Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Poughkeepsie grades B− overall, 406th of 745 graded towns in New York, with clear strengths and some subjects that lag. CDC estimates put its residents' health ahead of 82% of the country and it has 38 miles of trail. On the other side, the typical home is worth about $355K, 3.6 years of the Kiryas Joel metro’s $98K median household income. Poughkeepsie’s trail density is 1.2 miles per square mile, above both the New York town median (0.4) and the median of U.S. towns (0.4). Its National Register listings include Locust Grove and Vassar College Observatory. Poughkeepsie is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 86% of U.S. towns.
Where Poughkeepsie beats most towns.
Locust Grove is one of 4 National Historic Landmarks here, the National Register’s top tier.
Census counts: 11,511 in 1850, 31,577 in 2020. The archive holds 18 old photos and papers going back to 1760 and 6 maps from 1893 on.
20 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within New York), ordered by how far Poughkeepsie is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Poughkeepsie. Close and well known come first.
Big draw19 mi MuseumUnited States Military Academy
6 mi National Historic SiteHome of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic Site102K visitors a year
9 mi National Historic SiteVanderbilt Mansion National Historic Site295K visitors a year7 mi MuseumFranklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum
20 mi Stadium & arenaMichie Stadium
26 mi LakeCandlewood LakeUnited States Military Academy: USMA Public Affairs Office, Public domain · Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic Site: Crunch, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Vanderbilt Mansion National Historic Site: Daderot, Public domain · Michie Stadium: John Pellino, Public domain · Candlewood Lake: Carol M. Highsmith, Public domain
Who provides power, water and the rest in Poughkeepsie, 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 Poughkeepsie.
On this, Poughkeepsie is above both New York’s towns (5.2%) and U.S. towns (4.3%). 38 miles of trail in 20 parks and preserves. The biggest place to walk is Bowdoin Park, 303 acres with 7.4 miles of trail.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Bowdoin Park | 7.4 mi | 303 |
| 2. Peach Hill Park | 4.7 mi | 121 |
| 3. Vassar's Back Yard | 4.4 mi | 252 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Three of its 16 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sheafe Road Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–6 | Grades K–6 | 612 | C |
| Spackenkill High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 537 | A+ |
| Arthur S May SchoolTop results in townGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 496 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NY on state tests and graduation
29% of Poughkeepsie adults have obesity. Poughkeepsie beats the New York average on 1 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 0. 19% of Poughkeepsie adults have been diagnosed with depression.
| Poughkeepsie | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 33% | 35% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 21% | 23% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 17% | 16% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 12% | 14% | 14% |
| What stands out | Poughkeepsie | NY |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 14.9% | 17.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Reported crimes fell from 1,133 to 810 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
Poughkeepsie’s property crime rate is 18.1 per 1,000 residents.
| Poughkeepsie | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 18.1 per 1,000 residents | 7.5 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 1.6 per 1,000 residents | 0.8 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 71% of U.S. communities. Since 1978, 45 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Poughkeepsie.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Poughkeepsie has chilly, snowy winters and warm summers. July afternoons reach 85°, January nights drop to 18° and about 58 inches of snow falls in a winter.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
45% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Poughkeepsie.
| Poughkeepsie | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 18 | 16% | 20% | 22% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 45% | 32% | 29% |
| Median age | 37.7 years | 43 years | 40.5 years |
| Aged 65 or older | 18% | 20% | 18% |
51% women, 49% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±1.5 points. Across New York, 51.2% of residents are women. Median age: women 39.3, men 35.9.
| Poughkeepsie | NY | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 8.3% | 11% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 7.6% | 9.5% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 20.5% | 8.9% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 10.4% | 14.2% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 10.9% | 13% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 10.4% | 12.2% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 14% | 13.3% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 10.2% | 10.3% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 7.6% | 7.6% | 7% |
| No diploma | 7% | 12% | 10.4% |
| High school | 21.7% | 24.3% | 26% |
| Some college | 15.9% | 14.6% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 10.2% | 8.8% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 25% | 22.4% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 20.2% | 17.9% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Most working residents leave Poughkeepsie for work: only 19% work in town. The top destinations are New York (15%), Poughkeepsie (9%) and Wappinger (6%). Half commute less than 14 miles.
| Poughkeepsie | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 19% | 12% | 11% |
| Working residents who work in town | 19% | 10% | 8% |
| Median household income | $98,000 | $82,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 27 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
6 within 15 miles of the center of Poughkeepsie
College town 18 of every 100 Poughkeepsie residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across New York.
3 colleges in town.
20 places in Poughkeepsie on the National Register of Historic Places.
49 notable people were born in Poughkeepsie.
City in New York, United States
Poughkeepsie ( pə-KIP-see) is the largest city in, and county seat of, Dutchess County, New York, United States. It is surrounded by the Town of Poughkeepsie and had a population of 31,577 at the 2020 census, while the Kiryas Joel–Poughkeepsie–Newburgh metropolitan area has an estimated 712,000 residents. Poughkeepsie is in the Hudson Valley region, midway between the core of the New York metropolitan area and the state capital of Albany. It is served by the nearby Hudson Valley Regional Airport and Stewart International Airport in Orange County, New York. Poughkeepsie has been called "The Queen City of the Hudson". Originally part of New Netherland, it was settled in the 17th century by th…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
10 towns share a border with Poughkeepsie.
Hyde Park next door grades lower for schools (C to Poughkeepsie’s B) and higher for cost of living (C to D).
| Town | NY rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poughkeepsie | #406 | B− | D | C | B | A− |
| LaGrange | #338 | B | C− | — | B− | A |
| Poughkeepsie | #726 | D− | C− | C− | D− | C+ |
| Wappinger | #277 | B+ | D | — | B+ | A |
| Red Oaks Mill | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Hyde Park | #290 | B | C | A | C | A− |
| Marlborough | #183 | A− | D− | A+ | B | A |
| New Hamburg | — | — | — | — | — | — |
LaGrange and Wappinger report no FBI crime data of their own. Red Oaks Mill and New Hamburg aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Poughkeepsie with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Poughkeepsie grades B− overall, better than 48% of U.S. towns and #406 of 745 in New York. It grades A− for health, C for safety and B for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D.
Yes. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades D.
49 notable people were born here, including Lee Miller and Tom Holland.
