Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 3,562.
Oxford gives you more for your money than most places: a typical home costs about $119K, 1.9 years of the county’s $63K median household income. It grades C− overall, ranked 632nd of 745 in New York. The low prices come with trade-offs. The median household income is $61K, and 18% of residents live below the poverty line, and FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 76% of U.S. communities, with inland flooding at the top. History is its standout character grade: an A+, better than 99% of U.S. towns, with 4 places on the National Register. 31% of residents are 65 or older in Oxford, above both the New York town median (20%) and the median of U.S. towns (18%). On history, just 31 of New York’s 1,216 towns do better. The biggest place to walk is Basswood State Forest, 921 acres with 2.4 miles of trail.
Where Oxford beats most towns.
Where Oxford’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 Oxford is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 2,317 in 1820, 3,901 in 2010. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1832 and 3 maps from 1902 on.
4 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Explore the history →Who provides power, water and the rest in Oxford, 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 Oxford.
Oxford is healthier than towns with similar incomes and has commutes shorter than most of New York, but it carries more natural-hazard risk than most of New York (mostly inland flooding).
The average commute for its 1,426 working residents takes 24 minutes, against 32.6 across New York.
Most working residents leave Oxford for work: only 6% work in town. 19% of residents live below the poverty line in Oxford. Jobs based in Oxford fell to 816 in 2023, 152 fewer than in 2013.
| Oxford | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 19% | 9.5% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $61,000 | $82,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 5.8% | 10% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 24 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its public schools are run by the Oxford Academy And Central School District. Two of its 3 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oxford Academy Primary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–4 | Grades PK–4 | 275 | C− |
| Oxford Academy High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 205 | A |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NY on state tests and graduation
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 95% of New York towns; that rating is what its C− for hazard risk is built on.
Since 1979, 9 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Oxford.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
| Oxford | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 7.7% | 5.2% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.2 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Basswood State Forest | 2.4 mi | 921 |
| 2. Wiley Brook State Forest | 1.7 mi | 893 |
| 3. Lyon Brook State Forest | — | 418 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Oxford has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. Oxford’s July high is 81°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Against the 9,216 U.S. towns with household incomes like Oxford’s, it is healthier than 58%, so its C+ isn’t only a matter of income.
Oxford beats the New York average on 3 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 12. 16% of Oxford adults report frequent physical distress.
| Oxford | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 14% | 14% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 39% | 34% | 35% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 25% | 25% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 11% | 12% |
| What stands out | Oxford | NY |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 11.6% | 14.5% |
| Fewer uninsured adults | 6.6% | 7.9% |
| More adults with COPD | 9.8% | 6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
None within 15 miles of Oxford; the nearest are
About 2 of every 100 Oxford residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across New York.
4 places in Oxford on the National Register of Historic Places.
8 notable people were born in Oxford.
Town in New York, United States
Oxford is a town in Chenango County, New York, United States. The town contains a village also named Oxford. Oxford is an interior town in the south-central part of the county, southwest of the city of Norwich. At the 2010 census the town population was 3,901. The name derives from that of the native town of an early landowner from New England.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
6 towns share a border with Oxford.
| Town | NY rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oxford | #632 | C− | B+ | — | C | C+ |
| Guilford | #702 | D | B− | — | C | C+ |
| Coventry | — | — | B | — | C | B− |
| Preston | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Smithville | — | — | C | — | C+ | B− |
| Greene | #538 | C | B− | — | C+ | B− |
| Norwich | #598 | C− | B | — | D | C+ |
Coventry and Smithville have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Oxford, Guilford, Coventry, Smithville, Greene and Norwich report no FBI crime data of their own. Preston isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Oxford with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Oxford grades C− overall, better than 19% of U.S. towns and #632 of 745 in New York. It grades C+ for health and C for schools. Jobs & income is its weak spot, with a D.
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 B+.
8 notable people were born here, including Robert Stockton Williamson and Solomon Bundy.
