Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Auburn earns a D, 713th among New York's 745 graded towns, mostly because of schools and health. Its public schools trail 92% of New York towns on state tests and graduation. CDC estimates put its residents' health behind 79% of the country. One bright spot: it is more walkable than 93% of U.S. towns. History is its standout character grade: an A+, better than 96% of U.S. towns, with 21 places on the National Register. 33% of working residents work locally in Auburn, against 10% in New York’s towns and 8% across U.S. towns. Its National Register listings include William H. Seward House and Harriet Tubman Home for the Aged.
Where Auburn beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
William H. Seward House| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| William H Seward Elementary School | K–6 | 491 |
| Herman Avenue Elementary School | K–6 | 399 |
| Casey Park Elementary School | K–6 | 381 |
William H. Seward House is one of 4 National Historic Landmarks here, the National Register’s top tier.
Census counts: 500 in 1810, a peak of 36,722 in 1950, 26,866 in 2020. The archive holds 10 old photos and papers going back to 1835 and 5 maps from 1899 on.
21 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within New York), ordered by how far Auburn is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Auburn, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Aug 3, 2026.
Ordered by what stands out in Auburn.
Auburn gets more snow than nearly all U.S. towns and is healthier than towns with similar incomes, but it trails Sennett and its other neighbors on schools.
49% of households are owner-occupiers in Auburn. Values rose 5.9% in the 12 months to September 2026. The rent at the middle of the market in the town is $897 a month.
| Auburn | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 49% | 75% | 73% |
| Median rent | $897 a month | $1,103 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Each of its 5 graded neighbors has a higher School Grade than that grade, Sennett highest at A−.
Below: Two of its 8 schools, each with why it was picked. The Auburn City School District runs its public schools. The 5 public schools in Auburn teach 2,200 students between them.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Auburn Junior High SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 7–8 | Grades 7–8 | 560 | D |
| Auburn High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,176 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NY on state tests and graduation
Against the 6,140 U.S. towns with household incomes like Auburn’s, it is less healthy than 52%, so that grade isn’t only a matter of income. All 5 graded neighbors score healthier than it, from Throop (C+) to Aurelius (B−).
Among adults in Auburn, 16% report frequent physical distress. Two figures for adults in the town: 32% get no exercise outside work, 18% smoke cigarettes.
| Auburn | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 14% | 14% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 32% | 25% | 25% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 13% | 14% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 17% | 19% |
| What stands out | Auburn | NY |
|---|---|---|
| More older adults who have lost all their teeth | 20.9% | 12.8% |
| More adults with COPD | 9.7% | 6% |
| More smokers | 17.8% | 11.3% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The biggest park or preserve is Casey Park, at 33 acres. Trails run 3.2 miles in 11 parks and preserves.
| Auburn | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 2.4% | 5.2% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.4 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Cayuga Community College Nature trails | 1.1 mi | 29 |
| 2. Hoopes Park | 0.7 mi | 14 |
| 3. Casey Park | 0.2 mi | 33 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Reported crimes fell from 640 to 389 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
The level of violent crime for Auburn comes to 2.8 per 1,000 residents. The property offense rate for Auburn comes to 12.4 per 1,000 residents.
| Auburn | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 2.8 per 1,000 residents | 0.8 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 12.4 per 1,000 residents | 7.5 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
The Auburn weather station records that 109 inches of snow fall in a normal winter, more than in 98% of U.S. towns.
July afternoons reach 81° and January nights drop to 17°.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The average commute for its 10,349 working residents takes 19.7 minutes, against 32.6 across New York.
Half of commuters travel less than 11 miles. Auburn’s average trip to work is 20 minutes. About one in three of the town’s working residents works in town. It had 11,676 jobs in 2023, down 1,665 from 2013.
| Auburn | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 20% | 9.5% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 20 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $51,000 | $82,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 5.7% | 12% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
For Auburn, the FEMA risk score is 49 of 100. Households in the town have drawn federal disaster aid in 4 declared disasters, most recently in 2021. Just over four fifths of the town’s expected losses from natural hazards come from inland flooding. Since 1979, Auburn has seen 7 flood insurance claims paid out.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Auburn. Close and well known come first.
23 mi Stadium & arenaJMA Wireless Dome
26 mi LakeSeneca Lake
18 mi LakeCayuga Lake
21 mi LakeOnondaga Lake
33 mi MountainCumorah
27 mi State parkTaughannock Falls State ParkJMA Wireless Dome: Jimhoward03, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Seneca Lake: RochesterNY, Public domain · Cayuga Lake: The original uploader was Cornellrockey at English Wikipedia. Later versions we, CC BY-SA 2.5 · Onondaga Lake: R. A. Nonenmacher, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Cumorah: Hillcumorahpageantstage.jpg: la salebete derivative work: Eustress (talk), CC BY-SA 2.0 · Taughannock Falls State Park: Michael C. Rygel, CC BY-SA 3.0
2 within 15 miles of the center of Auburn
About 3 of every 100 Auburn residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across New York.
21 places in Auburn on the National Register of Historic Places.
44 notable people were born in Auburn.
City in New York, United States
Auburn is a city in Cayuga County, New York, United States. Located at the north end of Owasco Lake, one of the Finger Lakes in Central New York, the city had a population of 26,866 at the 2020 census. It is the largest city of Cayuga County, the county seat, and the site of the maximum-security Auburn Correctional Facility, as well as the William H. Seward House Museum and the house of abolitionist Harriet Tubman.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
6 towns share a border with Auburn.
All 3 graded towns on its borders grade higher than its D; Owasco (D) is closest.
| Town | NY rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Auburn | #713 | D | C+ | C | D | C− |
| Melrose Park | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Owasco | #689 | D | C− | — | C | C+ |
| Sennett | #234 | B+ | C+ | — | A− | C+ |
| Throop | — | — | B− | — | C+ | C+ |
| Aurelius | #266 | B+ | B | — | B | B− |
| Fleming | — | — | C− | — | C− | B− |
Throop and Fleming have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Owasco, Sennett, Throop, Aurelius and Fleming report no FBI crime data of their own. Melrose Park isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Auburn with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Auburn grades D overall, better than 7% of U.S. towns and #713 of 745 in New York. It grades C− for health, C for safety and D for schools. Schools is its weak spot, with a D.
That is 3.3 years of the area's median household income ($67,904 across the Auburn, NY area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C+.
44 notable people were born here, including Eric Adams and Avery Dulles.
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