Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
The best of Howard’s subject grades is an A− for cost of living; the weakest is a C− for incomes. On cost of living, just 51 of New York’s 1,215 towns do better. Only 36 of New York’s 1,187 towns score lower on civic life. Howard has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where Howard beats most towns.
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within New York), ordered by how far Howard is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 1,140 in 1820, a peak of 3,247 in 1840, 1,380 in 2020. The archive holds 5 old photos and papers going back to 1873 and 2 maps from 1915 on.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Howard, 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 Howard.
For Howard, the average commute is 23 minutes. The town had 41 jobs in 2023, down 47 from 2013. Among residents here, 13% live below the poverty line. The top destinations are Bath (19%), Hornell (9%) and Avoca (8%).
| Howard | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 0.8% | 10% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 13% | 9.5% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 23 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $74,000 | $82,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Howard’s typical July afternoon high is 80°F, where New York’s towns sit at 81°F and U.S. towns at 85°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Howard: 31% of adults feel lonely, near the New York town median (32%) and below the median of U.S. towns (33%). CDC measures, 32 in all: Howard beats New York on 2 and trails on 12. In Howard, 16% of adults smoke cigarettes.
| Howard | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 14% | 14% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 13% | 14% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 25% | 25% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 37% | 34% | 35% |
| What stands out | Howard | NY |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 6.4% | 7.9% |
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 12.2% | 14.5% |
| More adults with COPD | 9.1% | 6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Of the losses FEMA expects in Howard, 82% come from inland flooding. Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 56% of U.S. communities. Federal disaster aid has reached households in Howard after 5 declared disasters, most recently in 2024.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
6.4 miles of trail. The trail density in Howard is 0.1 miles per square mile.
| Howard | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 1.4% | 5.2% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.1 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
None within 15 miles of Howard; the nearest are
About 1 of every 100 Howard residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across New York.
Where Howard’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Town in New York, United States
Howard is a town in Steuben County, New York, United States. The population was 1,380 at the 2020 census. The Town of Howard is in the west-central part of the county, east of Hornell.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Not for the area. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades A−.