Perth Amboy, New Jersey

Area Profile

55,855 residents. Public schools, jobs, income, housing cost, climate and natural-hazard risk for Perth Amboy, in Middlesex County.

Area Score unavailable

Missing required signal: growth. AreaProfile withholds a score rather than inferring the missing dimensions.

How we calculate this

How this area ranks
Data updated · 13 sources
Opportunity3,173rd of 3,899 cities measured41
Schools2,335th of 2,668 cities measured21
Housing affordability3,979th of 4,147 cities measured40
ClimateTop 48% of 4,223 cities measured71
Physical resilience2,679th of 4,182 cities measured46
AccessTop 23% of 4,226 cities measured97
Economic stability2,497th of 4,226 cities measured56
The quick read

Employment conditions sit below most comparable published city profiles: unemployment is 6.2% and the Opportunity signal places Perth Amboy in the bottom 19%.

Housing costs more relative to local incomes than in most published city profiles: rent takes 33% of median household income and the median home is 6.0 times it.

Newark Liberty Intl is 13 miles away, giving the area unusually direct access to the national air network.

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
55,855
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$61,977
Bottom 42% nationally
Density
11,981/sq mi
4.7 sq mi of land
Median age
37.9
2024 ACS 5-Year
County
Middlesex County
New Jersey
Metro area
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ
Nearest major airport
EWR
13 mi · Newark Liberty Intl
Median home value
$370,600
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment of 6.2% is lower than 6% of the 3,904 measured US cities.

Employment grew 0.6% over the past year, to 26,004 employed residents.

MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Median household income ±$5,725$61,977Bottom 42%of 29,4632024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$1,353$27,021Bottom 26%of 31,4202024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate20.2%Top 23%of 31,9002024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute26.0 minBottom 46%of 31,5432024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher15.7%Bottom 36%of 31,9192024 ACS 5-Year
Employment26,004Bottom 33%of 3,904June 2026
Employment change (3 years)0.2%Top 45%of 3,903June 2026
Employment change (year over year)0.6%Top 17%of 3,904June 2026
Labor force27,716Bottom 34%of 3,904June 2026
Labor force participation67.5%Top 25%of 31,9332024 ACS 5-Year
Mean annual wage$86,310Top 17%of 3,6582025 OEWS
Median annual wage$61,430Top 19%of 3,6582025 OEWS
Unemployment change (year over year)-2.5%Bottom 1%of 3,904June 2026
Unemployment rate6.2%Top 6%of 3,904June 2026
Unemployment rate
2021/062022/032022/122023/092024/062025/032025/102026/06124.6
Monthly unemployment rate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, most recent value 6.2% in June 2026. 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
202120222023202462k54k
Each point is a separate five-year estimate, most recently $61,977 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

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.

6% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 26% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.

There are 13.0 students for every full-time teacher across 14 public schools, fewer than in most measured places.

Public schools
14
2024-25 school year
Students per teacher
13.0
across all schools here
Math proficiency
5.6%
Bottom 6% in New Jersey
Reading proficiency
25.7%
Bottom 6% in New Jersey
SchoolDistrictStudentsPer teacherMathReading
Perth Amboy High SchoolPerth Amboy Public School District2,76914.8
William C. McGinnis Middle SchoolPerth Amboy Public School District98412.36%29%
Samuel E. Shull Middle SchoolPerth Amboy Public School District94113.16%37%
Rose M. Lopez Elementary SchoolPerth Amboy Public School District79315.08%17%
Middlesex County STEM Charter School · charterMiddlesex County STEM Charter School73917.214%33%
Edward J. Patten Elementary SchoolPerth Amboy Public School District64912.23%22%
Herbert N. Richardson 21st Century SchoolPerth Amboy Public School District63211.53%22%
Robert N. Wilentz Elementary SchoolPerth Amboy Public School District61612.83%20%
James J. Flynn Elementary SchoolPerth Amboy Public School District59911.35%30%
Ignacio Cruz Early Childhood CenterPerth Amboy Public School District5779.3
Anthony V. Ceres Elementary SchoolPerth Amboy Public School District55911.63%14%
Edmund Hmieleski Early Childhood CenterPerth Amboy Public School District34210.7

75.2% of students here are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. That describes the circumstances families arrive with rather than how the schools perform, which is why AreaProfile shows it and does not score it.

Public schools only, from the NCES Common Core of Data. Schools are placed by ZIP code, so this is which schools are in this place rather than which one a particular address is zoned for — district boundaries do not follow municipal ones, and enrollment zones change. Fully virtual schools are excluded: they enroll students from across the state while reporting one administrative address, and counting them here would describe a school population this place does not have. The assessment covers grades 3 through 8, so a high school shows no proficiency figure — a dash in those columns means the test was not given at that school, not that it performed badly. Proficiency is measured against New Jersey’s own standard, so it compares cleanly within the state and only broadly against other states; AreaProfile therefore ranks it within state. The directory is current, while the proficiency figures are from the last school year with national coverage before the pandemic interrupted testing.

