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Nott SE LandscapePhoto: UpstateNYer · CC BY-SA 3.0
The Schenectady handbook

Living in Schenectady, NY: what to set up and who to call

Schenectady has its own drop-off, City of Schenectady Solid Waste Transfer Station. Trains stop in Schenectady.

Trash & dumpWho supplies the water?Which school will my kid attend?How do I register to vote?ZIP codes

I’m new in town

What to set up in Schenectady, and who provides it. Tap an answer for the details and where they come from.

PowerNational Gridinvestor-owned utility · 19.9¢/kWhMore →WaterSchenectady City Water Works0 health-based violations in 5 years · EPAMore →Internet3 providers98% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsMore →Trash & dumpBy addressTown pickup · day by addressMore →SchoolSchenectady City School DistrictWhich school depends on grade and addressMore →Register to voteOnlineRules from vote.govMore →ZIP codes12304, 12308, 12303 +4Where people live, not P.O. boxesMore →
Home services

Power, water and internet

Who to call to start service at a new address in Schenectady.

Electricity

Power comes from National Grid

National Grid (Niagara Mohawk Power Corp.), an investor-owned utility, serves all of Schenectady. Its homes paid an average of 19.9¢ per kWh in 2025, about $130 a month (its average across New York, for customers on its standard service). New York lets you buy power from another supplier; 6% of National Grid’s home customers do, and National Grid still delivers it.

Start or move service: www1.nationalgridus.com · (315) 474-1511

Service territory: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map dated Aug 2023). Prices and customers: EIA-861, 2025.

Drinking water · reported to EPA

Water comes from Schenectady City Water Works

Schenectady City Water Works supplies almost all of Schenectady. It draws ground water and serves 61,821 people in all.

No health-based violations reported to EPA in the five years to October 2026, like 90% of the 597 systems serving 50,001–100,000 people.

Lead, 90th percentile3.0 ppb
015 ppb action level20

The latest lead result on file, the 90th percentile of homes sampled in Jan 2023–Dec 2025, was 3.0 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that applied. The highest in five years was 4.0 ppb. That’s higher than 81% of similar systems’ latest results.

The system’s full record: EPA ECHO report

EPA SDWIS via Envirofacts (violations pulled Oct 9, 2026) and ECHO (lead samples, 2026Q3); service area: EPA Community Water System Service Area Boundaries v3.0. Violations are counted by the start of their compliance period. NY4600070.

Internet

3 home internet providers serve Schenectady

98% of 18,296 addresses can get 100/20 Mbps; 90% can get fiber.

ProviderTechnologyAddressesFastest (Mbps)
SpectrumCable, Fiber98%1,000/35
VerizonFiber, Fixed wireless96%980/880
T-MobileFixed wireless56%100/20

FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025. Availability as providers report it, not speeds people get.

Trash & recycling

Trash day in Schenectady depends on your street

Pickup days, the drop-off and recycling in Schenectady, from the town’s own site.

How trash works hereTown pickupTown crews pick up at the curbcityofschenectady.gov
Trash dayBy addressDepends on your addressLook up your day on cityofschenectady.gov →
Pickup

Your pickup week

Transfer station

City of Schenectady Solid Waste Transfer Station

We couldn’t find its opening hours.

What goes in the recycling bin

Single-stream recycling

All your recyclables go in one bin, no sorting.

  • Paper
  • Plastic
  • Aluminum
  • Glass
  • Tin
cityofschenectady.gov
Furniture, appliances and bulky itemsBulk Waste Pickup Program temporarily suspended for 90 days from March 20, 2026; during suspension, bulk items (furniture, mattresses, bed frames, chairs) may be set out on regular garbage day at no cost; appliances collected only on dates marked in red on the collection calendar
What can be recycledThe town’s recycling pagecityofschenectady.gov →

From cityofschenectady.gov, the town’s official site, checked Oct 21, 2026; pages dated 01/01/2012. Rules change: the town’s page is the last word. .

Schools

Where your child goes to school

Public school districts and the school path by grade.

Schenectady kids go to
PK–511 elementary schoolsDepends on your address
6–83 middle schoolsDepends on your address
9–12Schenectady High SchoolSchenectady City School District

Schenectady is in Schenectady City School District.

