West ElmiraNY
The town, home to 4,750 people, lies in New York.
Is West Elmira a good place to live?
51% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in West Elmira, above both the New York town median (32%) and the median of U.S. towns (29%). West Elmira’s concentration of trails is 1.4 miles per square mile, against 0.4 in New York’s towns and 0.4 across U.S. towns. We don’t grade West Elmira yet; the figures below are still real.
98% of working residents leave West Elmira for work
Where West Elmira’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Moving to West Elmira: who provides what
West Elmira is unincorporated, so Chemung County and regional agencies provide most services.
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 West Elmira.
With only 0.1 jobs per working resident, most people in West Elmira work out of town
Just 2% of the town’s working residents have a job in town. West Elmira’s mean commuting time comes in at 21 minutes. For residents locally, the share who live below the poverty line is 5.1%. Half commute less than 6 miles.
| West Elmira | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $111,000 | $82,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 21 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 1.9% | 10% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 5.1% | 9.5% | 9.6% |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The climate in West Elmira brings snowy winters and pleasant summers
The midsummer high in West Elmira is 82°F.
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
High risk in West Elmira, with inland flooding at the top
West Elmira has had 2 paid flood insurance claims since 1978. Storm and flood damage is expected to run higher than in 61% of U.S. communities. Expected losses in West Elmira break down as 85% from inland flooding and 5% from tornadoes.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
How healthy West Elmira is
Among adults in West Elmira, 14% report frequent mental distress and 9.5% smoke cigarettes. Against the New York average, West Elmira comes out ahead on 13 CDC measures out of 32, and behind on 2. West Elmira: 26% of adults have obesity.
| West Elmira | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 33% | 35% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 16% | 17% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 9.5% | 13% | 14% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 13% | 17% | 19% |
| What stands out | West Elmira | NY |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 7.7% | 17.2% |
| Fewer uninsured adults | 3.7% | 7.9% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 10.9% | 7.7% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
West Elmira has set aside 1.5% of its land for conservation
In 1 park or preserve, walkers have 4.2 miles of trail. One park or preserve covers 19 acres in West Elmira.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Pirozzolo Park | — | 19 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
A home in West Elmira sells for about $218K at the median
In West Elmira, 89% of households live in a home they own. Homes sold in West Elmira spent a median 91 days on the market. For West Elmira, the going rate for rent is $1,221 a month.
| West Elmira | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 89% | 75% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,221 a month | $1,101 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Seneca Lake and 16 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around West Elmira. Close and well known come first.
39 mi LakeSeneca Lake
12 mi MuseumCorning Museum of Glass400K visitors a year
20 mi State parkWatkins Glen State Park
34 mi State parkTaughannock Falls State Park
31 mi Stadium & arenaSchoellkopf Field
31 mi MuseumHerbert F. Johnson Museum of Art80K visitors a yearPhoto credits
Seneca Lake: RochesterNY, Public domain · Corning Museum of Glass: User:Stilfehler, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Watkins Glen State Park: Flickr user: Peter Rivera Stamford, Connecticut https://www.flickr.com/people/ri, CC BY 2.0 · Taughannock Falls State Park: Michael C. Rygel, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Schoellkopf Field: Alex Sergeev, (www.asergeev.com) Originally uploaded by en:User:Cornell010, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art: Dmadeo, CC BY-SA 3.0
Everything we know about West Elmira
Colleges nearby
3 within 15 miles of the center of West Elmira
About 3 of every 100 West Elmira residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across New York.
About West Elmira
Census-designated place in New York, United States
West Elmira is a suburban census-designated place (CDP) in Chemung County, New York, United States. As of the 2020 census, West Elmira had a population of 4,850. It is adjacent to the city of Elmira on its west side. West Elmira is in the southwest part of the town of Elmira. It is part of the Elmira Metropolitan Statistical Area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 3.2 sq mi
- Elevation
- 886 ft
West Elmira’s neighbors
4 towns share a border with West Elmira.
| Town | NY rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Elmira | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Elmira | #536 | C | C+ | A+ | D | C− |
| Southport | #688 | D | B− | — | D | C+ |
| Elmira | #733 | D− | C+ | D | D | C− |
| Big Flats | #384 | B− | C | — | B | B+ |
Southport and Big Flats report no FBI crime data of their own. West Elmira isn’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare West Elmira with a neighbor →
Questions about West Elmira
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is West Elmira, NY a good place to live?
We don’t grade West Elmira yet; the figures below are still real.