Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Middle Island’s midpoint rent is $1,868 a month, above both New York’s towns ($1,101 a month) and U.S. towns ($1,185 a month). Middle Island’s concentration of trails is 2.4 miles per square mile, against 0.4 in New York’s towns and 0.4 across U.S. towns. The biggest place to walk is Rocky Point Pine Barrens State Forest, 771 acres with 3 miles of trail. We don’t grade Middle Island yet; the figures below are still real.
Where Middle Island beats most towns.
Census counts: 9,702 in 2000, 10,546 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1873 and 5 maps from 1904 on.
Where Middle Island’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Ordered by what stands out in Middle Island.
Count the trails in 4 parks and preserves and they come to 19 miles.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. East Bartlett Pine Barrens State Forest | 3.1 mi | 97 |
| 2. Rocky Point Pine Barrens State Forest | 3 mi | 771 |
| 3. Prosser Pines County Park | 1.2 mi | 53 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
The share of working residents in Middle Island who work locally: 4.6%. The top destinations are Brookhaven (33%), New York (15%) and Islip (15%). For Middle Island, the mean commuting time is 32 minutes.
| Middle Island | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 32 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 13% | 9.5% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 4.6% | 10% | 8% |
| Median household income | $85,000 | $82,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 71% of U.S. communities. Paid flood insurance claims in Middle Island since 1979: 2.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Expect July afternoons of 83° and January nights of 23°, with about 32 inches of snow a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Adults 18 to 34 are 18% of residents (23% statewide); people 65 and older are 23% of residents (18% statewide). A bachelor’s degree or higher: 32% of adults 25 and older, vs 40% across New York. Middle Island’s midpoint age stands at 43.9 years.
| Middle Island | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aged 65 or older | 23% | 20% | 18% |
| Median age | 43.9 years | 43 years | 40.5 years |
| Under 18 | 21% | 20% | 22% |
55% women, 45% men
About 84 men for every 100 women (the survey’s margin: ±3.6 points). Across New York, 51.2% of residents are women.
| Middle Island | NY | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 11.8% | 11% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 8.7% | 9.5% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 5.9% | 8.9% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 11.7% | 14.2% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 13.3% | 13% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 12.6% | 12.2% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 12.7% | 13.3% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 14% | 10.3% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 9.3% | 7.6% | 7% |
| No diploma | 7.4% | 12% | 10.4% |
| High school | 29.8% | 24.3% | 26% |
| Some college | 21.8% | 14.6% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 8.9% | 8.8% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 19.2% | 22.4% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 12.9% | 17.9% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
40% of adults sleep under 7 hours in Middle Island. Of 32 CDC measures, Middle Island beats the New York average on 6 and trails it on 4.
| Middle Island | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 21% | 23% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 40% | 37% | 36% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 83% | 81% | 79% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 32% | 33% |
| What stands out | Middle Island | NY |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 6.6% | 7.9% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 14.4% | 17.2% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 9.7% | 7.7% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
A home in Middle Island typically sold within 33 days of listing. Typical home values rose 4.4% in the year to September 2026. Half of the homes sold in Middle Island went for more than their asking price.
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Middle Island. Close and well known come first.
35 mi Stadium & arenaNassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum
29 mi Stadium & arenaYale Bowl
28 mi National Historic SiteSagamore Hill National Historic Site122K visitors a year
7 mi LandmarkCalverton National Cemetery
36 mi State parkJones Beach State Park
35 mi MuseumGlass HouseNassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum: iMatthew // talk //, Public domain · Yale Bowl: Kenneth Zirkel, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Sagamore Hill National Historic Site: Unknown, Public domain · Calverton National Cemetery: United States Department of Veterans Affairs, Public domain · Jones Beach State Park: Bjoertvedt, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Glass House: Carol M. Highsmith, Public domain
Middle Island is unincorporated, so Suffolk County and regional agencies provide most services.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Aug 3, 2026.
2 within 15 miles of the center of Middle Island
About 5 of every 100 Middle Island residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across New York.
Hamlet and census-designated place in New York, United States
Middle Island is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) located within the Town of Brookhaven, in Suffolk County, on Long Island, in New York, United States. The population was 10,546 at the time of the 2020 census. The community is situated between the hamlets of Coram and Ridge to the west and east, respectively – and the hamlets of Rocky Point and Yaphank to the north and south, respectively. The name derives from the fact that it lies approximately halfway between the eastern and western ends of Long Island (Montauk Point and the East River) as well as halfway between the northern and southern boundaries (the Long Island Sound and the Atlantic Ocean).
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
6 towns share a border with Middle Island.
| Town | NY rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Middle Island | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Yaphank | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Gordon Heights | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Rocky Point | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Ridge | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Coram | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Miller Place | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Middle Island, Yaphank, Gordon Heights, Rocky Point, Ridge, Coram and Miller Place aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Middle Island with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
We don’t grade Middle Island yet; the figures below are still real.
Ask a question, answer one, post a photo or an event. Free, and the parts only a neighbor would know are the parts worth reading.
