Metro area · New York
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ metro area
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ is a metropolitan area of 22 counties in New York, New Jersey, home to 20,112,448 residents. New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ metro area has a quality-of-life score of 68 out of 100 (high), ranking #293 of 925 US metro and micro areas. Among metro and micro areas based in New York it ranks #18 of 27. It ranks best on public transit commuters (high), depression (low) and distance to an emergency room (low). It ranks worst on average commute time (high), severe housing problems (high) and income inequality (Gini index) (high).
- Quality-of-life score
- #293 of 925 metro and micro areas
- New York
- #18 of 27 in NY
- Population
- 20,112,448 (2025)
- Land area
- 6,140 mi²
- Density
- 3,275.8 /mi²
- CBSA code
- 35620
Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 69 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.
Scores by category
Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US metro and micro areas.
- Safety61#360/924
- Economy69#283/925
- Housing2#909/925
- Health98#21/925
- Healthcare93#65/923
- Environment16#772/917
- Education76#225/925
- Infrastructure77#216/925
- Community39#566/925
- Leisure & amenities94#52/925
Strengths · Weaknesses
Indicators where New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ metro area ranks highest and lowest among US metro and micro areas (score = percentile, 100 = best).
Strengths
- Public transit commuters · high24.1%
- Depression · low15.7%100/100New York 18.0%United States 20.7%2023Centers for Disease Control and PreventionAggregated from counties
- Distance to an emergency room · low2.6 mi100/100New York 3.6 miUnited States 5.5 miJul 2026Centers for Medicare & Medicaid ServicesAggregated from counties
- Traffic deaths · low4.5 /100k100/100New York 5.6 /100kUnited States 12.3 /100k2020-2024National Highway Traffic Safety AdministrationAggregated from counties
- Firearm deaths · low2.9 /100k99/100New York 4.2 /100kUnited States 12.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionAggregated from counties
- Average weekly wage · high$2,016
Weaknesses
- Average commute time · high35.6 min
- Severe housing problems · high25.0%2/100New York 22.5%United States 16.8%2017-2021University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteAggregated from counties
- Income inequality (Gini index) · high0.515
- Cost of buying a home today · high58.6%
- Days with unhealthy air · high6.8%
- Home price to income ratio · high6.2×
Trends
The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.
- Drought exposureWorsening
0% (2021) → 51% (Nov 2025–Oct 2026)
+51 pts5 yearsUS 40% → 43%
- Cost of buying a home todayWorsening
44.9% (Dec 2021) → 58.6% (Aug 2026)
+14 pts5 yearsUS 26.4% → 34.1%
- Homicide rateImproving
4.3 /100k (2021) → 2.4 /100k (May 2025–Apr 2026)
−43%5 yearsUS 7.8 /100k → 4.8 /100k
- Drug overdose deathsImproving
27.4 /100k (2021) → 15.8 /100k (Mar 2025–Feb 2026)
−42%5 yearsUS 30.8 /100k → 18.4 /100k
- High ozone daysImproving
6 days (2017) → 4 days (2022)
−39%5 yearsUS 9 days → 7 days
- Public transit commutersWorsening
31.9% (2015-2019) → 24.1% (2020-2024)
−7.8 pts5 yearsCensus table B08301US 5.0% → 3.2%
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.
Metro and micro areas like New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ metro area five years ago that improved
The places whose measures looked most like those of New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ metro area 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.
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).
Income
How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.
Homes
Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.
Getting to work
How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.
Jobs and pay
What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.
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.
Federal contract spending
Federal grants & assistance
Grants, loans (counted at their subsidy cost), direct payments and insurance, by fiscal year of the action (USAspending.gov, FABS). Reported apart from contracts and never added to them.
Counties in New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ
Whole counties, as the U.S. Office of Management and Budget delineates the area. Federal spending below is the exact sum of these counties.
