Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Cuba’s standout strength is schools (B+): its schools outperform 74% of the state's. Add walkability to its strengths: it is more walkable than 78% of U.S. towns. What holds it back is hazard risk (C): FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 69% of U.S. communities, with inland flooding at the top. It lags on health as well: residents are less healthy than just over three fifths of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. A typical home there costs about $113K, 1.8 years of the county’s $63K median household income. The overall grade comes out at B+, better than 70% of U.S. towns. That places it 240th of 745 in New York. History is its standout character grade: an A+, better than 95% of U.S. towns, with 4 places on the National Register.
Figures: schools, state test and graduation results · FEMA National Risk Index · health, CDC PLACES · home values, Zillow · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24.
Where Cuba beats most towns.
South Street Historic District| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Cuba-Rushford Elementary School | PK–5 | 363 |
| Cuba-Rushford Middle School | 6–8 | 154 |
| Cuba-Rushford High School | 9–12 | 202 |
Census counts: 1,059 in 1830, 3,154 in 2020. The archive holds 24 old photos and papers going back to 1901 and 5 maps from 1898 on.
4 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within New York), ordered by how far Cuba is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Cuba, 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 Cuba.
Cuba gets more snow than nearly all U.S. towns and is safe by national standards but not by New York’s; it also carries more natural-hazard risk than most of New York (mostly inland flooding).
Below: Two of its 3 schools, each with why it was picked. Public schools: the Cuba-Rushford Central School District. Also worth knowing: the 3 public schools in Cuba teach 719 students between them.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cuba-Rushford Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 363 | B− |
| Cuba-Rushford High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 202 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NY on state tests and graduation
Trails total 10 miles in 3 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Genesee Valley Greenway State Park, at 22 acres. In Cuba, the trail density is 0.3 miles per square mile.
| Cuba | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 3.4% | 5.2% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.3 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Genesee Valley Greenway State Park | — | 22 |
| 2. Willow Bank Park | 0.2 mi | 5 |
| 3. Chamberlain Park | — | 4 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
At 12.3 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports less crime than 51% of New York’s graded towns. Violent crime is rare: 3 reported in 2025, 1 per 1,000 residents.
Cuba’s property offense rate is 6.5 per 1,000 residents, below both New York’s towns (7.6) and U.S. towns (9.9). The violent offense rate for Cuba comes to 1 per 1,000 residents.
| Cuba | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 6.5 per 1,000 residents | 7.6 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 1 per 1,000 residents | 0.8 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 90% of New York towns, with expected losses of about $555 per resident a year; that rating is what its C for hazard risk is built on.
84% of Cuba’s expected losses from natural hazards come from inland flooding. Federal aid has come to Cuba households in 4 declared disasters; the latest was in 2011. Since 1979, one flood insurance claim has been paid here.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The Friendship 7 Sw weather station, 5 miles away, records that 103 inches of snow fall in a normal winter, more than in 97% of U.S. towns.
July afternoons reach 79° and January nights drop to 14°.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Cuba has about as many jobs (1,455) as working residents, but only 273 people both live and work here. The average commute takes 19.7 minutes, against 32.6 across New York.
Cuba’s average commute is 20 minutes, where New York’s towns sit at 25 minutes and U.S. towns at 25 minutes. Roughly one working resident in five has a job in Cuba itself. 12% of residents live below the poverty line here. The top destinations are Olean (14%), Friendship (6%) and Wellsville (4%).
| Cuba | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 22% | 10% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 20 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 12% | 9.5% | 9.6% |
| Work from home | 9.3% | 12% | 11% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Cuba: 20% of adults say their health is fair or poor. CDC measures, 32 in all: Cuba beats New York on 5 and trails on 14. Two figures for adults here: 16% report frequent physical distress, 16% smoke cigarettes.
| Cuba | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 40% | 34% | 35% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 14% | 14% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 13% | 14% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 11% | 12% |
| What stands out | Cuba | NY |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 6.1% | 7.9% |
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 11.9% | 14.5% |
| More adults with COPD | 9.4% | 6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
None within 15 miles of Cuba; the nearest are
About 3 of every 100 Cuba residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across New York.
4 places in Cuba on the National Register of Historic Places.
8 notable people were born in Cuba.
Town in New York, United States
Cuba is a town on the western border of Allegany County, New York, United States. The village of Cuba lies within its borders. The federally recognized tribe of Seneca Native Americans has a reservation on the western town line. As of the 2020 Census, the total population was 3,154.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
5 towns share a border with Cuba.
| Town | NY rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cuba | #240 | B+ | B | B+ | B+ | C+ |
| Clarksville | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Friendship | — | — | B | A+ | C− | C |
| Ischua | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Hinsdale | — | — | B+ | — | A− | C+ |
| New Hudson | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Friendship and Hinsdale have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Hinsdale reports no FBI crime data of its own. Clarksville, Ischua and New Hudson aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Cuba with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Cuba grades B+ overall, better than 70% of U.S. towns and #240 of 745 in New York. It grades C+ for health, B+ for safety and B+ for schools.
Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B.
8 notable people were born here, including Charles Ingalls and Cora L. V. Scott.
