Essex County, New Jersey

Essex County has a population of 863,002 and has grown 3.9% since the 2020 census. The median home is worth $524,100, about 6.5 times the county's median household income of $80,789.

Home price
$524,100
Income
$80,789
Population
863,002
Unemployment
8.7%

Housing

Home values, rent, property taxes, insurance and how local prices relate to local incomes.

Median home price$524,100county
Median gross rent$1,531county
Median year homes here were built1958county
Share of homes built before 198074.2%county
Share of homes that are manufactured or mobile0.2%county
Share of homes that are vacant5.1%county
Share of occupied homes that are rented55.1%county
Share of homes held for seasonal or occasional use0.2%county
Typical monthly rent$2,274county
HUD fair market rent, 2-bed$2,205county
HUD fair market rent, 1-bed$1,822county
HUD fair market rent, 3-bed$2,761county
Home insurance / yr$1,421(statewide)

Money

Household earnings and buying power. Adjusted income restates local income using the statewide cost-of-living index.

Cost of living115.1(statewide)
Median household income$80,789county
Family health premium / yr$27,491(statewide)
Infant childcare / yr$18,155(statewide)
Regular gas price / gal$4.029(statewide)
Poverty rate14.6%county

Jobs

What people here do for work, who they work for, whether they work from home, and how much of the local economy sits in one industry.

Workers who work from home16.1%county
Unemployment rate8.7%county
Share of adults in the labor force66.4%county
Share of workers who are self-employed5.5%county
Share of workers employed by government14.4%county
Share of workers in the largest industry24.7%county
Economic output per resident$88,273county

Taxes

State tax rules that can affect take-home pay, investments and everyday purchases.

Property tax rate1.91%county
Top state income tax10.75%(statewide)
Capital gains tax10.75%(statewide)
Combined sales tax6.60%(statewide)

Transportation

Distance to air travel and how people get around locally. Distances are straight-line from the county's population-weighted centre, so driving is further.

Mean commute time33.6 mincounty
Miles to nearest airport with airline service5.8 micounty
Passengers boarding at the nearest airline airport24544320county
Miles to nearest general aviation field8.2 micounty
Airports with airline service located here1county
General aviation airfields located here1county
Passenger train stations and the railway network2county
Miles to the nearest passenger rail station3.5 micounty
Households without a vehicle21.0%county
Traffic deaths11.0county
Change in traffic deaths per 100,0000.9(statewide)

Schools

Public schools and colleges counted where they actually sit, plus the education level of adults who live here. Students per teacher is a staffing measure, not a quality ranking.

Adults 25+ with a bachelor's degree or higher39.1%county
Adults 25+ with a high school diploma or higher86.7%county
Public schools in the county239county
Public school enrollment144268county
Students per full-time teacher13.8county
Free lunch eligible54.3%county
Elementary schools154county
Middle schools28county
High schools41county
Institutions granting bachelor's degrees or above7county
Share of local colleges that are public36.4%county
Two-year institutions4county
Miles to the nearest bachelor's-granting institution2.0 micounty

Health

Primary care physicians75county
Medicare-certified hospitals in this county10county
Hospitals here with an emergency department8county
Average CMS star rating of hospitals here3county
Fine particulate matter8.8 µgcounty
Without health insurance11.9%county
Adults who were food insecure in the past year21.2%county
Adults who received food assistance in the past year14.2%county
Frequent mental distress15.3%county
No leisure-time physical activity26.2%county
Diagnosed diabetes11.0%county

Place

Who lives here and what the place is like: population, age, migration, safety and civic profile.

Population863,002county
Land area in square miles126county
People per square mile of land6845.0county
Supermarkets and grocery stores338county
Convenience stores104county
Share living far from a food store9.8%county
Share living in a low-income, low-access tract1.3%county
Population change since 2020+3.9%county
Natural change per 1,000 residents4county
Net international migration per 1,000 residents9county
Median age37.7 yrscounty
Share of residents under 1823.6%county
Share of residents 65 and over14.2%county
Share of households that are one person30.6%county
Share of residents born outside the United States30.1%county
Second languages37.8%county
Share of residents on a religious body’s rolls53.9%county
Congregations per 100,000 residents76county
Net domestic migration per 1,000 residents-8county
Households that moved in19,593county
Households that moved away23,354county
Average income of arriving households$96,557county
Average income of departing households$92,357county
Homes authorised per 1,000 existing homes11county
Housing units authorised in the latest year3,657county
Share of permitted homes in multifamily buildings91.3%county
Violent crime rate218(statewide)

Weather

Measured annual temperature, precipitation and snowfall. These are climate facts, not a ranking.

Avg. annual temperature54.2°Fcounty
Annual precipitation38.7 incounty
Annual snowfall26.1 incounty
Average daily solar energy3.96 kWh/m²county
Days reaching 90°F24 dayscounty
Days at or below freezing101 dayscounty

Gardening

Plant hardiness zoneZone 7acounty
Frost-free days201 dayscounty
Average last spring frostApr 11county
Average first fall frostOct 29county

Utilities

Average monthly electric bill$120county
Electric utilities serving this county2county
Electricity price per kWh18.0¢county
Household electricity use678 kWhcounty
Residential natural gas price$15.34(statewide)
Homes heated by electricity18.6%county
Homes heated by utility gas72.1%county
Homes heated by propane2.5%county
Homes heated by fuel oil3.8%county
Homes heated by wood0.0%county
Households with broadband90.4%county

Risk

Relative exposure to air pollution and natural hazards. Higher values indicate more measured risk, not a prediction.

Riverine flood risk98.8county
Coastal flood risk65.4county
Drought risk25.5county
Landslide risk50.5county
Hail risk86.8county
Earthquake risk95.6county
Tornado risk94.9county
Tropical cyclone risk91.8county
Extreme heat risk99.0county
Winter weather risk97.0county
Strong wind risk98.7county
Wildfire risk10.6county

Sports

Major pro teams based here1county
NFL teams based here0county
NBA teams based here0county
MLB teams based here0county
NHL teams based here1county
MLS soccer teams based here0county
Top-division college football teams0county
Second-tier college football teams0county
Affiliated minor league baseball teams0county
AHL teams based here0county
ECHL teams based here0county

Figures marked county are measured for Essex County directly. The rest are published at state level only and show the New Jersey figure — see methodology for each source and its limits.

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