Broome County, NY

County Profile

197,378 residents. Safety, jobs, income, housing cost, climate and natural-hazard risk for Broome County, NY.

Several figures AreaProfile publishes are measured by county and nowhere finer — death rates by intent among them. On this page those describe the geography they are printed on, which is not true of the city and ZIP pages that inherit them.

58out of 100
Area Score
Bottom 37% of 1,225 published profiles

How we calculate this

How this area ranks
Opportunity743rd of 1,255 counties51
SchoolsTop 41% of 973 counties58
Growth1036th of 1,226 counties31
Housing affordabilityTop 23% of 1,255 counties100
Climate998th of 1,254 counties60
Physical resilience670th of 1,255 counties58
Access894th of 1,255 counties70
Economic stability1032nd of 1,255 counties38
The quick read

Unemployment is 4.4% and median household income $62,616, putting employment conditions in the middle range of published profiles.

In the public schools here, 36% of students met the state standard in mathematics, with 11.1 students for every teacher.

265 housing units were authorized over the past twelve months, within 10% of the prior year — steady rather than turning.

At a glance

Population
197,378
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income
$62,616
Bottom 43% nationally
Density
280/sq mi
705.7 sq mi of land
Median age
39.2
2024 ACS 5-Year
County
Broome County
New York
Metro area
Binghamton, NY
Nearest major airport
ELM
54 mi · Elmira/Corning Rgnl
Median home value
$154,900
2024 ACS 5-Year

Jobs & opportunity

Unemployment of 4.4% is lower than 42% of the 1,255 measured US locations.

Employment fell 0.2% over the past year, to 82,888 employed residents.

31% of adults hold a four-year degree, higher than 78% of measured US locations.

MetricValueCompared with peersSource period
Median household income ±$1,920$62,616Bottom 43%2024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income ±$1,054$35,860Top 45%2024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate18.5%Top 22%2024 ACS 5-Year
Average commute20.8 minBottom 18%2024 ACS 5-Year
Bachelor's degree or higher31.0%Top 22%2024 ACS 5-Year
Employment82,888Top 31%June 2026
Employment change (3 years)-0.9%Bottom 34%June 2026
Employment change (year over year)-0.2%Top 35%June 2026
Labor force86,694Top 31%June 2026
Labor force participation56.8%Bottom 40%2024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment change (year over year)0.4%Top 30%June 2026
Unemployment rate4.4%Top 42%June 2026
Unemployment rate
2021/062022/032022/122023/092024/062025/032025/102026/065.63.2
Monthly unemployment rate from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, most recent value 4.4% 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
202120222023202463k54k
Each point is a separate five-year estimate, most recently $62,616 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 — Binghamton, NY
OccupationPeople employedMedian annual wage
Home Health and Personal Care Aides2,690$38,210
Registered Nurses2,570$101,720
Retail Salespersons2,540$34,460
Fast Food and Counter Workers2,440$33,280
Stockers and Order Fillers2,230$38,310
Cashiers2,210$32,920

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.

36% of students met the state standard in mathematics and 52% in reading, across the schools here that reported results.

There are 11.1 students for every full-time teacher, fewer than in most measured places.

Public schools
52
2024-25 school year
Students per teacher
11.1
across all schools here
Math proficiency
36.4%
Top 46% in New York
Reading proficiency
51.5%
Bottom 40% in New York
SchoolDistrictStudentsPer teacherMathReading
BINGHAMTON HIGH SCHOOLBINGHAMTON CITY SCHOOL DISTRICT1,26210.3
UNION-ENDICOTT HIGH SCHOOLUNION-ENDICOTT CENTRAL SCHOOL DISTRICT1,07811.5
BROOME-DELAWARE-TIOGA BOCESBROOME-DELAWARE-TIOGA BOCES1,0554.8
VESTAL SENIOR HIGH SCHOOLVESTAL CENTRAL SCHOOL DISTRICT1,01512.7
VESTAL MIDDLE SCHOOLVESTAL CENTRAL SCHOOL DISTRICT84712.352%72%
JENNIE F SNAPP MIDDLE SCHOOLUNION-ENDICOTT CENTRAL SCHOOL DISTRICT7729.832%52%
HOMER BRINK SCHOOLMAINE-ENDWELL CENTRAL SCHOOL DISTRICT73113.867%70%
MAINE-ENDWELL SENIOR HIGH SCHOOLMAINE-ENDWELL CENTRAL SCHOOL DISTRICT72013.3
JOHNSON CITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOLJOHNSON CITY CENTRAL SCHOOL DISTRICT70512.6
CHENANGO FORKS ELEMENTARY SCHOOLCHENANGO FORKS CENTRAL SCHOOL DISTRICT60515.138%46%
MAINE-ENDWELL MIDDLE SCHOOLMAINE-ENDWELL CENTRAL SCHOOL DISTRICT57712.827%57%
GEORGE F JOHNSON ELEMENTARY SCHOOLUNION-ENDICOTT CENTRAL SCHOOL DISTRICT57013.336%46%

51.5% 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 York’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 →

Median rent of $941 takes 18% of median household income, below the 30% threshold at which a household is considered cost-burdened.

A median home costs 2.5 times median household income here, close to the historic benchmark for an affordable market.

