Scores by category

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

Safety82#2,736/15,637
Economy31#10,829/15,631
Housing55#6,730/14,977
Health61#6,097/15,609
Healthcare43#8,966/15,650
Environment96#622/15,453
Education80#3,145/15,649
Infrastructure40#9,347/15,650
Community25#11,688/15,651
Leisure & amenities65#5,497/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Students per teacher · low9.8×
98/100New York 12.0×United States 15.2×2024National Center for Education StatisticsFranklin County value
Hot days · low1 days
97/100New York 3 daysUnited States 42 days2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationFranklin County value
Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) · low5.4 µg/m³
94/100New York 7.2 µg/m³United States 8.0 µg/m³2022Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyFranklin County value
Mammography screening · high55.0%
91/100New York 46.0%United States 46.0%2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteFranklin County value
Public EV charging ports · high14.0 /10k
89/100New York 10.8 /10kUnited States 7.6 /10kOct 2026U.S. Department of EnergyFranklin County value
Drinking water violations · low0
86/100New York 1United States 02024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteFranklin County value

Weaknesses

Comfortable days · low20.7%
0/100New York 22.7%United States 26.8%2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationFranklin County value
New business applications · low6.5 /1k
1/100New York 15.1 /1kUnited States 16.6 /1k2025U.S. Census BureauFranklin County value
Effective property tax rate · high2.09%
6/100New York 1.30%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090
Dental care shortage · high18.0
6/100New York 3.7United States 5.7Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationFranklin County value
Voter turnout · low53.4%
8/100New York 59.5%United States 65.2%2024U.S. Election Assistance CommissionFranklin County value
Child care cost burden · high38.5%
12/100New York 37.7%United States 27.9%2023 & 2024University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteFranklin County value

Trends

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

PopulationFalling
5,700 (2015-2019) → 4,965 (2020-2024)
−13%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
New homes permittedWorsening
0.2 /1k (2021) → 0.0 /1k (Sep 2025–Aug 2026)
−100%5 yearsUS 5.2 /1k → 4.2 /1k
Child poverty rateImproving
42.1% (2015-2019) → 23.7% (2020-2024)
−18 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
52.2% (2015-2019) → 35.9% (2020-2024)
−16 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
32.8% (2015-2019) → 46.8% (2020-2024)
+14 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Rent as share of incomeImproving
31.8% (2015-2019) → 24.5% (2020-2024)
−7.3 pts5 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.8% → 30.6%

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, Saranac Lake, New York improved on 4 of 13 measures with a comparison and declined on 0. 9 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.

Improved4

Bachelor's++14 points32.8% → 46.8%
Child poverty−18 points42.1% → 23.7%
Rent burden−16 points52.2% → 35.9%
Household income+27%$48,718 → $61,967

Declined0

No measure declined by more than its margin of error.

All 13 measures

Change of every measure of Saranac Lake, New York between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	15.8 min2015-2019	15.8 min2020-2024	−0.0 min	Within the margin of error	47%
Bachelor's degree or higher	32.8%2015-2019	46.8%2020-2024	+14 points	Improved	96%
Broadband subscriptions	78.9%2015-2019	84.4%2020-2024	+5.5 points	Within the margin of error	35%
Child poverty rate	42.1%2015-2019	23.7%2020-2024	−18 points	Improved	92%
Effective property tax rate	2.15%2015-2019	2.09%2020-2024	−0.1 points	Within the margin of error	27%
High school diploma or higher	91.9%2015-2019	91.3%2020-2024	−0.6 points	Within the margin of error	26%
Home price to income ratio	3.2×2015-2019	3.2×2020-2024	+0.0×	Within the margin of error	78%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4422015-2019	0.4262020-2024	−0.016	Within the margin of error	64%
Median household income	$48,7182015-2019	$61,9672020-2024	+27%	Improved	49%
Poverty rate	22.1%2015-2019	17.7%2020-2024	−4.4 points	Within the margin of error	77%
Rent as share of income	31.8%2015-2019	24.5%2020-2024	−7.3 points	Within the margin of error	89%
Rent-burdened households	52.2%2015-2019	35.9%2020-2024	−16 points	Improved	90%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	4.6%2015-2019	6.9%2020-2024	+2.3 points	Within the margin of error	23%

“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 Saranac Lake, New York five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Saranac Lake, 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, Saranac Lake, New York itself moved +9.8 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

4,965 residents (±406)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69
50–59†
40–49†
30–39†
20–29†
10–19†
Under 10†

Share of all residents, each sex

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: 20–29 men (+4.8 points).

