Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Yes, by almost any measure. Rumson earns an A, ranked 44th of 466 in New Jersey. It is among the healthiest towns in the country on CDC estimates, its schools outperform 98% of the state's, and the median household earns $250K. The exception is cost of living: the typical home is worth about $2.4 million, 24.1 years of the New York metro’s $99K median household income. 82% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Rumson, against 45% in New Jersey’s towns and 29% across U.S. towns. Rumson is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 97% of U.S. towns. Rumson has 3 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Seabright Lawn Tennis and Cricket Club and St. George's-by-the-River Episcopal Church.
Where Rumson beats most towns.
| Widest gap | Rumson | NJ |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 5% | 14.3% |
| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Deane-Porter Elementary School | PK–3 | 411 |
| Holy Cross Academy | PK–8 | 207 |
| Forrestdale School | 4–8 | 498 |
Coastal flooding makes up 12% 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 Rumson is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Seabright Lawn Tennis and Cricket Club is a National Historic Landmark, the National Register’s top tier.
Census counts: 1,449 in 1910, 7,343 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1911 and 3 maps from 1954 on.
3 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Rumson. Close and well known come first.
Big draw27 mi Stadium & arenaMadison Square Garden
Big draw29 mi GardenCentral Park40.0M visitors a year
Big draw15 mi BeachConey Island
Big draw28 mi TheatreStudio 54
Big draw31 mi Stadium & arenaMetLife Stadium
Big draw29 mi MuseumMetropolitan Museum of Art2.0M visitors a yearMadison 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 · Coney Island: OptimumPx, Public domain · Studio 54: Americasroof (talk), CC BY-SA 3.0 · MetLife Stadium: babyknight, CC BY 2.0 · Metropolitan Museum of Art: Hugo Schneider, CC BY-SA 2.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Rumson, 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 Rumson.
Rumson has schools in the top 5% of New Jersey and has less food insecurity than most of New Jersey, but it has homes that cost more against local pay than most of New Jersey.
At 24.1 years of the New York metro’s $99K median household income, the typical home (about $2.39M) costs more against local pay than in any other New Jersey town; that ratio is one input to its D for cost of living. Its typical home is the priciest on its borders; Fair Haven is next at $1.64M.
Rumson’s median rent is $3,501 a month. Typical home values rose 14% in the year to September 2026. 93% of households own their home in Rumson.
| Rumson | New Jersey towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $3,501 a month | $1,778 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 93% | 77% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Its A+ ranks #3 of the 465 New Jersey towns we grade for schools. Its A+ for schools comes with a D for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $2.39M.
Its public schools are run by the Rumson Borough School District. Three of its 4 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High School, with 816 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forrestdale SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 4–8 | Grades 4–8 | 498 | A+ |
| Rumson-Fair Haven Regional High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 816 | A+ |
| Deane-Porter Elementary SchoolTop results in townGrades PK–3 | Grades PK–3 | 411 | A+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NJ on state tests and graduation
Its widest gap with New Jersey is food insecurity: 5% of its 5,184 adults worry about having enough food, against 14.3% statewide. Against the 436 U.S. towns with household incomes like Rumson’s, it is healthier than 69%, a smaller edge than it has nationally: part of it comes with its incomes.
25% of Rumson adults feel lonely. Rumson beats the New Jersey average on 22 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 2. 9% of Rumson adults report frequent physical distress.
| Rumson | New Jersey towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 25% | 32% | 33% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 22% | 25% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 9% | 12% | 14% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 36% | 36% |
| What stands out | Rumson | NJ |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 5% | 14.3% |
| Fewer uninsured adults | 4.1% | 11.3% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 9% | 7.5% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The average commute for its 2,911 working residents takes 45 minutes, against 30.5 across New Jersey. 33.6% of workers work from home, against 16.8% across New Jersey.
Among 468 New Jersey towns, just 7 have a higher median household income than Rumson. The average trip to work in Rumson is 45 minutes. The top destinations are New York (17%), Red Bank (4%) and Middletown Township (3%).
| Rumson | New Jersey towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 34% | 16% | 11% |
| Average trip to work | 45 minutes | 30 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $250,000 | $113,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 3.2% | 6.1% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Rumson has chilly winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 85°, January nights drop to 26° and about 25 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
805 flood insurance claims have been filed here, and 84 properties have flooded more than once.
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 61% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 805 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Rumson.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Rumson's reported crime rate is well below New Jersey's. Most reported incidents are property crimes, mainly thefts. Violent crime is rare: 3 reported in 2024.
| Rumson | New Jersey towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2024) | 3.5 per 1,000 residents | 8.9 | 11.5 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2024) | 0.4 per 1,000 residents | 0.7 | 1.7 |
FBI crime data, 2024 · crimes reported to police
1.1 miles of trail in 3 parks and preserves.
| Rumson | New Jersey towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.2 miles per square mile | 0.7 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 3.8% | 11% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Meadow Ridge Park | — | 17 |
| 2. West Park | 0.2 mi | 5 |
| 3. Rogers Park | — | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
3 within 15 miles of the center of Rumson
About 5 of every 100 Rumson residents are enrolled in college, about the same as New Jersey.
Where Rumson’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
3 places in Rumson on the National Register of Historic Places.
10 notable people were born in Rumson.
Borough in Monmouth County, New Jersey, US
Rumson is a borough in Monmouth County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, and is part of the New York Metropolitan Area. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 7,343, an increase of 221 (+3.1%) from the 2010 census count of 7,122, which in turn reflected a decline of 15 (−0.2%) from 7,137 in 2000. Rumson was formed by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 15, 1907, from portions of Shrewsbury Township, based on results of a referendum held on June 18, 1907. The borough has been one of the state's highest-income communities. In the 2013–2017 American Community Survey, Rumson had a median household income of $158,229 (ranked 24th in the state) and included 43…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
5 towns share a border with Rumson.
| Town | NJ rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rumson | #44 | A | D | — | A+ | A+ |
| Sea Bright | — | — | D− | B+ | A− | A+ |
| Little Silver | #20 | A+ | D | A | A | A+ |
| Middletown Township | #93 | A | C− | A− | B+ | A |
| Fair Haven | #2 | A+ | D | A+ | A+ | A+ |
| Monmouth Beach | #34 | A+ | D | A+ | A− | A+ |
Sea Bright has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Rumson reports no FBI crime data of its own. Compare Rumson with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Yes, by almost any measure. Rumson grades A overall, better than 95% of U.S. towns and #44 of 466 in New Jersey. It grades A+ for health and A+ 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.
10 notable people were born here, including Charlie Puth and Bret Baier.
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