Borough · Salem County, New Jersey

Elmer, New Jersey

Elmer is a borough in Salem County, New Jersey, part of the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD metro area. It has 1,176 residents. Elmer, New Jersey has a quality-of-life score of 45 out of 100 (moderate), ranking #8,583 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within New Jersey it ranks #509 of 552 cities and towns. It ranks best on job growth (high), income inequality (Gini index) (low) and depression (low). It ranks worst on effective property tax rate (high), preventable hospital stays (high) and primary care physicians (low).

45Moderate

Quality-of-life score: #8,583 of 15,651 cities and towns
New Jersey: #509 of 552 in NJ
Population: 1,176 (2020-2024)
Land area: 1 mi²
Density: 1,322.2 /mi²
FIPS code: 3421240

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 74 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.

Open in the map

Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety50#7,884/15,637
Economy77#3,580/15,631
Housing58#6,302/14,977
Health51#7,625/15,609
Healthcare25#11,703/15,650
Environment35#10,000/15,453
Education55#6,965/15,649
Infrastructure66#5,272/15,650
Community38#9,774/15,651
Leisure & amenities9#14,227/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Elmer, New Jersey ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Salem County value” are the county’s: the source publishes no figure for this city or town, and the county holding most of its residents stands in.

Strengths

Job growth · high3.6%
96/100New Jersey 0.0%United States 0.1%2026 Q1U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsProvisional dataSalem County value
Income inequality (Gini index) · low0.343
95/100New Jersey 0.478United States 0.4832020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B19083
Depression · low20.1%
86/100New Jersey 15.6%United States 20.7%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Students per teacher · low11.8×
85/100New Jersey 12.0×United States 15.2×2024National Center for Education StatisticsSalem County value
Dental care shortage · low0.0
84/100New Jersey 0.4United States 5.7Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationSalem County value
Home price to income ratio · low2.4×
83/100New Jersey 4.4×United States 4.1×2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25077

Weaknesses

Effective property tax rate · high2.37%
3/100New Jersey 1.88%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090
Preventable hospital stays · high4,661 /100k
3/100New Jersey 3,143 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteSalem County value
Primary care physicians · low25 /100k
8/100New Jersey 79 /100kUnited States 76 /100k2022University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteSalem County value
Traffic deaths · high25.7 /100k
11/100New Jersey 6.9 /100kUnited States 12.3 /100k2020-2024National Highway Traffic Safety AdministrationProvisional dataSalem County value
Dentists · low31 /100k
11/100New Jersey 88 /100kUnited States 75 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteSalem County value
Arts, entertainment and recreation · low2.1 /10k
13/100New Jersey 4.6 /10kUnited States 5.5 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsSalem County value

Trends

The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.

PopulationFalling
1,436 (2015-2019) → 1,176 (2020-2024)
−18%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
39.0% (2015-2019) → 17.5% (2020-2024)
−21 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
New homes permittedWorsening
1.6 /1k (2021) → 0.0 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−100%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
81.6% (2015-2019) → 95.0% (2020-2024)
+13 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Child poverty rateWorsening
10.6% (2015-2019) → 21.7% (2020-2024)
+11 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Uninsured residents (under 65)Improving
9.1% (2015-2019) → 4.3% (2020-2024)
−4.8 pts5 yearsCensus table B27010US 10.8% → 9.8%

What changed in five years

How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.

Over about five years, Elmer, New Jersey improved on 2 of 10 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 8 moved within the margin of error and 0 barely changed.

Earlier (2015-2019)
Latest (2020-2024)
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among cities and towns: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts.

Improved2

Broadband+13 points81.6% → 95.0%
Household income+23%$77,734 → $95,357

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 10 measures

Change of every measure of Elmer, New Jersey between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	26.8 min2015-2019	26.2 min2020-2024	−0.6 min	Within the margin of error	55%
Bachelor's degree or higher	26.2%2015-2019	30.6%2020-2024	+4.3 points	Within the margin of error	63%
Broadband subscriptions	81.6%2015-2019	95.0%2020-2024	+13 points	Improved	74%
Effective property tax rate	2.86%2015-2019	2.37%2020-2024	−0.5 points	Within the margin of error	90%
High school diploma or higher	95.4%2015-2019	92.1%2020-2024	−3.3 points	Within the margin of error	10%
Home price to income ratio	2.5×2015-2019	2.4×2020-2024	−0.1×	Within the margin of error	83%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.3222015-2019	0.3432020-2024	+0.021	Within the margin of error	33%
Median household income	$77,7342015-2019	$95,3572020-2024	+23%	Improved	39%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent as share of income	24.9%2015-2019	22.9%2020-2024	−2 points	Within the margin of error	69%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 14640 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Values are the latest and the one five years earlier of the same publisher dataset; datasets that changed publisher in between are never compared.

Survey estimates (American Community Survey) compare the two most recent 5-year windows that do not share years, so the margin of error of the difference holds. The 2015-2019 window predates the pandemic and 2020-2024 includes it.
A change counts only when it is larger than 1.645 times the square root of the two standard errors squared, summed (a 90% margin). Measures published without a margin must change by at least 5% to count.
“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15651 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.
Standing is a percentile among the same places: 0 is the lowest value on the measure (or the worst when lower is better), 100 the best.

Cities and towns like Elmer, New Jersey five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Elmer, New Jersey in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.

For comparison, Elmer, New Jersey itself moved +2.1 points in standing on average over the same 9 measures (standings of all places average about zero).

