Lower makes New Jersey’s top 10 on 2 lists
Lower is ranked on 36 lists against the 468 New Jersey towns with 2,500+ residents. It makes the top 10 on 2 and the top quarter on 4.
A podium finish, and more
Each list ranks every NJ town with 2,500+ residents. Tap one to see the whole list with Lower marked.
Milder winters than 100% of New Jersey
Not better or worse, just Lower’s character, from the lists where neither end is the “good” one. The most distinctive come first.
Lower lands in the top half on 6 of 22 lists
Each dot is Lower’s spot on one list: the left end is #1 in NJ, the right end is last. Areas where Lower does best come first.
4 spots from the top 3 for low property taxes
Lists where Lower sits just outside a milestone, and what it would take to get in.
Lower out-ranks 1 of its 4 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 Lower 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.
Getting around
Shortest commute#1 New Hanover · 13.2 min
#3 Cost of living
Most affordable#1 Salem · 0.8 yrs
#138
Cheapest rent#1 Alloway · $749/mo
#72
Lowest property tax#1 Camden · $2,302/yr
#7
Rent easiest to afford#1 Matawan · 29.4%
Housing
Vacation-home towns#1 Long Beach · 81.3%
#12
Most new homes#1 Long Beach · 41.2 per 1,000
#170
Fastest-rising home prices#1 Margate City · +136.0%
#16
Housing hasn't kept up#1 Union · 49.9 per home
Outdoors
Most conserved land#1 Montague · 68.2%
#52
Most trails#1 Cedar Grove · 6.4 mi / sq mi
#235
Most walkable#1 Union City · 295 / sq mi
#315 Safety
Safest#1 Emerson · 1.5
#153 Health
Healthiest#1 Millburn · 100 / 100
#372
Lowest obesity#1 West Windsor · 17%
#419
Fewest smokers#1 West Windsor · 5%
#342
Most active#1 Fair Haven · 13%
#291
Fewest uninsured#1 Spring Lake · 4%
#238
Lowest depression#1 Palisades Park · 11%
#357
Closest to a top hospital#1 Englewood · 0.0 mi
#467 People
Most educated#1 Millburn · 90%
#345
Youngest#1 Lakewood · 18.1
#440
Oldest#1 North Wildwood · 65.6
#29
Most residents 65+#1 North Wildwood · 51.5%
#24
Most kids#1 Lakewood · 49.8%
#398 
The number on the right is Lower’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.