Census-designated place · Orange County, New York

Vails Gate, New York

Vails Gate is a census-designated place in Orange County, New York, part of the Kiryas Joel-Poughkeepsie-Newburgh, NY metro area. It has 3,052 residents. Vails Gate, New York has a quality-of-life score of 65 out of 100 (high), ranking #5,455 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within New York it ranks #554 of 859 cities and towns. It ranks best on public transit commuters (high), median Air Quality Index (low) and depression (low). It ranks worst on average commute time (high), effective property tax rate (high) and preventable hospital stays (high).

65High

Quality-of-life score: #5,455 of 15,651 cities and towns
New York: #554 of 859 in NY
Population: 3,052 (2020-2024)
Land area: 1 mi²
Density: 2,959.6 /mi²
FIPS code: 3676584

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 76 of 83 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.

Safety86#2,101/15,637
Economy61#6,105/15,631
Housing12#13,216/14,977
Health84#2,527/15,609
Healthcare57#6,755/15,650
Environment91#1,425/15,453
Education58#6,504/15,650
Infrastructure39#9,538/15,650
Community35#10,246/15,651
Leisure & amenities65#5,520/15,651
Nature & outdoors—

Strengths · Weaknesses

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

Public transit commuters · high8.1%
96/100New York 21.6%United States 3.2%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08301High uncertainty
Median Air Quality Index · low27
96/100New York 402025U.S. Environmental Protection AgencyOrange County value
Depression · low16.3%
96/100New York 18.0%United States 20.7%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionModel-based estimate
Uninsured residents (under 65) · low1.6%
93/100New York 5.9%United States 9.8%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B27010High uncertainty
Suicide rate · low7.9 /100k
93/100New York 8.5 /100kUnited States 14.1 /100kJun 2025–May 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataOrange County value
Firearm deaths · low4.4 /100k
90/100New York 4.0 /100kUnited States 12.1 /100kJun 2025–May 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataOrange County value

Weaknesses

Average commute time · high47.5 min
1/100New York 32.6 minUnited States 26.4 min2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B08013
Effective property tax rate · high1.62%
17/100New York 1.30%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090
Preventable hospital stays · high3,605 /100k
17/100New York 2,733 /100kUnited States 2,769 /100k2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteOrange County value
High school diploma or higher · low89.1%
18/100New York 88.0%United States 89.6%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B15003
Fast internet available · low96.9%
22/100New York 97.8%United States 95.4%Dec 2025Federal Communications Commission
Mental health care shortage · high17.0
23/100New York 4.8United States 9.9Oct 2026Health Resources and Services AdministrationOrange County value

Trends

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

Households subscribed to broadbandImproving
76.2% (2015-2019) → 96.3% (2020-2024)
+20 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Child poverty rateImproving
18.0% (2015-2019) → 1.2% (2020-2024)
−17 pts5 yearsCensus table B17001US 16.8% → 15.5%
Bachelor's degree or higherImproving
18.7% (2015-2019) → 32.6% (2020-2024)
+14 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 32.1% → 35.7%
Average commute timeWorsening
30.3 min (2015-2019) → 47.5 min (2020-2024)
+57%5 yearsCensus table B08013US 26.9 min → 26.4 min
Median household incomeImproving
$46,953 (2015-2019) → $70,688 (2020-2024)
+51%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Rent-burdened householdsImproving
61.9% (2015-2019) → 52.5% (2020-2024)
−9.4 pts5 yearsCensus table B25070US 49.6% → 51.1%

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, Vails Gate, New York improved on 3 of 11 measures with a comparison and declined on 1. 7 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.

Improved3

Bachelor's++14 points18.7% → 32.6%
Broadband subscribers+20 points76.2% → 96.3%
Household income+51%$46,953 → $70,688

Declined1

Commute+17.2 min30.3 min → 47.5 min

All 11 measures

Change of every measure of Vails Gate, New York between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	30.3 min2015-2019	47.5 min2020-2024	+17.2 min	Declined	0%
Bachelor's degree or higher	18.7%2015-2019	32.6%2020-2024	+14 points	Improved	96%
Effective property tax rate	2.35%2015-2019	1.62%2020-2024	−0.7 points	Within the margin of error	97%
High school diploma or higher	84.9%2015-2019	89.1%2020-2024	+4.1 points	Within the margin of error	77%
Home price to income ratio	4.1×2015-2019	4.4×2020-2024	+0.3×	Within the margin of error	64%
Households subscribed to broadband	76.2%2015-2019	96.3%2020-2024	+20 points	Improved	90%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.4132015-2019	0.3652020-2024	−0.048	Within the margin of error	83%
Median household income	$46,9532015-2019	$70,6882020-2024	+51%	Improved	85%
Poverty rate	11.3%2015-2019	5.6%2020-2024	−5.8 points	Within the margin of error	83%
Rent as share of income	41.5%2015-2019	32.3%2020-2024	−9.2 points	Within the margin of error	92%
Rent-burdened households	61.9%2015-2019	52.5%2020-2024	−9.4 points	Within the margin of error	81%

