IntelliMoveTake the quiz →Best small towns to live in New Jersey
The 11 New Jersey small towns with the best mix of affordability, safety, schools and jobs, picked from 11 real small towns of 1,000 to 15,000 people — not suburbs.
- 1Country Lake Estates, NJ Score 67/100
5,055 people · typical home $249k · household income $128k · 50 violent crimes per 100k · schools in the top 85% of NJ · 3.0% unemployment · 14 mi to a hospital
- 2Lambertville, NJ Score 64/100
4,153 people · typical home $562k · household income $110k · 38 violent crimes per 100k · schools in the top 32% of NJ · 6.0% unemployment · 8 mi to a hospital
- 3Belvidere, NJ Score 63/100
2,538 people · typical home $280k · household income $96k · 67 violent crimes per 100k · schools in the top 71% of NJ · 4.0% unemployment · 9 mi to a hospital
- 4Frenchtown, NJ Score 61/100
1,752 people · typical home $384k · household income $98k · 11 violent crimes per 100k · schools in the top 44% of NJ · 6.0% unemployment · 12 mi to a hospital
- 5Browns Mills, NJ Score 54/100
9,672 people · typical home $232k · household income $76k · 50 violent crimes per 100k · schools in the top 85% of NJ · 8.0% unemployment · 12 mi to a hospital
- 6Flemington, NJ Score 51/100
4,896 people · typical home $401k · household income $70k · 222 violent crimes per 100k · schools in the top 41% of NJ · 2.0% unemployment · 11 mi to a hospital
- 7Fort Dix, NJ Score 43/100
7,984 people · typical home $354k · household income $92k · 50 violent crimes per 100k · schools in the top 78% of NJ · 12.0% unemployment · 10 mi to a hospital
- 8Centre Grove, NJ Score 41/100
1,339 people · typical home $227k · household income $75k · 365 violent crimes per 100k · schools in the top 93% of NJ · 3.0% unemployment · 12 mi to a hospital
- 9Hammonton, NJ Score 41/100
14,840 people · typical home $350k · household income $78k · 187 violent crimes per 100k · schools in the top 55% of NJ · 6.0% unemployment · 16 mi to a hospital
- 10Silver Lake, NJ Score 40/100
2,011 people · typical home $375k · household income $111k · 365 violent crimes per 100k · schools in the top 93% of NJ · 1.0% unemployment · 7 mi to a hospital
- 11Gouldtown, NJ Score 26/100
1,546 people · typical home $185k · household income $56k · 365 violent crimes per 100k · schools in the top 94% of NJ · 11.0% unemployment · 10 mi to a hospital
How we ranked them
Every small town in New Jersey with 1,000–15,000 people that stands on its own (not part of a big metro core, by USDA rural-urban codes) and has solid Census data. Each town is scored against the others in New Jersey on: affordability (household income vs. home prices), safety (violent crime, FBI), schools (reading proficiency vs. other New Jersey districts), jobs (unemployment, half weight) and everyday access (distance to a hospital and a grocery store, quarter weight each). Missing numbers count as average.
The "best" town is different for everyone — weather, size, politics, things to do and more all matter too.
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