How the ranking works

Similarity is the root-mean-square difference of standings in the earlier period over the measures most places have. Places are ranked by measures that improved beyond the margin of error minus those that declined (a count that estimation noise in small places cannot inflate), then by the mean change of standing over the measures a place has in both periods. Only places with more improvements than declines and a rise in standing are listed. Standings are relative, so a place can improve in absolute terms and still lose standing.

Who lives here

Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).

Age and sex

1,176 residents (±172)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

420 households (±64)

Elmer, New Jersey
New Jersey share

Under $25k4.8%†20
$25k–50k14%†60
$50k–75k

Homes

Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.

Owners and renters

420 households (±64)

Elmer, New Jersey
New Jersey share

Own68%284
Rent32%†136

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

626 workers (±98)

Elmer, New Jersey
New Jersey share

Drive alone86%539
Carpool4.0%†25
Public transit0.0%0

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes pay by metro area, not by county or city. The metro area page lists its largest occupations and lets you look up any job.

Pay in the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD

Local businesses

Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.

The Census Bureau publishes business counts by county, not by city, so these are the figures of Salem County, the county holding most of Elmer's residents.

Salem County has 1,137 employer establishments, 174 for every 10,000 residents (0.70× the US rate of 248; 0.69× New Jersey's), with 17,630 paid employees at an average annual pay of $64,898. The Census Bureau also counts 3,818 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 1,137; 3,818 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 174; US 248 · New Jersey 253
Paid employees: 17,630
Average annual pay: $64,898; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Salem County by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Specialty trade contractors	96	14.7	0.95×About typical	787	$72,813	227
Ambulatory health care services	93	14.2	0.68×Fewer than typical	645	$67,016	126
Restaurants and other eating places	71	10.8	0.59×Fewer than typical	887	$21,143	20
Religious organizations	52	7.9	1.43×More than typical	198	$16,197	—
Services to buildings and dwellings	44	6.7	1.00×About typical	204	$51,873	183
Construction of buildings	43	6.6	0.87×About typical	227	$54,203	112
Building equipment contractors	40	6.1	1.01×About typical	441	$70,930	54
Personal care services	39	6	1.25×About typical	137	$22,117	109
Automotive repair and maintenance	37	5.6	1.12×About typical	139	$45,993	58
Lessors of real estate	33	5	0.41×Fewer than typical	99	$39,717	433
Landscaping services	32	4.9	1.39×More than typical	149	$51,785	64
Limited-service restaurants	32	4.9	0.61×Fewer than typical	313	$28,035	10

Rank places for an industry Open Salem County

County Business Patterns (2023); Nonemployer Statistics (2024)

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 65,488 residents here, 336,755,052 in the United States. County Business Patterns counts establishments in 2023; the Nonemployer Statistics count businesses in 2024.
“More than typical” is a density at least 1.25 times the nation's per resident, “fewer” at most 0.8 times, with at least 10 establishments. It compares counts of businesses with counts of people: it says nothing about demand, incomes, size, quality or profit, and visitors and commuters are not residents.
The Census Bureau adds noise to employment and payroll to protect confidentiality, and withholds some figures: an industry with few establishments can show employees or pay as unavailable.
Industries overlap: a narrower industry (full-service restaurants) is part of a broader one (restaurants), so the rows do not add up.
Industries follow the North American Industry Classification System; the two surveys use different editions (NAICS 2017 and 2022), which this page matches industry by industry.

Federal contracts performed here

In FY2026, an estimated $5,090 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Elmer, New Jersey: $4.33 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $5,090
Per resident: $4.33; US $1,994
Sole-source: 1.9%; US 30%
Single offer: 0.0%; US 8.8%

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Top buying agencies

Department of the Navy$4,99198%
U.S. Coast Guard$98.991.9%

Top recipients

BROWN, DONALD$4,99198%
LEWIS ENVIRONMENTAL LLC$98.991.9%

Spending by fiscal year

301.2FY2017
520.9FY2018
949.6FY2019
539.9FY2021
4.6KFY2022
16.4KFY2023
5.6KFY2024
5.1KFY2026

Top industries (NAICS)

Commercial and industrial machinery and equipment repair and maintenance · 8113$4,99198%
Remediation and other waste management services · 5629$98.991.9%

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 3, 2026, loaded Oct 3, 2026.

How this is estimated

Agencies report each contract action's place of performance as a county and a ZIP code. A ZIP code's money is split among the cities it covers by the share of its land inside each (Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation areas); the part outside city limits stays with the county.

The place of performance is what the contracting agency reports, often the contractor's office rather than where the work happens.
Shares are of land, not of people or businesses: a ZIP code that is mostly rural land but has its offices in town gives the town less than it should.
ZIP codes that are not mapped areas (post office boxes, the unique ZIP codes of large federal sites and companies) stay with their county, unless one city covers nearly all of it.
Counts of actions and awards include those only partly in Elmer, New Jersey, so they do not add up across cities.

Elmer, New Jersey's figures are part of those of Salem County, NJ ($9.8M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.1% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Elmer is mostly in Salem County.

See federal money in Salem County

Representation in Congress

Members serving today, with their record in the current Congress (party-unity votes cast with their caucus, roll calls missed). Not a grade.

Elmer, New Jersey is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Jefferson Van DrewR-NJ-2 · 100% of residentsWith party 95%Missed 1.5%

Senate

Explore Congress The 2026 races

County

A city can lie in several counties. Some indicators are published for counties only: the page marks them.

Salem County45100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD73

Other cities and towns in Salem County

Largest first.

Similar cities and towns

Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).

Data and sources

Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.

PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement

JSON · /api/v1/places/3421240

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends