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Compare towns

Islip vs Babylon

Next-door neighbors. The biggest differences: trails (171× in Islip) and size (27.8× in Islip).

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Islip, NYA colonial town, settled 1683Suffolk County · 339,106 people
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Babylon, NYAn outdoors townNew York · 12,185 people
Where each one shines

Two towns, two different strengths

What each town does better than most of its state (not better than each other). Tap one to see the page behind it.

The biggest differences

Where they part ways

The rows below where the towns are furthest apart, beyond the Census margin of error. The full table is further down.

★ What stands out · Where they are

Islip and Babylon share a border

And the people who already live in one and work in the other.

IslipBabylonIslipBabylon
Islip ↔ Babylon6.9 miles apart · They share a border
Who commutes between them
774 Babylon residents work in Islip (13.4% of its workers)
Work & commute in Babylon →
Monthly cost

A typical home costs $370 more a month in Islip

A typical home in each town, bought with 20% down at 6.3% for 30 years, plus property tax at the town’s own rate and insurance. Change the numbers to fit you.

Islip$4,660/mo
Typical home $685K (Zillow) · tax rate 1.87%+ · or rent about $2,209/mo · Housing →
Babylon$4,290/mo
Typical home $659K (Census) · tax rate 1.52%+ · or rent about $2,427/mo · Housing →

The difference: $370 a month, about $4,500 a year, between Islip and Babylon.

Estimates, not a quote: your price, rate, tax bill and insurance will differ. Tax rate = the Census median tax bill over the median home value; “+” means the Census top-codes that town’s bill at $10,000, so its real rate is higher.

Report cards

Babylon places higher on 11 of 19 NY lists

Our letter grades for safety, schools and health, then every New York ranking list both towns are on. A grade is one measure; read the page behind it.

Life in each

What daily life feels like in each

The weather, the land, the history and the people, row by row. None of it is a grade: more snow is a plus to a skier.

Seasons
IslipBabylon
Snow a year32″32″
January low25°F25°F
July high83°F83°F
Growing season (days)207d207d
Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)12th37th
Outdoors & history
IslipBabylon
Conserved land13.8%8.4%
Settled1683—
National Register places28—
Archive photos543
Famous people born here2210
Community
IslipBabylon
Library hours a week71 hrs60 hrs
Posts this month00
Neighbors joined00

A dot marks the most on each row. Climate: NOAA 1991–2020 normals at the nearest station. Hazard risk: FEMA National Risk Index, expected yearly damage vs U.S. towns.

Everything, side by side

What matters to you?

Pick a few. Those rows jump to the top and the best fit on each is marked. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.

IslipBabylon
People
Population 339,106Highest 12,185Lowest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census +1.3%Highest NY: +4.2% +0.2%Lowest NY: +4.2%
Median age 39.2±0.6Lowest about the NY average 45.5±3.3Highest 14% above NY
Kids under 18 22.2%±0.6Highest NY: 20.5% 18.9%±2.6Lowest NY: 20.5%
Age 65+ 15.2%±0.5Lowest NY: 17.9% 20.1%±3Highest NY: 17.9%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 32.6%Lowest NY: 40.2% 50.9%Highest NY: 40.2%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 6.3%±0.4Highest NY: 7% 4.7%±1.3Lowest NY: 7%
Islip and Babylon are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian $130,132±$3kLowest 51% above NY $140,820±$16kHighest 64% above NY
Babylon and Islip are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $535,300±$7kLowest 26% above NY $658,500±$28kHighest 55% above NY
Rentmedian gross, monthly $2,209±$47Lowest 36% above NY $2,427±$120Highest 50% above NY
Property taxmedian, yearly $10,000+ at least 52% above NY $10,000+ at least 52% above NY
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 56.1%±2.9Highest NY: 52.1% 54.3%±11.6Lowest NY: 52.1%
Islip and Babylon are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line 6.4%Highest NY: 14% 3.5%Lowest NY: 14%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes 80.5%Highest NY: 54.3% 78.6%Lowest NY: 54.3%
Typical home builtmedian year 1967Highest 8 yrs newer than NY 1956Lowest 3 yrs older than NY
Getting to work
Average commuteone way 28 minLowest 13% below NY 33 minHighest about the NY average
Work from home 8.3%±0.5Lowest NY: 14.9% 20.1%±4.5Highest NY: 14.9%
Work in townworking residents 28.5%Highest 8.1%Lowest
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 10.8 miLowest 12.8 miHighest
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 0.90Highest 0.74Lowest
Top workplaceoutside town New York (18%)Babylon (21%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others Few work in Babylon13% work in Islip
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town 13.8%Highest 8.4%Lowest
Trailsmapped miles 136.8 miHighest 0.8 miLowest
Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.8 miHighest 0.3 miLowest
Parks & preservesnamed on the map 98Highest 4Lowest
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 50.2Lowest 120Highest
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading #264 of 484 in NY—
School district BAY SHORE UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT · BAYPORT-BLUE POINT UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT—
High school in town Brentwood High School—
Students per teacherat that high school 14.2 —
New York average“±” Census margin of errorACS 2020–2024
Deciding?

Ask the people who live there

The numbers stop at the town line. Neighbors can tell you about the commute at 7am, the schools, the winters and the feel of the place.

Islip neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Islip’s Town Square.

Babylon neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Babylon’s Town Square.

Add a town

Set another town beside Islip and Babylon

One tap adds it. Up to 4 towns at once.

Bordering Islip

Towns like Islip

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2010 & 2020 censuses, LEHD commute flows; Zillow Home Value Index; NCES Common Core of Data; FBI crime reporting; CDC PLACES; FEMA National Risk Index; NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020; USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. “±” is the Census margin of error; differences inside it are never called. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. There is no overall score: which town is better depends on what matters to you.

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