- Kings CountyCentral county622,653,963
- Queens CountyCentral county592,358,182
- New York CountyCentral county781,664,862
- Suffolk CountyCentral county931,546,090
- Bronx CountyCentral county221,406,332
- Nassau CountyCentral county971,398,939
- Westchester CountyCentral county901,015,743
- Bergen CountyCentral county91977,026
- Essex CountyCentral county63896,379
- Middlesex CountyCentral county81883,335
- Hudson CountyCentral county66735,033
- Ocean CountyCentral county77673,746
- Monmouth CountyCentral county92651,035
- Union CountyCentral county80601,863
- Passaic CountyCentral county57531,624
- Morris CountyCentral county96524,251
- Richmond CountyCentral county69501,290
- Rockland CountyCentral county82357,397
- Somerset CountyCentral county93356,486
- Putnam CountyCentral county9799,028
- Sussex CountyOutlying county94148,063
- Hunterdon CountyOutlying county92131,781
States
The share of the area's residents living in each state.
Principal cities
The cities the area is named for.
Largest cities and towns
By population, for places with most of their residents in the area.
- New York8,483,844
- Newark310,178
- Jersey City294,078
- Yonkers209,978
- Paterson158,735
- Elizabeth137,302
- Toms River94,956
- Clifton89,379
- New Rochelle82,769
- Mount Vernon72,427
- Bayonne71,553
- East Orange70,090
- Passaic70,002
- Lakewood69,585
- Union City66,463
- Brentwood65,042
- White Plains60,666
- Hempstead58,801
- Hoboken58,668
- New Brunswick56,345
- Perth Amboy55,855
- Plainfield55,236
- West New York52,004
- Levittown51,904
Other metro and micro areas in New York
Areas based in New York, best score first.
- Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY81
- Rochester, NY83
- Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY92
- Kiryas Joel-Poughkeepsie-Newburgh, NY81
- Syracuse, NY85
- Utica-Rome, NY82
- Binghamton, NY77
- Kingston, NY90
- Glens Falls, NY88
- Jamestown-Dunkirk, NY66
- Watertown-Fort Drum, NY79
- Massena-Ogdensburg, NY48
- Ithaca, NY92
- Corning, NY73
- Monticello, NY64
- Elmira, NY66
- Plattsburgh, NY76
- Olean, NY43
- Auburn, NY62
- Oneonta, NY83
- Hudson, NY86
- Batavia, NY78
- Gloversville, NY63
- Amsterdam, NY43
Neighboring metro and micro areas
Places that share a border, best score first.
Similar metro and micro areas
Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).
- Trenton-Princeton, NJ77Alike on Exercise access, Mental distress, Depression
- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN66Alike on Exercise access, Dentists, Mental distress
- Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT88Alike on Firearm deaths, Life expectancy, Suicides
- Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD73Alike on Some college, Exercise access, Property tax
- Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT90Alike on Dentists, Smoking, Work from home
Data and sources
Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.
- Mapping Injury, Overdose, and ViolenceCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2026-10-01
- PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
- Daily county PM2.5 and ozone (EPA downscaler model)Centers for Disease Control and Prevention · U.S. Environmental Protection Agency · release 2022
- Care Compare: Hospital General Information and Timely and Effective CareCenters for Medicare & Medicaid Services · release 2026-07-22
- Distance to airports and intercity railFederal Aviation Administration · Bureau of Transportation Statistics · U.S. Census Bureau · release 2025+amtrak-2026-04-23
- Uniform Crime Reporting Program, Return A master filesFederal Bureau of Investigation · release 2025
- Public Libraries SurveyInstitute of Museum and Library Services · release FY2024
- U.S. Drought Monitor county statisticsNational Drought Mitigation Center (University of Nebraska–Lincoln), USDA and NOAA · release 2026-10-06
- Fatality Analysis Reporting SystemNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration · release 2024
- nClimGrid-Daily county averagesNOAA National Centers for Environmental Information · release 2025
- Regional Economic AccountsU.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis · release 2024
- Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
- Quarterly Census of Employment and WagesU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2026 Q1
- American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
- Building Permits SurveyU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-08
- Business Formation StatisticsU.S. Census Bureau · release 2026-10-01
- 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
- Alternative Fuels Data Center station locatorU.S. Department of Energy · release 2026-10
- Election Administration and Voting SurveyU.S. Election Assistance Commission · release 2024
- Air Quality Index Annual Summary by CountyU.S. Environmental Protection Agency · release 2025
- County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement
- Zillow Home Value Index, Observed Rent Index and affordabilityZillow Research · release 2026-08