Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Brigantine's standout: it has 6 miles of trail and 44% conserved land. Overall it grades C+, 320th of 466 graded towns in New Jersey. It is healthier than 79% of U.S. towns and it is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 92% of U.S. towns. Its weakest subject is cost of living: homes are expensive, about $727K for a typical one and 8.9 times the Atlantic City metro’s $82K median household income. 36% of residents are 65 or older in Brigantine, against 18% in New Jersey’s towns and 18% across U.S. towns. Only 52 of New Jersey’s 530 towns score lower on hazard risk. The biggest park or preserve is Jacques Cousteau National Estuarine Research Reserve, at 4,214 acres.
Where Brigantine beats most towns.
Its founding year, 1608, is the earliest of any New Jersey town we grade.
Census counts: 99 in 1900, a low of 12 in 1920, 7,716 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1855 and 7 maps from 1887 on.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within New Jersey), ordered by how far Brigantine is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Brigantine, 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 Brigantine.
Brigantine has fewer 90° days than almost anywhere else in New Jersey and is a second-home town, but it carries more natural-hazard risk than most of New Jersey (mostly inland flooding).
Its 3,068 conserved acres are a larger share of the town than in 96% of New Jersey towns. Its A+ for the outdoors ranks #6 of 468 in New Jersey.
6.5 miles of trail in 4 parks and preserves.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. North Brigantine Natural Area | 0.4 mi | 1,332 |
| 2. Jacques Cousteau National Estuarine Research Reserve | — | 4,214 |
| 3. Absecon Wildlife Management Area | — | 1,425 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by the Brigantine Public School District. Its one school is below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brigantine Community SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–8 | Grades PK–8 | 380 | B− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NJ on state tests
54.1% of homes are seasonal or vacation homes, against 3.4% statewide, which helps explain the older median age.
9.1% of residents are under 18 in Brigantine. Among 468 New Jersey towns, just 5 have a higher median age than Brigantine. 47% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Brigantine.
| Brigantine | New Jersey towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 18 | 9.1% | 21% | 22% |
| Median age | 60.6 years | 42 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 47% | 45% | 29% |
56% women, 44% men
About 77 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±3 points). Across New Jersey, 50.8% of residents are women. Median age: women 60.3, men 61.0.
| Brigantine | NJ | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 5.2% | 11.6% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 3.9% | 10.2% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 3.2% | 8.4% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 9.7% | 12.9% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 7% | 13.3% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 7.3% | 12.9% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 27.5% | 13.5% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 22.6% | 10% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 13.5% | 7.2% | 7% |
| No diploma | 6.8% | 9.3% | 10.4% |
| High school | 20.6% | 25.3% | 26% |
| Some college | 18.7% | 15% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 6.6% | 6.7% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 28.4% | 26.1% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 18.9% | 17.6% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Within New Jersey it is less healthy than 63% of the 468 graded towns: New Jersey sets a high bar.
83% of Brigantine adults had a checkup this year. Brigantine beats the New Jersey average on 10 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 7. 29% of Brigantine adults feel lonely.
| Brigantine | New Jersey towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 83% | 78% | 79% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 32% | 33% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 16% | 16% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 15% | 17% |
| What stands out | Brigantine | NJ |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 7.6% | 12.3% |
| Fewer uninsured adults | 7.1% | 11.3% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 11.8% | 7.5% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 91% of New Jersey towns, with expected losses of about $1,084 per resident a year; that rating is what its D for hazard risk is built on. 3,546 flood insurance claims have been filed here, and 111 properties have flooded more than once.
The FEMA risk score in Brigantine is 83 of 100. Since 1978, 3,546 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Brigantine.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Most working residents leave Brigantine for work: only 14% work in town. Brigantine’s median household income is $97,000. The top destinations are Atlantic City (26%), Egg Harbor Township (6%) and Galloway Township (3%).
| Brigantine | New Jersey towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 22% | 16% | 11% |
| Working residents who work in town | 14% | 6.3% | 8% |
| Median household income | $97,000 | $113,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 28 minutes | 30 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
At 8.9 years of the Atlantic City metro’s $82K median household income, the typical home (about $727K) costs more against local pay than in 85% of New Jersey towns; that ratio is one input to its D− for cost of living.
Typical home values rose 7.5% in the year to September 2026.
| Brigantine | New Jersey towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,517 a month | $1,780 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 77% | 77% | 73% |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
At 12.5 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 51% of New Jersey’s graded towns. Violent crime is rare: 5 reported in 2025, 0.6 per 1,000 residents.
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
The Brant Beach-beach Haven weather station, 13 miles away, records that about 10 days a year reach 90°, the #2 lowest of 941 New Jersey places with climate records.
Brigantine has chilly winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 83°, January nights drop to 28° and about 10 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Brigantine. Close and well known come first.
Big draw31 mi Park & preservePine Barrens
5 mi Stadium & arenaBoardwalk Hall
10 mi LandmarkLucy the Elephant
5 mi Theme parkSteel Pier20 mi BeachLong Beach Island
5 mi Park & preservePinelands National ReservePine Barrens: Famartin, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Boardwalk Hall: Jack Boucher, Public domain · Lucy the Elephant: User:dtcdthingy 3:30 pm 30th July 2004 (Minolta Dimage X20), Public domain · Steel Pier: Make Lemons, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Pinelands National Reserve: New Jersey Pinelands Commission, CC BY-SA 4.0
1 within 15 miles of the center of Brigantine
About 4 of every 100 Brigantine residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across New Jersey.
9,450 counted in 2010 and 7,716 in 2020; an estimated 7,658 in 2025.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
City in Atlantic County, New Jersey, US
Brigantine (or simply The Island) is a city in Atlantic County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the city's population was 7,716, a decrease of 1,734 (−18.3%) from the 2010 census count of 9,450, which in turn reflected a decline of 3,144 (−25.0%) from the 12,594 counted in the 2000 census. The city, and all of Atlantic County, is part of the Atlantic City-Hammonton metropolitan statistical area, which in turn is included in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. What is now the City of Brigantine has passed through a series of names and re-incorporations since it was first created. The area was originally incorporated as Brigantine Beach Borough by an act o…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
2 towns share a border with Brigantine.
| Town | NJ rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brigantine | #320 | C+ | D− | B+ | C+ | A− |
| Galloway Township | #378 | C− | D | B− | C− | B+ |
| Atlantic City | #465 | D− | C | D− | D | D |
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Brigantine grades C+ overall, better than 42% of U.S. towns and #320 of 466 in New Jersey. It grades A− for health, B+ for safety and C+ 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−.
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