Village · Nassau County, New York

Hempstead, New York

Hempstead is a village in Nassau County, New York, part of the New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ metro area. It has 58,801 residents. Hempstead, New York has a quality-of-life score of 70 out of 100 (high), ranking #4,718 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within New York it ranks #511 of 859 cities and towns. It ranks best on food environment index (high), depression (low) and public transit commuters (high). It ranks worst on high school diploma or higher (low), average commute time (high) and effective property tax rate (high).

70High

Quality-of-life score: #4,718 of 15,651 cities and towns
New York: #511 of 859 in NY
Population: 58,801 (2020-2024)
Land area: 4 mi²
Density: 15,932.1 /mi²
FIPS code: 3633139

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.

Safety94#949/15,637
Economy39#9,540/15,631
Housing2#14,723/14,977
Health77#3,622/15,609
Healthcare93#1,098/15,650
Environment86#2,112/15,453
Education27#11,372/15,649
Infrastructure36#10,020/15,650
Community74#4,070/15,651
Leisure & amenities95#683/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Hempstead, New York ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Nassau 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

Food environment index · high10.0
100/100New York 8.7United States 7.62019 & 2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteNassau County value
Depression · low13.1%
100/100New York 18.0%United States 20.7%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Public transit commuters · high19.2%
99/100New York 21.6%United States 3.2%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08301
Suicide rate · low5.8 /100k
98/100New York 8.5 /100kUnited States 14.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataNassau County value
Primary care physicians · high139 /100k
97/100New York 83 /100kUnited States 76 /100k2022University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteNassau County value
Distance to an emergency room · low2.7 mi
97/100New York 3.6 miUnited States 5.5 miJul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesNassau County value

Weaknesses

High school diploma or higher · low75.5%
2/100New York 88.0%United States 89.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B15003
Average commute time · high33.3 min
3/100New York 32.6 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013
Effective property tax rate · high2.32%
3/100New York 1.30%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090
Physical inactivity · high36.3%
7/100New York 24.5%United States 26.5%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteModel-based estimate
High ozone days · high10 days
7/100New York 4 daysUnited States 7 days2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyNassau County value
Food insecurity · high30.9%
7/100New York 18.0%United States 15.6%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate

Trends

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

PopulationRising
55,300 (2015-2019) → 58,801 (2020-2024)
+6.3%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
New homes permittedWorsening
0.4 /1k (2021) → 0.2 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−59%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
80.0% (2015-2019) → 91.3% (2020-2024)
+11 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Median household incomeImproving
$62,569 (2015-2019) → $90,420 (2020-2024)
+45%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Child poverty rateImproving
27.2% (2015-2019) → 22.0% (2020-2024)
−5.2 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Unemployment rateWorsening
4.5% (2015-2019) → 9.2% (2020-2024)
+4.7 pts5 yearsCensus table B23025US 3.7% → 4.0%

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, Hempstead, New York improved on 6 of 15 measures with a comparison and declined on 1. 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.

Improved6

Property tax−0.9 points3.23% → 2.32%
Household income+45%$62,569 → $90,420
Poverty−4.5 points18.9% → 14.4%
Uninsured−3.1 points15.3% → 12.2%
Broadband+11 points80.0% → 91.3%

Declined1

Unemployment+4.7 points4.5% → 9.2%

All 15 measures

Change of every measure of Hempstead, New York between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	31.4 min2015-2019	33.3 min2020-2024	+1.9 min	Within the margin of error	28%
Bachelor's degree or higher	18.3%2015-2019	21.5%2020-2024	+3.2 points	Improved	53%
Broadband subscriptions	80.0%2015-2019	91.3%2020-2024	+11 points	Improved	66%
Child poverty rate	27.2%2015-2019	22.0%2020-2024	−5.2 points	Within the margin of error	69%
Effective property tax rate	3.23%2015-2019	2.32%2020-2024	−0.9 points	Improved	99%
High school diploma or higher	71.7%2015-2019	75.5%2020-2024	+3.7 points	Within the margin of error	74%
Home price to income ratio	5.1×2015-2019	5.1×2020-2024	−0.1×	Within the margin of error	81%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4482015-2019	0.4762020-2024	+0.028	Within the margin of error	28%
Median household income	$62,5692015-2019	$90,4202020-2024	+45%	Improved	79%
Poverty rate	18.9%2015-2019	14.4%2020-2024	−4.5 points	Improved	78%
Public transit commuters	21.7%2015-2019	19.2%2020-2024	−2.5 points	Within the margin of error	12%
Rent as share of income	34.4%2015-2019	33.0%2020-2024	−1.4 points	Within the margin of error	65%
Rent-burdened households	60.1%2015-2019	57.1%2020-2024	−3 points	Within the margin of error	66%
Unemployment rate	4.5%2015-2019	9.2%2020-2024	+4.7 points	Declined	4%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	15.3%2015-2019	12.2%2020-2024	−3.1 points	Improved	77%

“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 Hempstead, New York five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Hempstead, New York 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, Hempstead, New York itself moved +2.9 points in standing on average over the same 10 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

58,801 residents (±60)

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

17,108 households (±649)

Hempstead, New York
New York share

Under $25k17%2,946
$25k–50k14%2,457
$50k–75k14%2,468

Homes

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

Owners and renters

17,108 households (±649)

Hempstead, New York
New York share

Own47%8,119
Rent53%8,989

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Own (+6.6 points).

