Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Where it falls short is cost of living: the typical home is worth about $402K, 4.1 years of the New York metro’s $99K median household income. Overall, South Toms River earns a C+: better than two fifths of U.S. towns, and 326th of 466 in New Jersey. Its standout strength is health: residents are healthier than 63% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. Its remaining grades are unremarkable: B for safety, B for incomes and B for walkability. Just over a fifth of the land here is conserved, above both New Jersey’s towns (11%) and U.S. towns (4.3%). No town in New Jersey scores lower than South Toms River on history. South Toms River's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) trails 94% of U.S. towns.
Figures: health, CDC PLACES · home values, Zillow · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · FBI crime data, 2025 · USGS PAD-US · National Register of Historic Places.
Where South Toms River’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within New Jersey), ordered by how far South Toms River is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 405 in 1930, 3,643 in 2020. The archive holds 10 old photos and papers going back to 1933 and 8 maps from 1888 on.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around South Toms River. Close and well known come first.
Big draw19 mi Theme parkSix Flags Great Adventure2.2M visitors a year
Big draw32 mi Park & preservePine Barrens19 mi BeachLong Beach Island
7 mi Theme parkCasino Pier
13 mi LighthouseBarnegat Lighthouse
7 mi State parkIsland Beach State ParkSix Flags Great Adventure: Unknown, CC BY-SA 2.5 · Pine Barrens: Famartin, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Casino Pier: User:Jimmypitt1234, Public domain · Barnegat Lighthouse: L'Aquatique, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Island Beach State Park: Famartin, CC BY-SA 3.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in South Toms River, 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 South Toms River.
South Toms River sends most of its workers to Toms River Township and beyond, is safe by national standards but not by New Jersey’s and is healthy by national standards but behind most towns in New Jersey.
The public schools here belong to the Toms River Regional School District. Its one school is below. Enrollment at South Toms River’s public school: 330 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Toms River Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 330 | D |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NJ on state tests and graduation
South Toms River has 482 jobs for its 1,699 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out.
For half of commuters, work is under 13 miles away. South Toms River had 482 jobs in 2023, up 108 from 2013. Its typical household income stands at $104,000. The top destinations are Toms River Township (18%), Lakewood Township (13%) and Brick Township (4%).
| South Toms River | New Jersey towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 1.9% | 6.3% | 8% |
| Median household income | $104,000 | $113,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 28 minutes | 30 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 7.3% | 6% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Values rose 3.9% in the 12 months to September 2026. South Toms River’s rent at the middle of the market stands at $2,063 a month. Also worth knowing: among households here, 78% own their home.
| South Toms River | New Jersey towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $2,063 a month | $1,778 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 78% | 77% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Walkers can cover 0.8 miles of trail in 1 park or preserve. Parks and preserves in South Toms River: one, of 3 acres. The density of trails for South Toms River comes to 0.7 miles per square mile.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Mathis Veterans Memorial Park | 0.2 mi | 3 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
July afternoons reach 85° and January nights drop to 25°.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Within New Jersey it is less healthy than 80% of the 468 graded towns: New Jersey sets a high bar. Against the 8,046 U.S. towns with household incomes like South Toms River’s, it is less healthy than 58%: its national edge comes with its incomes.
For adults 18 to 64 in South Toms River, the share who have no health insurance is 14%. Against the New Jersey average, South Toms River comes out ahead on 5 CDC measures out of 32, and behind on 13. Among adults here, 41% sleep under 7 hours and 29% have high blood pressure.
| South Toms River | New Jersey towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 74% | 78% | 79% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 41% | 36% | 36% |
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 8.4% | 8.1% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 32% | 35% |
| What stands out | South Toms River | NJ |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 5.7% | 7.5% |
| Fewer adults with heart disease | 4.5% | 5.6% |
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 17.4% | 9.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
South Toms River’s FEMA risk score is 64 of 100. Since 1985, South Toms River has seen 39 flood insurance claims paid out. Of the losses FEMA expects here, 49% come from inland flooding and 16% from strong winds. Households here have drawn federal disaster aid in 2 declared disasters, most recently in 2012.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
At 14.4 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports more crime than 56% of New Jersey’s graded towns. Reported crimes fell from 73 to 19 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
The level of property crime in South Toms River is 4 per 1,000 residents. For South Toms River, the level of violent crime is 1.1 per 1,000 residents.
| South Toms River | New Jersey towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 4 per 1,000 residents | 7.5 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 1.1 per 1,000 residents | 0.7 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
20 within 15 miles of the center of South Toms River
About 6 of every 100 South Toms River residents are enrolled in college, about the same as New Jersey.
Borough in Ocean County, New Jersey, US
South Toms River 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 3,643, a decrease of 41 (−1.1%) from the 2010 census count of 3,684, which in turn reflected an increase of 50 (+1.4%) from the 3,634 counted in the 2000 census. South Toms River was incorporated as a borough by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on March 28, 1927, from portions of Berkeley Township, based on the results of a referendum held on May 3, 1927. The borough was named for the Toms River and the neighboring community of Toms River, which were named for Capt. William Tom.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
5 towns share a border with South Toms River.
| Town | NJ rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| South Toms River | #326 | C+ | C− | B | C+ | B |
| Beachwood | #253 | B | D | B+ | C+ | A− |
| Toms River Township | #317 | C+ | D | B | C+ | A− |
| Berkeley Township | #354 | C | C | B+ | C | B+ |
| Holiday Heights | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Holiday City South | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Holiday Heights and Holiday City South aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare South Toms River with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
South Toms River grades C+ overall, better than 40% of U.S. towns and #326 of 466 in New Jersey. It grades B for health, B for safety and C+ for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a C−.
Yes. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C−.