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

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B01001View table on data.census.gov

Race and Hispanic origin

4,965 residents (±406)

Saranac Lake, New York
New York share

White90%4,485
Black0.8%†40
Hispanic or Latino3.6%†179

Education

3,676 residents (±357)

Saranac Lake, New York
New York share

No high school diploma8.7%†321
High school or GED16%589
Some college18%†680

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Income

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

Household income

2,542 households (±233)

Saranac Lake, New York
New York share

Under $25k20%515
$25k–50k22%562
$50k–75k18%†461
$75k–100k14%†353
$100k–150k16%394
$150k–200k5.6%†142
$200k or more4.5%†115

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

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B19001View table on data.census.gov

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Homes

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

Owners and renters

2,542 households (±233)

Saranac Lake, New York
New York share

Own47%1,199
Rent53%1,343

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

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B25003View table on data.census.gov

Rent paid

1,322 households (±221)

Saranac Lake, New York
New York share

Under $75030%†396
$750–1,00047%†616
$1,000–1,50018%†242

Home values

1,199 homes (±180)

Saranac Lake, New York
New York share

Under $150k25%†301
$150k–250k39%469
$250k–400k27%327

Age of homes

2,819 homes (±245)

Saranac Lake, New York
New York share

2010 or later1.1%†30
2000–20092.7%†76
1980–19995.7%†161

Size of homes

2,819 homes (±245)

Saranac Lake, New York
New York share

Studio6.1%†173
1 bedroom29%819
2 bedrooms32%892

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

2,541 workers (±321)

Saranac Lake, New York
New York share

Drive alone68%1,723
Carpool11%†273
Public transit0.8%†20
Walk11%†280
Bike0.8%†20
Work from home8.9%†225
Other0.0%0

Biggest shift since 2015–2019: Work from home (+4.9 points).

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

Table view

American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 · Table B08301View table on data.census.gov

Time to get to work

2,316 workers (±306)

Saranac Lake, New York
New York share

Under 15 min55%1,265
15–29 min26%613
30–44 min12%†283

Counts are survey estimates, each with a margin of error. The grouping into ranges is ours; every count is the Census Bureau's.

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 Franklin County, the county holding most of Saranac Lake's residents.

Franklin County has 922 employer establishments, 199 for every 10,000 residents (0.80× the US rate of 248; 0.73× New York's), with 10,317 paid employees at an average annual pay of $48,656. The Census Bureau also counts 2,855 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 922; 2,855 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 199; US 248 · New York 274
Paid employees: 10,317
Average annual pay: $48,656; US $68,342

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

Restaurants and other eating places	73	15.8	0.86×About typical	725	$22,385	19
Specialty trade contractors	59	12.8	0.82×About typical	337	$61,484	276
Construction of buildings	55	11.9	1.57×More than typical	216	$55,620	145
Ambulatory health care services	53	11.5	0.55×Fewer than typical	673	$67,982	95
Full-service restaurants	36	7.8	1.01×About typical	312	$24,763	4
Individual and family services	36	7.8	2.78×More than typical	672	$30,772	8
Lessors of real estate	33	7.1	0.58×Fewer than typical	104	$39,865	278
Limited-service restaurants	28	6.1	0.76×Fewer than typical	366	$19,587	10
Religious organizations	25	5.4	0.98×About typical	69	$20,275	—
Gasoline stations	21	4.5	1.40×More than typical	274	$28,719	—
Building equipment contractors	20	4.3	0.72×Fewer than typical	166	$66,386	45
Services to buildings and dwellings	20	4.3	0.64×Fewer than typical	20	$85,850	191

Rank places for an industry Open Franklin County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 46,224 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 $56.8K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Saranac Lake, New York: $11.43 per resident (US $1,995).

Obligations: $56.8K; +60% vs FY2025
Per resident: $11.43; US $1,995
Sole-source: 79%; 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

Federal Prison System / Bureau of Prisons$56.6K99.7%
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration$1730.3%

Top recipients

VILLAGE OF SARANAC LAKE$44.6K79%
WELLPATH LLC$12K21%
BEARCOM OPERATING LLC$1730.3%
BIONIQUE TESTING LABORATORIES LLC-$4.540.0%

Spending by fiscal year

2.9KFY2017
5.8KFY2018
43.2KFY2019
2.3KFY2020
1.9KFY2021
46.8KFY2022
42.9KFY2023
35.6KFY2024

Top industries (NAICS)

Water, sewage and other systems · 2213$44.6K79%
General medical and surgical hospitals · 6221$12K21%
Electronic and precision equipment repair and maintenance · 8112$1730.3%

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 7, 2026, loaded Oct 7, 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 Saranac Lake, New York, so they do not add up across cities.

Saranac Lake, New York's figures are part of those of Franklin County, NY and Essex County, NY ($39.1M 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: Saranac Lake is mostly in Franklin County.

See federal money in Franklin 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.

Saranac Lake, New York is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Elise M. StefanikR-NY-21 · 100% of residentsWith party 97%Missed 16.3%

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.

Other cities and towns in Franklin 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/3665233

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends