Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Boonton grades B overall, ranked 234th of 466 in New Jersey. CDC estimates put its residents' health ahead of 93% of the country. The catch is cost: homes are expensive, about $675K for a typical one and 6.8 times the New York metro’s $99K median household income. History is its standout character grade: an A, better than 93% of U.S. towns, with 6 places on the National Register. On hazard risk, just 32 of New Jersey’s 530 towns do worse. Its National Register listings include Boonton Ironworks Historic District and Boonton Public Library. Boonton is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 70% of U.S. towns.
Where Boonton beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Census counts: 3,458 in 1870, a low of 2,277 in 1880, 8,815 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1849 and 8 maps from 1888 on.
6 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within New Jersey), ordered by how far Boonton is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Boonton. Close and well known come first.
Big draw24 mi Stadium & arenaMadison Square Garden
Big draw24 mi GardenCentral Park40.0M visitors a year
Big draw18 mi Stadium & arenaMetLife Stadium
Big draw24 mi TheatreStudio 54
Big draw25 mi MuseumMetropolitan Museum of Art2.0M visitors a year
Big draw24 mi MuseumNational September 11 Memorial & MuseumMadison Square Garden: Ajay Suresh from New York, NY, USA, CC BY 2.0 · Central Park: Ed Yourdon from New York City, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0 · MetLife Stadium: babyknight, CC BY 2.0 · Studio 54: Americasroof (talk), CC BY-SA 3.0 · Metropolitan Museum of Art: Hugo Schneider, CC BY-SA 2.0 · National September 11 Memorial & Museum: Paul Sableman, CC BY 2.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Boonton, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Boonton.
Boonton is safe by national standards but not by New Jersey’s and is healthy by national standards but mid-pack in New Jersey; it also carries more natural-hazard risk than most of New Jersey (mostly inland flooding).
Within New Jersey it is healthier than 66% of the 468 graded towns: New Jersey sets a high bar.
24% of adults have obesity in Boonton, below both the New Jersey town median (28%) and the median of U.S. towns (35%). 18% of Boonton adults binge drink. Boonton beats the New Jersey average on 12 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 1.
| Boonton | New Jersey towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 24% | 28% | 35% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 16% | 16% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 16% | 23% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 11% | 12% | 14% |
| What stands out | Boonton | NJ |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 6.3% | 9.6% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 10.4% | 14.3% |
| More binge drinkers | 18.3% | 15.5% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Each of its 3 graded neighbors has a higher School Grade than its B, Mountain Lakes highest at A.
Its public schools are run by the Boonton Town Public School District. Two of its 5 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Boonton High School, with 646 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| John Hill SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 3–8 | Grades 3–8 | 556 | B− |
| Boonton High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 646 | B− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NJ on state tests and graduation
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 94% of New Jersey towns, with expected losses of about $612 per resident a year; that rating is what its D for hazard risk is built on.
Boonton’s FEMA risk score is 86 of 100, where New Jersey’s towns sit at 52 of 100 and U.S. towns at 44 of 100. Since 1979, 9 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Boonton.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The average commute for its 4,577 working residents takes 22.4 minutes, against 30.5 across New Jersey.
Most working residents leave Boonton for work: only 6% work in town. Boonton’s average trip to work is 22 minutes. The top destinations are Parsippany-Troy Hills Township (7%), New York (6%) and Morristown (3%).
| Boonton | New Jersey towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 22 minutes | 30 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Work from home | 20% | 16% | 11% |
| Median household income | $114,000 | $113,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 8.1% | 6% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
At 10.1 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 60% of New Jersey’s graded towns. Reported crimes fell from 96 to 56 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Boonton has chilly winters and warm summers, with plenty of rain. July afternoons reach 86°, January nights drop to 21° and about 28 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
1.2 miles of trail in 2 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Grace Lord Park, at 45 acres.
| Boonton | New Jersey towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 7% | 11% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.5 miles per square mile | 0.7 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Grace Lord Park | 0.5 mi | 45 |
| 2. Pepe Park | 0.1 mi | 3 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
The median rent in Boonton is $1,849 a month. The typical Boonton home is worth about $675,000, up 3.9% in a year, 17% above the New Jersey typical home. 62% of households own their home in Boonton.
| Boonton | New Jersey towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 62% | 77% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,849 a month | $1,778 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
No broad age group is more than 4 points off the New Jersey average. 50% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 44% across New Jersey.
| Boonton | New Jersey towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 50% | 45% | 29% |
| Aged 65 or older | 15% | 18% | 18% |
| Under 18 | 23% | 21% | 22% |
| Median age | 39.5 years | 42 years | 40.5 years |
46% women, 54% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±4.6 points. Across New Jersey, 50.8% of residents are women. Among residents 65 to 74, 64% are men (NJ 47%).
| Boonton | NJ | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 14.6% | 11.6% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 8.3% | 10.2% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 8.7% | 8.4% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 10.5% | 12.9% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 17.6% | 13.3% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 12.4% | 12.9% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 12.8% | 13.5% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 10.5% | 10% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 4.7% | 7.2% | 7% |
| No diploma | 4.7% | 9.3% | 10.4% |
| High school | 23.9% | 25.3% | 26% |
| Some college | 14.6% | 15% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 6.7% | 6.7% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 33.8% | 26.1% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 16.3% | 17.6% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
15 within 15 miles of the center of Boonton
About 6 of every 100 Boonton residents are enrolled in college, about the same as New Jersey.
Where Boonton’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
6 places in Boonton on the National Register of Historic Places.
14 notable people were born in Boonton.
Town in Morris County, New Jersey, US
Boonton () is a town in Morris County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the town's population was 8,815, an increase of 468 (+5.6%) from the 2010 census count of 8,347, which in turn reflected a decline of 149 (−1.8%) from the 8,496 counted in the 2000 census. The settlement was originally called "Boone-Towne" in 1761 in honor of the Colonial Governor Thomas Boone. Boonton was originally formed on March 16, 1866, within portions of Hanover Township and Pequannock Township. The town was reincorporated and became fully independent on March 18, 1867. The development of Boonton began in about 1829, as a result of the construction of the Morris Canal and the …
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
4 towns share a border with Boonton.
All 3 graded towns on its borders grade higher than its B; Parsippany-Troy Hills Township (A) is closest.
| Town | NJ rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boonton | #234 | B | D | B+ | B | A |
| Parsippany-Troy Hills Township | #114 | A | D | B+ | A− | A+ |
| Mountain Lakes | #11 | A+ | C− | — | A | A+ |
| Montville Township | #112 | A | D | — | A | A+ |
| Boonton Township | #73 | A | C− | A+ | A− | A+ |
Mountain Lakes and Montville Township report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Boonton with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Boonton grades B overall, better than 62% of U.S. towns and #234 of 466 in New Jersey. It grades A for health, B+ for safety and B for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D.
Yes. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades D.
14 notable people were born here, including Helen Gahagan Douglas and Peter Onorati.
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