Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Island Heights’ best subject grades are an A+ for incomes, an A for health, and an A− for walkability; its weakest is a D for cost of living. 30% of residents are 65 or older in Island Heights, where New Jersey’s towns sit at 18% and U.S. towns at 18%. Island Heights has 1 place on the National Register. Island Heights has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where Island Heights beats most towns.
Island Heights Historic DistrictCoastal flooding makes up 13% of the storm damage FEMA expects here.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA · OpenStreetMap
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within New Jersey), ordered by how far Island Heights is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 34 in 1880, a low of 34 in 1880, 1,650 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1930 and 8 maps from 1888 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Island Heights. Close and well known come first.
Big draw21 mi Theme parkSix Flags Great Adventure2.2M visitors a year
Big draw35 mi Park & preservePine Barrens20 mi BeachLong Beach Island
4 mi Theme parkCasino Pier
4 mi State parkIsland Beach State Park
12 mi LighthouseBarnegat LighthouseSix Flags Great Adventure: Unknown, CC BY-SA 2.5 · Pine Barrens: Famartin, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Casino Pier: User:Jimmypitt1234, Public domain · Island Beach State Park: Famartin, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Barnegat Lighthouse: L'Aquatique, CC BY-SA 3.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Island Heights, 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 Island Heights.
Island Heights beats the New Jersey average on 16 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 3. 26% of Island Heights adults feel lonely, below both New Jersey’s towns (32%) and U.S. towns (33%). 13% of adults report frequent mental distress in Island Heights.
| Island Heights | New Jersey towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 32% | 33% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 15% | 17% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 16% | 23% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 32% | 36% | 36% |
| What stands out | Island Heights | NJ |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 6.7% | 14.3% |
| Fewer uninsured adults | 5.5% | 11.3% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 11.5% | 7.5% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Its public schools are run by the Island Heights School District. Its one school is below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Island Heights Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–6 | Grades PK–6 | 142 | B+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NJ on state tests and graduation
Most working residents leave Island Heights for work: only 8% work in town. 1.5% of Island Heights residents live below the poverty line. Since 2013, Island Heights has added 140 jobs, to 417 in 2023.
| Island Heights | New Jersey towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 1.5% | 6.1% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $109,000 | $113,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 27 minutes | 30 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Work from home | 15% | 16% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
People 65 and older are 30% of residents (17% statewide); adults 18 to 34 are 13% of residents (21% statewide). The median age in Island Heights is 52.6 years. Island Heights has grown 5.1% since 2020, to 1,731 residents in the Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate.
| Island Heights | New Jersey towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 52.6 years | 42 years | 40.5 years |
| Under 18 | 16% | 21% | 22% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 50% | 45% | 29% |
53% women, 47% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±3.9 points. Across New Jersey, 50.8% of residents are women.
| Island Heights | NJ | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 5.7% | 11.6% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 10.6% | 10.2% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 6.9% | 8.4% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 5.9% | 12.9% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 12.3% | 13.3% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 13.5% | 12.9% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 14.9% | 13.5% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 19.4% | 10% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 10.8% | 7.2% | 7% |
| No diploma | 2% | 9.3% | 10.4% |
| High school | 25.1% | 25.3% | 26% |
| Some college | 9.1% | 15% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 13.6% | 6.7% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 30.3% | 26.1% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 19.9% | 17.6% | 14.1% |
Census population estimates, 2025 · U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 1,700, single groups can be off by several points
Island Heights has chilly winters and warm summers, with plenty of rain. July afternoons reach 85° and January nights drop to 25°.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Island Heights's reported crime rate is well below New Jersey's. Island Heights’ property crime rate is 1.7 per 1,000 residents. Most reported incidents are property crimes, mainly thefts.
| Island Heights | New Jersey towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 1.7 per 1,000 residents | 7.5 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.6 per 1,000 residents | 0.7 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
The typical Island Heights home is worth about $641,000, up 4.8% in a year, 11% above the New Jersey typical home.
| Island Heights | New Jersey towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 94% | 77% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,750 a month | $1,778 a month | $1,185 a month |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 55% of U.S. communities. Since 1991, 47 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Island Heights.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
0.1 miles of trail in 2 parks and preserves.
| Island Heights | New Jersey towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.1 miles per square mile | 0.7 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 2.9% | 11% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Wanamaker Field | — | 4 |
| 2. Island Heights Methodist Camp Meeting Grounds | — | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
20 within 15 miles of the center of Island Heights
About 7 of every 100 Island Heights residents are enrolled in college, about the same as New Jersey.
Where Island Heights’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Borough in Ocean County, New Jersey, US
Island Heights is a borough in Ocean County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 1,650, a decrease of 23 (−1.4%) from the 2010 census count of 1,673, which in turn reflected a decline of 78 (−4.5%) from the 1,751 counted in the 2000 census. The borough is a dry town where alcohol cannot legally be sold.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
2 towns share a border with Island Heights.
| Town | NJ rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Island Heights | — | — | D | — | C+ | A |
| Toms River Township | #317 | C+ | D | B | C+ | A− |
| Berkeley Township | #354 | C | C | B+ | C | B+ |
Island Heights has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Island Heights reports no FBI crime data of its own. Compare Island Heights with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Yes. That is 6.5 years of the area's median household income ($99,155 across the New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ metro area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades D.
