Fairfield makes New Jersey’s top 10 on 2 lists
Fairfield is ranked on 35 lists against the 468 New Jersey towns with 2,500+ residents. It makes the top 10 on 2 and the top quarter on 5.
Drier than 100% of New Jersey
Not better or worse, just Fairfield’s character, from the lists where neither end is the “good” one. The most distinctive come first.
The lists Fairfield does best on
Each list ranks every NJ town with 2,500+ residents. Tap one to see the whole list with Fairfield marked.
Fairfield lands in the top half on 6 of 21 lists
Each dot is Fairfield’s spot on one list: the left end is #1 in NJ, the right end is last. Areas where Fairfield does best come first.
3 spots from the top 25 for conserved land
Lists where Fairfield sits just outside a milestone, and what it would take to get in.
Fairfield out-ranks 1 of its 5 ranked neighbors
Head to head on the lists where both towns are ranked: a point for each list where one town places higher. Tap a town for its own rankings.
Where Fairfield lands in every NJ ranking
41 lists from Census, school, health, library, crime, climate and land data. Tap any list to see every town on it.
Cost of living
Most affordable#1 Salem · 0.8 yrs
#10
Cheapest rent#1 Alloway · $749/mo
#56
Lowest property tax#1 Camden · $2,302/yr
#9
Rent easiest to afford#1 Matawan · 29.4%
Getting around
Shortest commute#1 New Hanover · 13.2 min
#61 Outdoors
Most conserved land#1 Montague · 68.2%
#28
Most trails#1 Cedar Grove · 6.4 mi / sq mi
#344
Most walkable#1 Union City · 295 / sq mi
#450 Health
Healthiest#1 Millburn · 100 / 100
#462
Lowest obesity#1 West Windsor · 17%
#464
Fewest smokers#1 West Windsor · 5%
#462
Most active#1 Fair Haven · 13%
#452
Fewest uninsured#1 Spring Lake · 4%
#454
Lowest depression#1 Palisades Park · 11%
#188
Closest to a top hospital#1 Englewood · 0.0 mi
#460 Housing
Vacation-home towns#1 Long Beach · 81.3%
#209
Most new homes#1 Long Beach · 41.2 per 1,000
#384
Fastest-rising home prices#1 Margate City · +136.0%
#117
Housing hasn't kept up#1 Union · 49.9 per home
People
Most educated#1 Millburn · 90%
#465
Youngest#1 Lakewood · 18.1
#68
Oldest#1 North Wildwood · 65.6
#402
Most residents 65+#1 North Wildwood · 51.5%
#410
Most kids#1 Lakewood · 49.8%
#286 Climate
Snowiest#1 Pohatcong · 41 in
#431
Least snow#1 Berkeley · 10 in
#10
Mildest winters#1 Cape May · 28.1°
#32
Hottest summers#1 Pennsauken · 87.7°
#209
Coolest summers#1 Vernon · 80.7°
#171
Longest growing season#1 Pleasantville · 243 days
#128
Wettest#1 Mount Olive · 52 in
#372 Libraries
Most-used libraries#1 Princeton · 22.4 per resident
Most library borrowing#1 Ocean City · 31.3 per resident
Best libraries for kids#1 Ocean City · 44.2 per child
Safety
Safest#1 Emerson · 1.5
The number on the right is Fairfield’s spot. All of New Jersey’s rankings, with the map → · National lists and other states: all rankings.
Do the numbers ring true?
The lists count what can be counted. Neighbors know the rest.
Your answer becomes a post in Town Square.
- 2,500+ residents. Census estimates for smaller towns carry margins of error too wide to rank fairly, so they sit out every NJ list.
- One town, one row. A city that is both a city and a town in Census data, or a village inside a town, is counted once.
- Ties share a rank. Towns on one weather station, one school district or one CDC estimate share a figure, so they share a spot (T).
- No “worst” lists. Lists rank toward the good end, and share cards are made only for the top half. Age, snow and the like are character, not grades.
U.S. Census Bureau (American Community Survey 5-year, 2010 and 2020 censuses, Building Permits Survey), U.S. Department of Education, FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, CDC PLACES, Medicare Care Compare, IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FHFA House Price Index, NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020, USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. Each list explains its own method.