Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Johnstown is a solid, middle-of-the-road choice. It grades B overall, 352nd among New York's 745 graded towns, with no subject far below average. Its best mark is schools: its schools outperform 64% of the state's. A typical home there costs about $206K, 3.1 years of the Gloversville area’s $67K median household income. History is its standout character grade: an A+, better than 96% of U.S. towns, with 8 places on the National Register. Johnstown is more walkable than 90% of U.S. towns. Its National Register listings include Johnson Hall and Fulton County Jail. 22% of working residents work locally in Johnstown, above both New York’s towns (10%) and U.S. towns (8%).
Where Johnstown beats most towns.
Johnson Hall
Johnson Hall is a National Historic Landmark, the National Register’s top tier.
Census counts: 3,282 in 1870, 8,204 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1763 and 4 maps from 1903 on.
8 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within New York), ordered by how far Johnstown is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Johnstown, 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 Johnstown.
Johnstown draws workers from Gloversville and beyond and is healthier than towns with similar incomes.
60% of households own their home in Johnstown. The typical Johnstown home is worth about $206,000, up 2.6% in a year, 61% below the New York typical home. The median rent in Johnstown is $914 a month.
| Johnstown | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 60% | 75% | 73% |
| Median rent | $914 a month | $1,103 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Its public schools are run by the Johnstown City School District. Two of its 4 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Johnstown High School, with 554 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Knox Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 5–7 | Grades 5–7 | 341 | – |
| Johnstown High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 8–12 | Grades 8–12 | 554 | C |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NY on state tests and graduation
6,023 jobs are based in Johnstown, 1.8 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in. The average commute takes 19 minutes, against 32.6 across New York.
About one in 5 of Johnstown’s working residents works in town. Johnstown’s average trip to work is 19 minutes. Since 2013, Johnstown has added 441 jobs, to 6,023 in 2023.
| Johnstown | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 19 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Work from home | 7.6% | 12% | 11% |
| Median household income | $64,000 | $82,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 8.4% | 9.5% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
2.1 miles of trail in 4 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is Johnson Hall State Historic Site, at 28 acres.
| Johnstown | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 2.5% | 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. Knox Recreation Park | 0.6 mi | 14 |
| 2. Johnson Hall State Historic Site | 0.1 mi | 28 |
| 3. Charles Jenner Memorial Park | — | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Johnstown has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 81°, January nights drop to 12° and about 54 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
FBI crime data, 2023 · crimes reported to police
Against the 9,690 U.S. towns with household incomes like Johnstown’s, it is healthier than 80%, so its B isn’t only a matter of income.
Johnstown beats the New York average on 6 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 8.
| Johnstown | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 14% | 14% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 36% | 34% | 35% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 27% | 25% | 25% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 21% | 23% |
| What stands out | Johnstown | NY |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 6.1% | 7.9% |
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 11.4% | 14.5% |
| More adults with COPD | 8% | 6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 52% of U.S. communities. Since 1979, 28 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Johnstown.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
1 within 15 miles of the center of Johnstown
About 3 of every 100 Johnstown residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across New York.
Where Johnstown’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
8 places in Johnstown on the National Register of Historic Places.
10 notable people were born in Johnstown.
City in New York, United States
Johnstown is a city in and the county seat of Fulton County in the U.S. state of New York. The city was named after its colonial founder, Sir William Johnson, Superintendent of Indian Affairs for Britain in the Province of New York and a major general during the Seven Years' War in North America. It is located approximately 45 miles (72 km) northwest of Albany, about one-third of the way between Albany and the Finger Lakes region to the west, in the Mohawk Valley region, within the foothills of the Adirondack Mountains. The city of Johnstown is mostly surrounded by the town of Johnstown; it separated from the town when it converted from a village to a city in 1895. Adjacent to Johnstown is …
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with Johnstown.
| Town | NY rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Johnstown | #352 | B | C+ | C+ | B | B |
| Johnstown | #585 | C | B− | — | C− | C+ |
| Gloversville | #691 | D | B− | C+ | D− | D |
| Mohawk | #372 | B− | C+ | — | B+ | B− |
Johnstown and Mohawk report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Johnstown with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Johnstown grades B overall, better than 55% of U.S. towns and #352 of 745 in New York. It grades B for health, C+ 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 C+.
10 notable people were born here, including Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Richard Russo.
