Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
For most people who can afford it, yes. West Orange Township grades B overall, 256th of 466 graded towns in New Jersey. It is more walkable than 97% of U.S. towns. It is healthier than 90% of U.S. towns and the median household earns $130K. The catch is cost: the typical home is worth about $690K, 7 years of the New York metro’s $99K median household income. West Orange Township’s density of trails is 3.7 miles per square mile, where New Jersey’s towns sit at 0.7 and U.S. towns at 0.4. West Orange Township has 5 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Edison National Historic Site and Edison Storage Battery Company Building.
Where West Orange Township beats most towns.
| Widest gap | West Orange Township | NJ |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 7.1% | 9.6% |
18.4% of the town is conserved land, across 7 parks and preserves.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within New Jersey), ordered by how far West Orange Township is from typical.
Its grades run from A+ for walkability (better than 97% of comparable towns) to D− for cost of living (better than 5%), so the B overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 2,106 in 1870, 48,843 in 2020. The archive holds 18 old photos and papers going back to 1860 and 8 maps from 1888 on.
5 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around West Orange Township. Close and well known come first.
Big draw14 mi Stadium & arenaMadison Square Garden
Big draw16 mi City parkCentral Park40.0M visitors a year
Big draw10 mi Stadium & arenaMetLife Stadium
Big draw15 mi TheatreStudio 54
Big draw16 mi MuseumMetropolitan Museum of Art2.0M visitors a year
Big draw14 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 West Orange Township, 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 West Orange Township.
West Orange Township 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 has a long record of flood insurance claims.
45 miles of trail wind through 7 parks and preserves. South Mountain Reservation, at 634 acres with 18.8 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. South Mountain Reservation | 18.8 mi | 634 |
| 2. Eagle Rock Reservation | 12.3 mi | 304 |
| 3. O'Connor Park | 0.7 mi | 17 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by the West Orange Public Schools. Below: Three of its 20 schools, each with why it was picked. 6 public schools serve West Orange Township, with 2,580 students in all.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Liberty Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 7–8 | Grades 7–8 | 559 | B |
| West Orange High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 2,106 | B |
| St. Cloud Elementary SchoolTop results in townGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 436 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NJ on state tests and graduation
Within New Jersey it is healthier than 56% of the 468 graded towns: New Jersey sets a high bar. Against the 4,568 U.S. towns with household incomes like West Orange Township’s, it is healthier than 71%, a smaller edge than it has nationally: part of it comes with its incomes.
Among adults here, 15% have been diagnosed with depression. West Orange Township: just over one in ten adults report frequent physical distress, below both New Jersey’s towns (12%) and U.S. towns (14%). 26% of adults here have obesity; 14% report frequent mental distress.
| West Orange Township | New Jersey towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 16% | 23% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 28% | 35% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 15% | 17% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 9% | 11% | 14% |
| What stands out | West Orange Township | NJ |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 7.1% | 9.6% |
| Fewer smokers | 9% | 10.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
For workers in West Orange Township, the share who work remotely from home is 23%. Half the trips to work are shorter than 11 miles. Its mean commuting time is 34 minutes. The top destinations are New York (18%), Newark (8%) and Livingston Township (3%).
| West Orange Township | New Jersey towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 23% | 16% | 11% |
| Average trip to work | 34 minutes | 30 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $130,000 | $113,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 7.4% | 6% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
In July, afternoons reach 86°; in January, nights fall to 22°, and about 24 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Zillow values the typical West Orange Township home at about $690,000, up 9.4% in a year, 20% above the New Jersey typical home. The going rate for rent for West Orange Township comes to $1,897 a month. In West Orange Township, 69% of households are owner-occupiers.
| West Orange Township | New Jersey towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,897 a month | $1,778 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 69% | 77% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
185 flood insurance claims have been filed here, and 13 properties have flooded more than once.
70% of West Orange Township’s expected losses from natural hazards come from inland flooding, followed by heat waves at 9%. Storm and flood damage is expected to run lower than in just over three fifths of U.S. communities. The town has had 185 paid flood insurance claims since 1978.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Every broad age group is within 4 points of the New Jersey average. The share of adults 25 and older in West Orange Township who hold a bachelor’s degree or more: 53%. For West Orange Township, the median age is 41 years.
| West Orange Township | New Jersey towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 53% | 45% | 29% |
| Under 18 | 22% | 21% | 22% |
51% women, 49% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±1.9 points. Across New Jersey, 50.8% of residents are women. Median age: women 42.2, men 39.7.
| West Orange Township | NJ | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 11% | 11.6% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 10.5% | 10.2% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 9.1% | 8.4% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 10.5% | 12.9% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 14.4% | 13.3% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 14% | 12.9% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 12.6% | 13.5% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 9.8% | 10% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 8.1% | 7.2% | 7% |
| No diploma | 8.9% | 9.3% | 10.4% |
| High school | 17.1% | 25.3% | 26% |
| Some college | 15.5% | 15% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 5.8% | 6.7% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 29.4% | 26.1% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 23.2% | 17.6% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
At 18.9 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports more crime than 70% of New Jersey’s graded towns. Reported crimes fell from 826 to 515 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
For West Orange Township, the level of violent crime is 1.1 per 1,000 residents. The property offense rate here is 9.3 per 1,000 residents.
| West Orange Township | New Jersey towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 1.1 per 1,000 residents | 0.7 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 9.3 per 1,000 residents | 7.4 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
57 within 15 miles of the center of West Orange Township
About 7 of every 100 West Orange Township residents are enrolled in college, about the same as New Jersey.
Where West Orange Township’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
5 places in West Orange Township on the National Register of Historic Places.
32 notable people were born in West Orange Township.
Township in Essex County, New Jersey, US
West Orange is a suburban township in Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 48,843, an increase of 2,636 (+5.7%) from the 2010 census count of 46,207, which in turn reflected an increase of 1,264 (+2.8%) from the 44,943 counted in the 2000 census. West Orange is both an inner-ring suburb of New Jersey's largest city, Newark, and a commuter suburb of New York City; it is approximately 12 miles (19 km) west of Manhattan. West Orange was home to the inventor Thomas Edison, who also maintained a laboratory and workshop in town.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
7 towns share a border with West Orange Township.
| Town | NJ rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Orange Township | #256 | B | D− | B− | C+ | A |
| City of Orange Township | #442 | D− | C− | C− | C− | C− |
| Montclair Township | #126 | A | D− | B+ | B+ | A+ |
| Livingston Township | #39 | A+ | D | B+ | A | A+ |
| South Orange Village Township | #186 | B+ | D− | B | B+ | A+ |
| Essex Fells | — | — | D− | B | A | A+ |
| Verona Township | #68 | A | D | A | B+ | A+ |
| Millburn Township | #113 | A | D | B− | A | A+ |
Essex Fells has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Compare West Orange Township with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. West Orange Township grades B overall, better than 55% of U.S. towns and #256 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−.
32 notable people were born here, including Michael Pitt and Laura San Giacomo.
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