Housing & affordability

How it’s calculated →

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. Housing drives most of that difference.

A new two-bedroom lease runs about $2,486, some 47% above the $1,688 tenants already here pay — the market has moved faster than sitting tenancies have.

Median rent of $1,688 takes 33% of median household income, above the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened.

A median home at $370,600 costs 6.0 times the median household income of $61,977, well above the historic benchmark, at a level conventionally described as seriously unaffordable.

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.

Rent as a share of income
32.7%
Above the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
6.0×
median home value ÷ median income
Market rent, two bedroom
$2,486
what a new lease costs · FY2026
Median gross rent
$1,688
what tenants now pay · 2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$370,600
2024 ACS 5-Year
MetricValueCompared nationallySource period
Cost of living index112.6Top 16%of 3,6582023
Home price to income5.98Top 8%of 27,9722024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate35.4%Bottom 3%of 31,7172024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±72619,615Top 3%of 32,1772024 ACS 5-Year
Market rent, one bedroom$1,978Top 21%of 4,067FY2026
Market rent, three bedroom$2,981Top 20%of 4,067FY2026
Market rent, two bedroom$2,486Top 17%of 4,067FY2026
Median gross rent ±$62$1,688Top 15%of 23,3292024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$17,996$370,600Top 20%of 29,3422024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income32.7%Top 4%of 22,8042024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate2.9%Bottom 19%of 31,8722024 ACS 5-Year

Both affordability measures come from the same ACS release as the income they are compared with, so the comparison is like for like. They describe housing cost against local earnings and are not a cost-of-living index — transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes are not included, and a place can look affordable here and still be expensive to live in for reasons this does not capture.

Growth & development

How it’s calculated →

Population has grown 3% since 2020, reaching 56,939 in 2024.

Population, annual estimates
2020202120222023202457k55k
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.
Housing units permitted per year
2020202120222023202420252403.0
Annual totals from the Census Building Permits Survey. Permitting in 2025 was lower than 2020 (−88%).

No building-permit activity is published for this location by the Census Building Permits Survey.

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.

Air quality measures a median index of 36, in the Good band, and about 5 days a year pass 100, the threshold at which the air is unhealthy for sensitive groups.

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, 12.4 miles from this location.
Precipitation
JFMAMJJASOND4.7"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
90th percentile air quality index58.02024 calendar year
Annual precipitation46.6"1991-2020 Normals
Annual snowfall31.5"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low26°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high87°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months61991-2020 Normals
Days above AQI 10052024 calendar year
Median air quality index36.02024 calendar year
Seasonal temperature swing45°F1991-2020 Normals
Air quality
Median air quality index
36
Good on a typical day
Worst tenth of days
58
90th percentile index
Days above 100
5
unhealthy for sensitive groups

A comfortable median and a bad tail are different problems. Wildfire smoke and summer ozone show up in the worst tenth of days, not in the middle of the year.

Climate figures are thirty-year normals, not current conditions. They describe what a typical year looks like rather than what the weather is doing today. Air quality is measured rather than modeled, by EPA monitors, and published by county only where a monitor sits — a little over half the counties AreaProfile publishes have one, and about a fifth of all US counties do, and the rest show nothing rather than an estimate. Air masses are regional, so a county reading describes the air over a place reasonably well, but it is still the county reading.

Physical risk

46 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, earthquake and strong wind, with inland flooding alone responsible for 70% of it.

Strong windHigh
Ice stormModerate
Inland floodingModerate
Heat waveModerate
EarthquakeElevated
HurricaneModerate
Coastal floodingModerate
DroughtModerate
LandslideModerate

Low or minimal exposure: winter weather, tornado, cold wave, lightning, wildfire, hail.

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
269
per 100,000 residents · 2025 calendar year
Property crime
808
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.

Perth Amboy's police department reported 269 violent offenses per 100,000 residents, near the middle of places with a department reporting. Property crime runs at 808.

Middlesex County records 2.0 homicide deaths per 100,000 residents a year, lower than most counties measured. The CDC does not publish this below county level.

Firearm deaths of all intents run at 3.7 per 100,000 — more than the homicide rate, because nationally most firearm deaths are suicides.

Drug overdose deaths run at 10.2 per 100,000 residents in Middlesex County.

