Year12291st percentileof 32,3302024 ACS 5-Year
Second homes2024 ACS 5-Year0.1%52nd percentileof 31,8952024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate2024 ACS 5-Year6.6%48th percentileof 31,7692024 ACS 5-Year
Vacant housing units ±6532024 ACS 5-Year8,16299th 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

71/ 100
Top 14% of 4,224 published city profiles
Permitting has been rising for the last 2 years of a series running from 2020 to 2025. That is the direction of the recent run. The chart below compares the first year with the last, which can point the other way.

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.

Population has grown 2% since 2020, reaching 317,303 in 2024.

79% of the 2,472 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.

Federal tax returns show Essex County, which contains Newark, lost about 1.0% 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 $96,317, close to the $92,110 of households that moved out.

At 8.0 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is above the median for measured US cities.

Units permitted
2,472
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
8.0
Top 16% nationally
Year over year
−5%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
78.7%
units in 5+ unit buildings

Population, annual estimates

20202021202220232024317k306k
Census Population Estimates Program, July 1 of each year. These annual estimates are designed for year-over-year comparison, unlike the ACS five-year figure shown as this profile's population. It has been rising for the last 2 years, over a series running from 2020 to 2024.

People moving in and out

Net migration
−1.0%
of residents, in a year
Arrivals from another state
49%
of people moving in
Income of arrivals
$96,317
average per tax return
Income of those who left
$92,110
average per tax return

Where newcomers came from

  1. Hudson County, NJ 4,661 people · 14% of arrivals
  2. Union County, NJ 3,317 people · 10% of arrivals
  3. Kings County, NY 2,965 people · 9.1% of arrivals
  4. Passaic County, NJ 2,234 people · 6.9% of arrivals
  5. Bergen County, NJ 1,980 people · 6.1% of arrivals

Where people who left went

  1. Union County, NJ 5,043 people · 13% of departures
  2. Hudson County, NJ 2,673 people · 6.8% of departures
  3. Morris County, NJ 2,640 people · 6.7% of departures
  4. Middlesex County, NJ 2,008 people · 5.1% of departures
  5. Bergen County, NJ 1,989 people · 5.1% 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 Essex County, NJ. IRS Statistics of Income, filing years 2022–2023.

Housing units permitted per year

2020202120222023202420252k1k
Annual totals from the Census Building Permits Survey. Permitting in 2025 was higher than 2020 (+91%).

Weather & climate

6 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 87°F and January a low of 26°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 46.6 inches, including 31.5 inches of snow.

10°30°50°70°90°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station NEWARK INTL AP, 2.9 miles from this location.

Precipitation

JFMAMJJASOND4.7"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
Annual precipitation1991-2020 Normals46.6"1991-2020 Normals
Annual snowfall1991-2020 Normals31.5"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low1991-2020 Normals26°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high1991-2020 Normals87°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months1991-2020 Normals61991-2020 Normals
Seasonal temperature swing1991-2020 Normals45°F1991-2020 Normals

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

Physical risk

50 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, heat wave and earthquake, with inland flooding alone responsible for 70% of it. Heat wave is independently rated low or minimal nationally, so this describes how the loss is composed, not how large that hazard is.

Inland floodingModerate
EarthquakeElevated
HurricaneModerate
DroughtModerate

Low or minimal exposure: heat wave, strong wind, winter weather, cold wave, tornado, lightning, hail, ice storm, coastal flooding, landslide, wildfire, tsunami, volcanic activity, 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
517
per 100,000 residents · 2025 calendar year
Property crime
1,789
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.

Newark's police department reported 517 violent offenses per 100,000 residents, higher than most places with a department reporting. Property crime runs at 1,789.

Essex County records 3.8 homicide deaths per 100,000 residents a year, near the middle of counties measured. The CDC does not publish this below county level.

Firearm deaths of all intents run at 5.3 per 100,000 — more than the homicide rate, since the figure counts suicides and accidents as well as homicides.

Drug overdose deaths run at 24.6 per 100,000 residents in Essex County.

Homicide
3.8
per 100,000 residents
Firearm deaths, all intents
5.3
per 100,000 residents
Drug overdose
24.6
per 100,000 residents
Suicide
6.2
per 100,000 residents

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 Newark’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 Newark (Essex County) rather than Newark 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.

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

5 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest Newark Liberty Intl at 2 miles.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Broadband access ±0.9%2024 ACS 5-Year86.4%Bottom 36%of 31,5882024 ACS 5-Year
Distance to major airportNASR current cycle2 miTop 1%of 4,226NASR current cycle
Major airports within 100 milesNASR current cycle5Top 45%of 4,226NASR current cycle
No internet access ±1%2024 ACS 5-Year10.8%Bottom 34%of 31,5882024 ACS 5-Year
AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Newark Liberty IntlEWR2 mi9,999 ft
John F Kennedy IntlJFK21 mi14,511 ft
New York Stewart IntlSWF54 mi11,817 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
53
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Other cities in New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ

Same metropolitan area, measured the same way
CityCountyPopulationArea ScoreCompare
New YorkNew York County8,483,84461New York vs Newark
Jersey CityHudson County294,07863Jersey City vs Newark
YonkersWestchester County209,97861Yonkers vs Newark
PatersonPassaic County158,73545
ElizabethUnion County137,30255
Toms RiverOcean County94,95658
CliftonPassaic County89,37958
New RochelleWestchester County82,76968
Mount VernonWestchester County72,42756
BayonneHudson County71,55355
East OrangeEssex County70,09052
PassaicPassaic County70,00248

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 Newark side by side with a similar place.

Newark vs PassaicNewark vs Elizabeth

Moving to Newark 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
DevelopmentU.S. Census Bureau
Building Permits Survey
12 months ending July 2026
DemographicsU.S. Census Bureau
Population Estimates Program
July 1, 2024 estimate
Access, Demographics, Housing, Income, JobsU.S. Census Bureau
American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File)
2024 ACS 5-Year
SafetyU.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics
Provisional county-level mortality by intent
March 2025 to February 2026; May 2025 to April 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. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research
Fair Market Rents
FY2026
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 October 8, 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 Newark

9 ZIP areas

Every ZIP area in Newark 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 Newark 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
0710557,093$59,847$471,60050
0710452,266$53,978$388,800—
0710743,293$51,242$379,500—
0710337,293$51,534$318,800—
0710636,383$53,440$355,400—
0711229,456$58,200$336,500—
0710828,790$36,200$399,400—
0711413,670$36,019$373,200—
0710212,358$38,864$431,500—