DSchool gradeSee Schools →

U.S. Department of Education, NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25. Enrollment rules and registration are the district’s.

Government & voting

Town hall and registering to vote

Who to call, and how to register.

Official sitecityofschenectady.govSchenectady’s own websiteWikidataTown HallBudget, officials, electionsSchenectady’s government in one page
Who runs elections hereSchenectady County Board of ElectionsElections here are run by Schenectady County (county election office). 2696 Hamburg St, Ste 1, Schenectady, NY 12303 · (518) 377-2469 · [email protected]FVAP, Aug 2021
Register to voteOnlineIn New York you can register online until 10 days before Election Day, in person until 10 days before Election Day, or by mail (postmarked 15 days before and received 10 days before).vote.govCheck your registration and polling placevoterlookup.elections.ny.govThe state’s voter lookup

Election office: FVAP local election office directory, updated Aug 2021; jurisdictions: EAC EAVS 2024. Registration rules and links: vote.gov, updated Aug 3, 2026.

ZIP codes & area codes

Schenectady spans 7 ZIP codes

ZIP codes where Schenectady residents live, with the share of the town in each.

ZIPPost office nameShare of SchenectadyZIP’s residents in Schenectady
12304Schenectady, NY25%77%
12308Schenectady, NY23%100%
12303Schenectady, NY15%33%
12307Schenectady, NY11%100%
12306Schenectady, NY9%23%
12305Schenectady, NY9%100%
12309Schenectady, NY8%16%

12301, 12325, 12345 are P.O. box or single-organization ZIPs with no homes.

Area code518Wikidata

Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas, by census block; post office names: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). ZIPs created since 2020 are missing.

Everyday places

Getting around, the ER and the library

One line each; the subject pages have the rest.

TrainSchenectadyTrain station in townNearest emergency roomEllis Hospital1.3 miles awayGet a library cardCentral Library99 Clinton Street · (518) 388-4500

Train: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors). ER: CMS hospital data. Library: IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FY2024.

Questions about living in Schenectady

Who supplies Schenectady’s drinking water, and has it had violations?

Schenectady City Water Works (EPA ID NY4600070). It reported no health-based violations to EPA in the five years to October 2026; 90% of systems its size had none. Its latest lead 90th percentile was 3.0 ppb (Jan 2023–Dec 2025), against a 15 ppb action level.

Who provides electricity in Schenectady?

National Grid (Niagara Mohawk Power Corp.), an investor-owned utility. Its homes paid about 19.9¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA).

What internet providers serve Schenectady?

Spectrum, Verizon, T-Mobile (FCC, as of December 2025).

What ZIP codes are in Schenectady?

12304 (25%), 12308 (23%), 12303 (15%), 12307 (11%), 12306 (9%), 12305 (9%), 12309 (8%), by share of residents. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.

What school district is Schenectady in?

Schenectady City School District.

How do I register to vote in Schenectady?

In New York you can register online until 10 days before Election Day, in person until 10 days before Election Day, or by mail (postmarked 15 days before and received 10 days before). Elections here are run by the Schenectady County Board of Elections. Check your registration at voterlookup.elections.ny.gov.

Sources & dates

Every answer above names its source. Here they are with their dates.

  • Water: EPA SDWIS (Envirofacts, pulled Oct 9, 2026), ECHO SDWA 2026Q3, EPA CWS Service Area Boundaries v3.0.
  • Power: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map Aug 2023); EIA-861 final 2025.
  • Trash: Schenectady’s own website (cityofschenectady.gov), read Oct 21, 2026, pickup and drop-off facts extracted and checked against the page they came from.
  • ZIP codes: Census 2020 ZCTA relationship files; GeoNames postal codes (CC BY 4.0).
  • Schools: NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25.
  • Registration: vote.gov, updated Aug 3, 2026 (read Oct 10, 2026). Official sites and area codes: Wikidata.
  • Election office: FVAP local election office directory (fetched Oct 10, 2026; each record dated), EAC EAVS 2024 jurisdictions; registration and lookup links from vote.gov’s state data, checked Oct 10, 2026.
  • Internet: FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025.