Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Newark earns a D, ranked 675th of 745 in New York, mostly because of safety and health. Its crime rate is higher than 82% of U.S. towns, with 34 violent crimes reported to the FBI in 2025. Residents are less healthy than 81% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. What it does well: natural-hazard risk is low. 22% of residents live below the poverty line in Newark, above both New York’s towns (9.5%) and U.S. towns (9.6%). Only 109 of New York’s 1,187 towns score higher on civic life. Newark's schools rank behind 77% of the state's.
Where Newark beats most towns.
Where Newark’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within New York), ordered by how far Newark is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 2,248 in 1870, a peak of 12,868 in 1960, 9,017 in 2020. The archive holds 5 old photos and papers going back to 1874 and 4 maps from 1899 on.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Newark, 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 Newark.
Newark draws workers from Arcadia and beyond and has seen reported crime fall by a third or more.
5.8 miles of trail in 3 parks and preserves. The trail density in Newark is 1.1 miles per square mile.
| Newark | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 1.1 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 7.6% | 5.2% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Perkins Park | 0.3 mi | 15 |
| 2. T. Spencer Knight Canal Park | 0.1 mi | 1 |
| 3. Central Park | — | 1 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
The typical Newark home is worth about $205,000, up 4.8% in a year, 61% below the New York typical home. Newark’s median rent is $979 a month.
| Newark | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 61% | 75% | 73% |
| Median rent | $979 a month | $1,103 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
5,676 jobs are based in Newark, 1.5 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in. Jobs based here fell from 7,961 in 2013 to 5,676.
About one in 4 of Newark’s working residents works in town. Jobs based in Newark fell to 5,676 in 2023, 2,285 fewer than in 2013. The top destinations are Arcadia (25%), Rochester (6%) and Lyons (5%).
| Newark | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 25% | 10% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 21 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $60,000 | $82,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 92% of U.S. communities. Since 1979, 4 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Newark.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Reported crimes fell from 304 to 189 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
Newark reports more crime per resident than most U.S. towns we grade: about 82% report less.
| Newark | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 3.8 per 1,000 residents | 0.8 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 17.4 per 1,000 residents | 7.5 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
41% of Newark adults have obesity. Newark beats the New York average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 18. 13% of Newark adults have diabetes.
| Newark | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 41% | 33% | 35% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 14% | 14% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 25% | 25% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 13% | 14% |
| What stands out | Newark | NY |
|---|---|---|
| More adults with COPD | 9.6% | 6% |
| More smokers | 17.4% | 11.3% |
| More adults with obesity | 41% | 28.8% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Newark has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 81°, January nights drop to 17° and about 57 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Newark. Close and well known come first.
7 mi MountainCumorah
29 mi LakeSeneca Lake
32 mi LakeCayuga Lake
26 mi MuseumGeorge Eastman Museum
27 mi Stadium & arenaBlue Cross Arena
27 mi MuseumThe National Museum of PlayCumorah: Hillcumorahpageantstage.jpg: la salebete derivative work: Eustress (talk), CC BY-SA 2.0 · Seneca Lake: RochesterNY, Public domain · Cayuga Lake: The original uploader was Cornellrockey at English Wikipedia. Later versions we, CC BY-SA 2.5 · George Eastman Museum: Dmadeo, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Blue Cross Arena: Matthew D. Wilson (LtPowers), CC BY-SA 3.0 · The National Museum of Play: Misc, CC BY-SA 4.0
3 within 15 miles of the center of Newark
About 2 of every 100 Newark residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across New York.
11 notable people were born in Newark.
Village in New York, United States
Newark ( NEW-ərk) is a village in Wayne County, New York, United States, 35 miles (56 km) south east of Rochester and 48 miles (77 km) west of Syracuse. The population was 9,017 at the 2020 census. The Village of Newark is in the south part of the Town of Arcadia and is in the south of Wayne County. It is the most populous community in Wayne County.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Newark grades D overall, better than 12% of U.S. towns and #675 of 745 in New York. It grades C− for health, C− for safety and C− for schools. Safety is its weak spot, with a C−.
That is 2.7 years of the area's median household income ($76,284 across the Rochester, NY metro area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B−.
11 notable people were born here, including Eva Henning and Paul J. Swain.