Rent as a share of income
18.0%
Below the 30% cost-burdened threshold
Home price to income
2.5×
median home value ÷ median income
Median gross rent
$941
2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value
$154,900
2024 ACS 5-Year
MetricValueCompared with peersSource period
Home price to income2.47Bottom 28%2024 ACS 5-Year
Homeownership rate64.5%Bottom 14%2024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units ±13593,164Top 10%2024 ACS 5-Year
Median gross rent ±$22$941Top 38%2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value ±$3,077$154,900Bottom 33%2024 ACS 5-Year
Rent as a share of income18.0%Top 38%2024 ACS 5-Year
Vacancy rate12.0%Bottom 39%2024 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 →
Development Momentum
31/ 100
Ranks 1036 of 1,226 published city profiles
Permitting is decreasing, measured from 2022 to 2025.

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 fallen 1% since 2020, reaching 196,397 in 2024.

Permitting has turned downward after moving the other way the year before.

76% of recently permitted units are in buildings of five or more homes, so new supply is concentrated in apartments and condominiums rather than detached houses.

At 1.3 permitted units per 1,000 residents, building activity is below the median for measured US locations.

Units permitted
265
12 months ending July 2026
Per 1,000 residents
1.3
Bottom 22% nationally
Year over year
−10%
vs the prior twelve months
Multifamily share
76.2%
units in 5+ unit buildings
Population, annual estimates
20202021202220232024199k196k
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
2022202320242025340232
Annual totals from the Census Building Permits Survey. Permitting in 2025 was lower than 2022 (−20%).

Weather & climate

5 of the twelve months have a normal average temperature between 55°F and 80°F. July averages a high of 78°F and January a low of 16°F.

Normal annual precipitation is 42.0 inches, including 86.5 inches of snow.

0°20°40°60°80°JFMAMJJASOND
Solid line: normal daily high. Dashed line: normal daily low. 1991-2020 normals from NOAA station BINGHAMTON, 8.3 miles from this location.
Precipitation
JFMAMJJASOND4.7"
Normal monthly precipitation, in inches.
MetricValueSource period
Annual precipitation42.0"1991-2020 Normals
Annual snowfall86.5"1991-2020 Normals
Average January low16°F1991-2020 Normals
Average July high78°F1991-2020 Normals
Comfortable months51991-2020 Normals
Seasonal temperature swing46°F1991-2020 Normals

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.

Physical risk

58 / 100
Physical resilience

The hazards accounting for most of this area's expected annual loss are inland flooding, hurricane and heat wave.

Inland floodingElevated
HurricaneModerate
Heat waveModerate

Low or minimal exposure: winter weather, lightning, tornado, landslide, ice storm, cold wave, earthquake, strong wind, hail, wildfire, avalanche.

Hazard ratings are AreaProfile calculations derived from the FEMA National Risk Index v1.20.0 (December 2025). FEMA National Risk Index county record. FEMA does not endorse this presentation. Higher physical resilience means lower exposure.

These are deaths, not offences. AreaProfile does not publish reported crime, and this is not a substitute for it — it says nothing about burglary, theft or assault.

Broome County records 2.4 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 5.1 per 100,000 — more than the homicide rate, because nationally most firearm deaths are suicides.

Drug overdose deaths run at 15.3 per 100,000 residents in Broome County.

Homicide
2.4
per 100,000 residents · under 10 deaths
Firearm deaths, all intents
5.1
per 100,000 residents
Drug overdose
15.3
per 100,000 residents
Suicide
11.7
per 100,000 residents

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

Age-adjusted rates from provisional death certificate records, published by the CDC for Broome County as a whole — these rates are not published below county level. A county can hold both a dense city centre and a suburb whose experience of it is nothing alike, so this describes the county around Broome County rather than Broome County 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

Three things people look for are missing from every AreaProfile page, and each is missing for a reason rather than by oversight. The Area Score is calculated without them and the weighting is documented on the methodology page.

Reported crime
The FBI’s Crime Data Explorer is the only source for reported offences with national coverage and a published method, and it requires an API key AreaProfile does not hold. Arrest counts, news volume and commercial “safety scores” are not substituted in the meantime. What is published above under Safety is a different measurement — deaths rather than offences, from death certificates rather than police returns — and it covers no property crime at all.
Taxes
No tax dataset has met the source admission test for coverage, transparent methodology and update cadence. Nothing here is individualized tax advice.
Full cost of living
No public source publishes one with national coverage and a documented method. Housing affordability above is computed from published rent, price and income, and excludes transport, groceries, healthcare, insurance and taxes — commuting cost in particular tends to offset suburban housing savings.

Access

4 major airports lie within 100 miles, the nearest 54 miles away.

AirportCodeDistanceLongest runway
Elmira/Corning RgnlELM54 mi8,001 ft
Syracuse Hancock IntlSYR67 mi9,013 ft
Griffiss IntlRME77 mi11,820 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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Data & methodology

Used forSourceSource periodUpdated
AccessFederal Aviation Administration
Airports (NASR) — Aeronautical Data Delivery Service
NASR current cycle28-day NASR cycle
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)
JobsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
Local Area Unemployment Statistics
June 2026Monthly
DemographicsU.S. Census Bureau
Population Estimates Program
July 1, 2024 estimateAnnual (vintage released each spring)
DevelopmentU.S. Census Bureau
Building Permits Survey
12 months ending July 2026Monthly, roughly three weeks after the reference month
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)
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

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.