Homicide
2.0
per 100,000 residents · under 10 deaths
Firearm deaths, all intents
3.7
per 100,000 residents · under 10 deaths
Drug overdose
10.2
per 100,000 residents · under 10 deaths
Suicide
8.3
per 100,000 residents · under 10 deaths

Firearm deaths count every intent together, and nationally the majority are suicides rather than homicides. The two columns overlap and should not be added.

Offenses are reported to the FBI by Perth Amboy’s own police department, for the population it serves, and are shown only where it reported every month of the year — a partial year is withheld rather than scaled up. Reported crime counts what was reported to and recorded by police, which is not the same as what happened, and a place that draws a large daytime workforce carries incidents its residents did not generate. Age-adjusted rates from provisional death certificate records, published by the CDC for Middlesex County as a whole — these rates are not published below county level. A county can hold both a dense city center and a quiet suburb whose experience of it is nothing alike, so this describes the county around Perth Amboy rather than Perth Amboy itself. That is why AreaProfile shows these figures and does not put them in the Area Score. Where fewer than ten deaths were recorded the count is suppressed at source, and a rate built on single figures moves sharply between releases. What this measure has that reported crime does not: a death certificate is filed whether or not the local police agency submitted a return that year, so the figures stay comparable between places and over time.

What this profile does not cover

Some things people look for are not on this page, and each is absent for a reason rather than by oversight. The Area Score is calculated without them and the weighting is documented on the methodology page.

Taxes
Taxes are not published: no source covers them nationally with a method open enough to check. Cost of living now is — the index above is the Bureau of Economic Analysis price parity for this area — but it is a price level for all consumption rather than a budget for a household, its spread is driven mostly by housing, and it excludes taxes. Housing affordability is computed separately from rent, price and income, because that answers a narrower and more actionable question. Nothing here is individualized tax advice.
Anything about a specific address
Every figure describes an area, not a street or a house. School attendance zones, insurance pricing and the character of a neighborhood all vary within the places measured here.

Access

5 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest Newark Liberty Intl at 13 miles.

AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Newark Liberty IntlEWR13 mi9,999 ft
John F Kennedy IntlJFK27 mi14,511 ft
Philadelphia IntlPHL68 mi12,000 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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Other cities in New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ

Same metropolitan area, measured the same way
CityCountyPopulationArea ScoreCompare
New YorkNew York County8,483,84464vs Perth Amboy
NewarkEssex County310,17849vs Perth Amboy
Jersey CityHudson County294,07861vs Perth Amboy
YonkersWestchester County209,97862vs Perth Amboy
PatersonPassaic County158,73543vs Perth Amboy
ElizabethUnion County137,30253vs Perth Amboy
Toms RiverOcean County94,956vs Perth Amboy
CliftonPassaic County89,37961vs Perth Amboy
New RochelleWestchester County82,76966vs Perth Amboy
Mount VernonWestchester County72,42756vs Perth Amboy
BayonneHudson County71,55354vs Perth Amboy
East OrangeEssex County70,09050vs Perth Amboy

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.

Data & methodology

Used forSourceSource periodUpdated
AccessFederal Aviation Administration
Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service
NASR current cycle28-day NASR cycle
SafetyFederal Bureau of Investigation, Crime Data Explorer
Summarized offense counts by law enforcement agency
2025 calendar yearAnnually, with monthly revisions
Physical riskFederal Emergency Management Agency
National Risk Index
National Risk Index December 2025 (v1.20.0)Periodic dataset versions (v1.20.0 current)
ClimateNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020 (Monthly)
1991-2020 NormalsEvery ten years (next release follows the 2001–2030 period)
HousingU.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis
Regional price parities and county personal income
2023Annually, each December
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Local Area Unemployment Statistics
June 2026Monthly
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
2025 OEWSAnnual (spring release)
Demographics, Housing, Income, JobsU.S. Census Bureau
American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Table-Based Summary File)
2024 ACS 5-YearAnnual (5-year estimates released each December)
DemographicsU.S. Census Bureau
Population Estimates Program
July 1, 2024 estimateAnnual (vintage released each spring)
SafetyU.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics
Provisional county-level mortality by intent
April 2025 to March 2026Quarterly, with a rolling twelve-month window alongside complete calendar years
SchoolsU.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics
Common Core of Data and EDFacts assessments
2019-20 school year; 2024-25 school yearDirectory annually; assessment results as EDFacts releases them
HousingU.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Policy Development and Research
Fair Market Rents
FY2026Annually, each October for the coming fiscal year
ClimateU.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Air Quality System
Daily Air Quality Index by county
2024 calendar yearAnnually, once a calendar year is complete

Profile recalculated August 30, 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 browse every source.

ZIP codes in Perth Amboy

1 published ZIP profiles
ZIPPopulationMedian household incomeArea Score
0886159,351$64,491