“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 Vails Gate, New York five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Vails Gate, 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, Vails Gate, New York itself moved +17.9 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

3,052 residents (±463)

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

1,440 households (±161)

Vails Gate, New York
New York share

Under $25k12%†171
$25k–50k18%†262
$50k–75k

Homes

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

Owners and renters

1,440 households (±161)

Vails Gate, New York
New York share

Own56%805
Rent44%635

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

Table view

Getting to work

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

How people get to work

1,569 workers (±259)

Vails Gate, New York
New York share

Drive alone73%1,149
Carpool9.1%†143
Public transit8.1%†

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 Kiryas Joel-Poughkeepsie-Newburgh, NY

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 Orange County, the county holding most of Vails Gate's residents.

Orange County has 10,467 employer establishments, 255 for every 10,000 residents (1.03× the US rate of 248; 0.93× New York's), with 129,093 paid employees at an average annual pay of $51,747. The Census Bureau also counts 34,392 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 10,467; 34,392 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 255; US 248 · New York 274
Paid employees: 129,093
Average annual pay: $51,747; US $68,342

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

Specialty trade contractors	907	22.1	1.43×More than typical	5,494	$71,315	1,958
Restaurants and other eating places	858	20.9	1.14×About typical	9,983	$24,735	231
Ambulatory health care services	668	16.3	0.78×Fewer than typical	11,026	$71,115	1,686
Construction of buildings	469	11.4	1.51×More than typical	1,975	$46,403	1,041
Lessors of real estate	411	10	0.81×About typical	1,158	$55,811	4,464
Full-service restaurants	397	9.7	1.26×More than typical	5,160	$26,891	107
Services to buildings and dwellings	360	8.8	1.30×More than typical	2,065	$42,314	1,414
Building equipment contractors	339	8.3	1.37×More than typical	2,726	$70,332	451
Limited-service restaurants	322	7.9	0.98×About typical	3,654	$21,884	89
Clothing and accessories stores	291	7.1	1.96×More than typical	4,672	$33,453	341
Personal care services	274	6.7	1.40×More than typical	1,103	$23,573	1,039
Automotive repair and maintenance	265	6.5	1.28×More than typical	1,514	$49,087	263

Rank places for an industry Open Orange County

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

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 410,179 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.

Public schools

Public schools located in Vails Gate, New York and the districts that run them (NCES Common Core of Data). Students per teacher counts full-time-equivalent teachers, not the size of each class.

Vails Gate, New York has 1 public schools with 500 students and 11.0 students per teacher (New York: 11.3, US: 15.2).

1 schools serve free meals to every student.

Elementary schools: 1
Middle schools: 0
High schools: 0
Students per teacher: 11.0; US: 15.2

School districts

Districts with schools here, by students here.

District	Schools	Students	Spending / student
Newburgh City School District	1	500	$33,407

Largest schools

School	Grades	Students	Students / teacher	District

Federal contracts performed here

In FY2026, an estimated $77.6K of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Vails Gate, New York: $25.42 per resident (US $2,158).

Obligations: $77.6K; −90% vs FY2025
Per resident: $25.42; US $2,158
Sole-source: 40%; US 31%
Single offer: 0.0%; US 8.9%

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

Top buying agencies

National Aeronautics and Space Administration$36.6K47%
Department of Defense Education Activity$27.7K36%
Department of the Army$10.1K13%
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service$1,5832.0%
Federal Prison System / Bureau of Prisons$1,5792.0%

Top recipients

AMERICAN FELT AND FILTER COMPANY INC$36.6K47%
WEST POINT TOURS INC$27.7K36%
ACCESS: SUPPORTS FOR LIVING INC.$3,8435.0%
TI-SDC, JV LLC$3,7604.8%
R BREWER LANDSCAPING LLC$1,7002.2%

Spending by fiscal year

81.7KFY2017
127.1KFY2018
238.3KFY2019
194KFY2020
158.1KFY2021
295.2KFY2022
80.9KFY2023
31.6K

Top industries (NAICS)

School and employee bus transportation · 4854$27.7K36%
Fabric mills · 3132$27K35%
Scientific research and development services · 5417$9,60112%
Services to buildings and dwellings · 5617$7,93910%
Architectural, engineering, and related services · 5413$3,7604.8%
Animal slaughtering and processing · 3116

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 22, 2026, loaded Oct 22, 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 Vails Gate, New York, so they do not add up across cities.

Vails Gate, New York's figures are part of those of Orange County, NY ($151.7M 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: Vails Gate is mostly in Orange County.

See federal money in Orange 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.

Vails Gate, New York is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Patrick RyanD-NY-18 · 100% of residentsWith party 93%Missed 0.6%

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.

Orange County78100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Kiryas Joel-Poughkeepsie-Newburgh, NY83

Other cities and towns in Orange 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
National Broadband Map (Broadband Data Collection)Federal Communications Commission · release 2025-12-31
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
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/3676584

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends