Scio library, 2025
Scio’s story
221 years in pictures
Census counts: 602 in 1830, 1,625 in 2020. The archive holds 1 old photo or paper going back to 2025 and 2 maps from 1926 on.
- 1805Scio is settled
ScioNY
Population
1,623
2025 Census estimate · −0.8% since 2020
Typical home
$137K
+4% in a year
Household income
$62K
median
Median age
47.4
years
Jobs based here
269
A commuter town
Is Scio a good place to live?
The best of Scio’s subject grades are a B+ for schools and a B for history; the weakest is a D for hazard risk. On hazard risk, just 7 of New York’s 1,216 towns do worse. The median household income is $62K, and 18% of residents live below the poverty line. Among 266 New York towns, just 10 have a lower typical home value than Scio. On the outdoors, just 24 of New York’s 1,216 towns do worse. Scio's civic life (library use, community groups, volunteering) trails 88% of U.S. towns. Scio has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
What makes Scio stand out
Where Scio beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
A shrinking town
Scio has shrunk 13% since 2010
1,833 counted in 2010 and 1,614 in 2020; an estimated 1,623 in 2025.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
How Scio grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within New York), ordered by how far Scio is from typical.
Hazard riskinland flooding tops the listDOpen →Jobs & incomeDOpen →SchoolsB+Open →WalkabilityEPA walkability 5.7 of 20; 5.1% of households have no car; 2.7% of workers walk, bike or ride transitC+Open →HealthJones Memorial Hospital 2.8 miles awayC+Open →Cost of livingB−Open →
Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.
Outdoors2 miles of trailsDOpen →History2 notable people born hereBOpen →Civic life3 community nonprofits per 1,000 residentsDOpen →
Described, not graded Taste, not quality: snow or an older crowd is neither good nor bad.
Climate–Open →Housing market–Open →Who lives hereMedian age 47.4; 20% of adults have a four-year degree–Open →
How TownRatings grades towns →
Getting set up
The full setup list →Moving to Scio: who provides what
Who provides power, water and the rest in Scio, and how to reach them.
PowerNational Grid19.9¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterScio Water DistrictNo health-based violations in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet4 providers86% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & dumpNot on file yetWe don’t have Scio’s trash rules yet
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.govWho runs elections hereAllegany County Board of ElectionsAllegany County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Aug 2021
ZIP codes14880, 14895, 1470714880 76% · 14895 23% · 14707 1%Census 2020
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Aug 3, 2026.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Scio.
HousingCost of living grade B−
The typical home in Scio is valued at about $137K
The typical Scio home is worth about $137,000, up 4% in a year, 74% below the New York typical home. 90% of Scio households own their home, above both New York’s towns (75%) and U.S. towns (73%). The median rent in Scio is $863 a month.
$137KZillow home value
| Scio | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 90% | 75% | 73% |
| Median rent | $863 a month | $1,101 a month | $1,185 a month |
Typical home value
Scio$137K
New York$525K
+4%
value change, 1 year
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
SchoolsB+
Scio’s public schools outperform 65% of New York districts
Its public schools are run by the Scio Central School District. Its one school is below.
65%of NY districts it outscoresB+School Grade
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scio Central SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades PK–12 | Grades PK–12 | 267 | C+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NY on state tests and graduation
Natural hazardsHazard risk grade D
Scio stands out in New York and nationally, with the FEMA risk score higher than most
At 89 of 100, Scio’s FEMA risk score is where New York’s towns sit at 31 of 100 and U.S. towns at 44 of 100. Since 1981, 12 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Scio.
89risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
Inland flooding
12
paid flood claims since 1981
4
federal disasters paid out here
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Work & commuteJobs & income grade D
Most of Scio’s workers commute out: the town has 0.5 jobs for each of them
Most working residents leave Scio for work: only 3% work in town. Jobs based in Scio grew to 269 in 2023, 44 more than in 2013. Scio’s average trip to work is 21 minutes.
3%work in town
| Scio | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 21 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $62,000 | $82,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 3.2% | 10% | 8% |
Where working residents work
In Scio3%
Wellsville35%
Amity6%
Olean3%
Alfred3%
11 mi
median commute distance
269
jobs based in Scio
A commuter town
jobs vs. working residents
C+
Walkability grade: more walkable than 42% of U.S. towns
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Climate
In Scio, expect snowy winters and pleasant summers
Scio has cold, snowy winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 81°, January nights drop to 15° and about 54 inches of snow falls in a winter.
54″snow a winter
Typical low → high °F
Winter17–35°
Spring32–57°
Summer53–79°
Fall38–60°
Oct 2
typical first frost
May 15
typical last frost
+1.0°
vs. the 20th-century average
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
HealthC+
On CDC estimates, Scio is less healthy than 56% of U.S. towns
Scio beats the New York average on 4 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 11. 39% of Scio adults have high blood pressure.
44%healthier than U.S. townsC+Health Grade
| Scio | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 39% | 34% | 35% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 14% | 14% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 37% | 33% | 35% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 13% | 14% |
32 measures vs. New York
4 better17 too close to call11 worse
| What stands out | Scio | NY |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer uninsured adults | 5.6% | 7.9% |
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 11.7% | 14.5% |
| More adults with COPD | 8.9% | 6% |
Jones Memorial Hospital
2.8 mi away · emergency room
2 of 3
care shortages: primary care, mental health
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
0%conserved
0%
conserved · 5 of 22,491 acres
2.0 mi
of trails · 0.1 per sq mi
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Fireman's Park | 0.2 mi | 2 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Keep exploring
Everything we know about Scio
19pages on Scio
The big questions
Out and about
The story
After high school
Colleges nearby
2 within 15 miles of the center of Scio
SUNY College of Technology at AlfredUniversity or college · Public · Alfred12.5 mi$8,892 in-state tuitionAlfred UniversityUniversity or college · Private nonprofit · Alfred12.8 mi$41,500 tuition
About 1 of every 100 Scio residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across New York.
A commuter town
97% of working residents leave Scio for work
Where Scio’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
269jobs based in Scio
3%of working residents work in town
11 mimedian commute distance
Census LEHD 2023
About Scio
Town in New York, United States
Scio is a town in Allegany County, New York, United States. The population was 1,625 at the 2020 census. The town is in the southern half of the county and north of the village of Wellsville.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Established
- 1823
- Area
- 35 sq mi
- Elevation
- 1,545 ft
- ZIP code
- 14880
- Area code
- 585
Scio’s neighbors
6 towns share a border with Scio.
WellsvilleAmityAlmaWirtWardAndoverScio
How the neighbors grade
| Town | NY rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scio | — | — | B− | — | B+ | C+ |
| Wellsville | #562 | C | B+ | — | C+ | B− |
| Amity | — | — | A | — | C− | C |
| Alma | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Wirt | — | — | A | — | C+ | C |
| Ward | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Andover | — | — | A | — | C− | C+ |
Scio, Amity, Wirt and Andover have fewer than 2,500 residents, so they get subject grades but no overall grade. Scio, Wellsville, Amity, Wirt and Andover report no FBI crime data of their own. Alma and Ward aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare Scio with a neighbor →
Questions about Scio
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Scio, NY expensive?
That is 2.2 years of the area's median household income ($62,869 across the county). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B−.
What is Scio, NY known for?
2 notable people were born here, including Jason Dunham and Burton Millard.