Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
The best of Ovid’s subject grades are an A for history and civic life; the weakest is a D for incomes. 23% of residents live below the poverty line in Ovid, where New York’s towns sit at 9.5% and U.S. towns at 9.6%. On incomes, just 88 of New York’s 1,216 towns do worse. Its National Register listings include Willard Asylum for the Chronic Insane and Seneca County Courthouse Complex at Ovid. Ovid has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Where Ovid beats most towns.
Willard Asylum for the Chronic Insane
Census counts: 2,654 in 1820, 2,847 in 2020. The archive holds 11 old photos and papers going back to 1835 and 3 maps from 1902 on.
5 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within New York), ordered by how far Ovid is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Ovid, 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 Ovid.
The typical Ovid home is worth about $221,000, up 6.2% in a year, 58% below the New York typical home.
| Ovid | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,046 a month | $1,101 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 73% | 75% | 73% |
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Its public schools are run by the South Seneca Central School District. Its one school is below. The largest public high school is South Seneca Middle/High School, with 329 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Seneca Middle/High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 6–12 | Grades 6–12 | 329 | C− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NY on state tests and graduation
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 83% of U.S. communities. Since 1993, 15 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Ovid.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Most working residents leave Ovid for work: only 7% work in town. At 31 minutes, Ovid’s average trip to work is above both the New York town median (25 minutes) and the median of U.S. towns (25 minutes). Since 2013, Ovid has added 37 jobs, to 338 in 2023.
| Ovid | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 31 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $64,000 | $82,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 14% | 12% | 11% |
| Working residents who work in town | 7.2% | 10% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Ovid has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers. Ovid’s July high is 80°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Ovid beats the New York average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 11. 17% of Ovid adults smoke cigarettes.
| Ovid | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 13% | 14% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 25% | 25% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 14% | 14% |
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 13% | 14% |
| What stands out | Ovid | NY |
|---|---|---|
| More smokers | 16.5% | 11.3% |
| More adults with COPD | 8.6% | 6% |
| More adults with heart disease | 7.4% | 6.1% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
1.6 miles of trail in 1 park or preserve. The biggest park or preserve is Willard Wildlife Management Area, at 151 acres.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Willard Wildlife Management Area | — | 151 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Ovid. Close and well known come first.
5 mi LakeSeneca Lake
5 mi LakeCayuga Lake
19 mi State parkWatkins Glen State Park
12 mi State parkTaughannock Falls State Park
32 mi MountainCumorah
37 mi MuseumCorning Museum of Glass400K visitors a yearSeneca Lake: RochesterNY, Public domain · Cayuga Lake: The original uploader was Cornellrockey at English Wikipedia. Later versions we, CC BY-SA 2.5 · Watkins Glen State Park: Flickr user: Peter Rivera Stamford, Connecticut https://www.flickr.com/people/ri, CC BY 2.0 · Taughannock Falls State Park: Michael C. Rygel, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Cumorah: Hillcumorahpageantstage.jpg: la salebete derivative work: Eustress (talk), CC BY-SA 2.0 · Corning Museum of Glass: User:Stilfehler, CC BY-SA 3.0
None within 15 miles of Ovid; the nearest are
About 2 of every 100 Ovid residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across New York.
2,311 counted in 2010 and 2,847 in 2020; an estimated 2,264 in 2025.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
5 places in Ovid on the National Register of Historic Places.
6 notable people were born in Ovid.
Town in New York, United States
Ovid is a town in Seneca County, New York, United States. The population was 2,847 at the 2020 census. The town is named after the Roman poet Ovid, a name assigned by a clerk interested in the classics. The Town of Ovid contains a village also called Ovid, one of the county seats of Seneca County. The town is in the southern part of the county, extending between Seneca Lake to the west and Cayuga Lake to the east, and southeast of Geneva, New York.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
5 towns share a border with Ovid.
| Town | NY rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ovid | — | — | C | — | C− | C+ |
| Romulus | #728 | D− | C+ | — | C− | C |
| Covert | — | — | C | — | C+ | B+ |
| Lodi | — | — | B+ | — | C− | C+ |
| Torrey | — | — | C+ | — | B− | B− |
| Genoa | — | — | C | — | B+ | B |
Ovid, Covert, Lodi, Torrey and Genoa have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Ovid, Romulus, Covert, Lodi, Torrey and Genoa report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Ovid with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
That is 3.2 years of the area's median household income ($68,089 across the Seneca Falls, NY area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C.
6 notable people were born here, including Thomas Lounsbury and Silas M. Burroughs.