Table view

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

27,624 workers (±1,183)

Hempstead, New York
New York share

Drive alone56%15,450
Carpool13%3,624
Public transit19%5,292

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 New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ

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 Nassau County, the county holding most of Hempstead's residents.

Nassau County has 48,718 employer establishments, 351 for every 10,000 residents (1.41× the US rate of 248; 1.28× New York's), with 562,420 paid employees at an average annual pay of $67,891. The Census Bureau also counts 178,436 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 48,718; 178,436 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 351; US 248 · New York 274
Paid employees: 562,420
Average annual pay: $67,891; US $68,342

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

Ambulatory health care services	4,809	34.6	1.66×More than typical	63,224	$60,299	11,677
Restaurants and other eating places	3,405	24.5	1.33×More than typical	44,319	$29,245	685
Specialty trade contractors	2,825	20.3	1.31×More than typical	21,930	$85,644	6,157
Lessors of real estate	2,648	19.1	1.55×More than typical	9,362	$81,426	32,917
Construction of buildings	1,865	13.4	1.78×More than typical	7,590	$74,187	4,118
Legal services	1,781	12.8	2.38×More than typical	10,389	$101,915	3,700
Personal care services	1,747	12.6	2.64×More than typical	7,816	$23,460	3,418
Offices of physicians	1,666	12	1.85×More than typical	16,417	$92,818	2,483
Management, scientific and technical consulting	1,664	12	1.79×More than typical	6,945	$83,152	7,613
Offices of other health practitioners	1,592	11.5	1.89×More than typical	9,176	$43,392	6,190
Services to buildings and dwellings	1,530	11	1.63×More than typical	11,964	$43,715	5,982
Accounting, tax preparation and payroll services	1,432	10.3	2.53×More than typical	6,490	$85,101	3,683

Rank places for an industry Open Nassau County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 1,388,940 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 $2.4M of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Hempstead, New York: $41.55 per resident (US $1,994).

Obligations: $2.4M; −33% vs FY2025
Per resident: $41.55; US $1,994
Sole-source: 99.7%; 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$2.4M98%
Defense Contract Management Agency$33K1.4%
Internal Revenue Service$17K0.7%
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service$6,4620.3%
Department of the Army$6,2690.3%

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

3.5MFY2017
3.8MFY2018
4.8MFY2019
3.8MFY2020
4.5MFY2021
3.9MFY2022
5.7MFY2023
4.3M

Top industries (NAICS)

Architectural, engineering, and related services · 5413$2.4M99%
Electric power generation, transmission and distribution · 2211$17K0.7%
Rubber product manufacturing · 3262$6,9720.3%
Other miscellaneous manufacturing · 3399$6,6200.3%
Services to buildings and dwellings · 5617$6,4620.3%
Scientific research and development services · 5417

Largest awards whose ZIP code lies mostly in Hempstead, New York

41" SOLID ROLL MIXED SEAL SERVO MACHINE$328.9K
CENTURY TECH INC· Nassau County, NY· Other equipment & supplies· Sep 25, 2024 – Nov 7, 2025· N0017424P0305
JANITORIAL CONTRACT FOR THE USDA WESTHAMPTON BEACH OFFICE$30K
JNR ENDEAVORS LLC· Nassau County, NY· Facilities & utilities· Jun 14, 2023 – Apr 17, 2026· 12639523C0067
8511889415!PARTS KIT,AIR DRIER$8,092
JAA SOLUTIONS LLC· Nassau County, NY· Other equipment & supplies· Jan 28, 2026 – Jan 28, 2026· SPE8E826V0515
8511848410!SEAL,PLAIN ENCASED

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 Hempstead, New York, so they do not add up across cities.

Hempstead, New York's figures are part of those of Nassau County, NY ($653.8M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.4% of that total.

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

See federal money in Nassau 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.

Hempstead, New York is split between congressional districts: each representative is shown with the share of its residents in their district (current boundaries).

House

Senate

Kirsten E. Gillibrand

County

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

Nassau County97100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ68

Other cities and towns in Nassau 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/3633139

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends