Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 3,019, settled in 1821.
Wales is a solid, middle-of-the-road choice. It grades A overall, 100th among New York's 745 graded towns, with no subject far below average. Its best mark is health: it is healthier than 90% of U.S. towns. It also does better than most on incomes: the median household earns $89K. A typical home there costs about $245K, 3.4 years of the Buffalo metro’s $72K median household income. The biggest place to walk is Hunters Creek County Park, 798 acres with 19.4 miles of trail. Wales’ July high is 79°F, against 81°F in New York’s towns and 85°F across U.S. towns. Most errands need a car: it is less walkable than 76% of U.S. towns.
Where Wales beats most towns.
| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Wales Primary School | PK–3 | 185 |
Where Wales’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 Wales is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 903 in 1820, a low of 903 in 1820, 3,009 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1866 and 4 maps from 1905 on.
Who provides power, water and the rest in Wales, 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 Wales.
Wales gets more snow than nearly all U.S. towns, has less food insecurity than most of New York and sends most of its workers to Buffalo and beyond.
23 miles of trail in 2 parks and preserves. Wales’ trail density is 0.6 miles per square mile.
| Wales | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.6 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 4.6% | 5.2% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Hunters Creek County Park | 19.4 mi | 798 |
| 2. Kenneglenn Scenic & Nature Preserve | 0.6 mi | 131 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its public schools are run by the Iroquois Central School District. Its one school is below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wales Primary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–3 | Grades PK–3 | 185 | C+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NY on state tests and graduation
Its widest gap with New York is food insecurity: 8% of its 6,876 adults worry about having enough food, against 17.2% statewide.
28% of adults feel lonely in Wales. Wales beats the New York average on 15 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 3. 19% of adults binge drink in Wales.
| Wales | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 32% | 33% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 17% | 16% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 83% | 81% | 79% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 15% | 16% | 17% |
| What stands out | Wales | NY |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 8% | 17.2% |
| Fewer uninsured adults | 4% | 7.9% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 10.2% | 7.7% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Wales has 383 jobs for its 1,404 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out. The average commute takes 24.6 minutes, against 32.6 across New York.
Most working residents leave Wales for work: only 5% work in town. 4.3% of Wales residents live below the poverty line. Since 2013, Wales has added 43 jobs, to 383 in 2023.
| Wales | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 4.3% | 9.5% | 9.6% |
| Work from home | 7.2% | 12% | 11% |
| Working residents who work in town | 4.6% | 10% | 8% |
| Median household income | $89,000 | $82,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The Wales weather station records that 109 inches of snow fall in a normal winter, more than in 98% of U.S. towns. The Wales weather station records that about 1 days a year reach 90°, fewer than in 97% of U.S. towns.
Wales has chilly, snowy winters and pleasant summers. July afternoons reach 79° and January nights drop to 16°.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Expected storm and flood damage is lower than in 53% of U.S. communities. One flood insurance claim has been paid in Wales since 1979.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Wales. Close and well known come first.
Big draw14 mi Stadium & arenaHighmark Stadium
Big draw37 mi WaterfallNiagara Falls
Big draw14 mi Stadium & arenaRalph Wilson Stadium
12 mi WaterfallEternal Flame Falls15 mi Theme parkSix Flags Darien Lake1.5M visitors a year
20 mi Stadium & arenaKeyBank CenterHighmark Stadium: James161723, CC0 · Niagara Falls: Robert F. Tobler, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Ralph Wilson Stadium: User Evilarry on en.wikipedia, Public domain · Eternal Flame Falls: Mpmajewski, CC BY-SA 3.0 · KeyBank Center: Andre Carrotflower, CC BY-SA 4.0
None within 15 miles of Wales; the nearest are
About 1 of every 100 Wales residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across New York.
Town in New York, United States
Wales is a town in Erie County, New York, United States. The town is one of the "Southtowns" of Erie County by virtue of its position in the southeast part of the county, southeast of Buffalo. As of the 2020 census the town had a population of 3,009. It is part of the Buffalo-Niagara Falls metropolitan area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
5 towns share a border with Wales.
| Town | NY rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wales | #100 | A | B | — | B+ | A |
| Aurora | #95 | A | C− | — | A− | A |
| Holland | #443 | C+ | C+ | — | C+ | B |
| Marilla | #139 | A− | B− | — | A− | A |
| Sheldon | — | — | B+ | — | B | B+ |
| Bennington | #330 | B | B− | — | B | B+ |
Sheldon has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Wales, Aurora, Holland, Marilla, Sheldon and Bennington report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Wales with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Wales grades A overall, better than 88% of U.S. towns and #100 of 745 in New York. It grades A for health and B+ for schools. Walkability is its weak spot, with a C−.
The typical home is worth about $245,000, 53% below the New York typical home. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B.
