St. Thomas The Apostle Altar, 2011
West Hempstead’s story
West Hempstead in pictures
The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 2011.
Explore the history →
West HempsteadNY
A town of 20,648 in New York.
5 bordering townsMap →
Photo: AITFFan1 · CC BY-SA 4.0
Population
20,648
Census survey, 2020–24
Typical home
$797K
+5.9% in a year
Household income
$164K
median
Median age
37.5
years
Jobs based here
3,683
A commuter town
Is West Hempstead a good place to live?
West Hempstead’s median rent is $2,967 a month, against $1,101 a month in New York’s towns and $1,185 a month across U.S. towns. 11% of the land in West Hempstead is conserved, above both the New York town median (5.2%) and the median of U.S. towns (4.3%). The biggest park or preserve is Hempstead Lake State Park, at 163 acres. We don’t grade West Hempstead yet; the figures below are still real.
A commuter town
95% of working residents leave West Hempstead for work
Where West Hempstead’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
3,683jobs based in West Hempstead
5%of working residents work in town
11 mimedian commute distance
Census LEHD 2023
Nearby attractions
All 613 attractions →Central Park and 509 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around West Hempstead. Close and well known come first.
Big draw18 mi City parkCentral Park40.0M visitors a year
Big draw18 mi Stadium & arenaMadison Square Garden
Big draw18 mi TheatreStudio 54
Big draw17 mi MuseumMetropolitan Museum of Art2.0M visitors a year
Big draw24 mi Stadium & arenaMetLife Stadium
Big draw17 mi Stadium & arenaYankee StadiumSources: National Park Service · ski areas © OpenSkiMap / OpenStreetMap contributors · Wikidata · Wikipedia readership · photos via Wikimedia Commons
Photo credits
Central Park: Ed Yourdon from New York City, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Madison Square Garden: Ajay Suresh from New York, NY, USA, CC BY 2.0 · Studio 54: Americasroof (talk), CC BY-SA 3.0 · Metropolitan Museum of Art: Hugo Schneider, CC BY-SA 2.0 · MetLife Stadium: babyknight, CC BY 2.0 · Yankee Stadium: Matt Boulton, CC BY-SA 2.0
Getting set up
Moving to West Hempstead: who provides what
West Hempstead is unincorporated, so Nassau County and regional agencies provide most services.
PowerPSEG Long Island26.2¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA
WaterWest Hempstead WD water systemNo health-based violations in 5 years · EPAEPA
Internet3 providers100% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC
Trash & county servicesNassau CountyNassau County provides services here
SchoolsSewanhaka Central High School DistrictWest Hempstead Union Free School District2 districts serve West Hempstead; which school depends on your address and gradeNCES
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 hereNassau County Board of ElectionsNassau County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Jul 2019
ZIP code1155211552 100%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 West Hempstead.
Housing
A home in West Hempstead is worth about $797K, on Zillow’s estimate
A home in West Hempstead typically sold within 34 days of listing. Values rose 5.9% in the 12 months to September 2026. For households in the town, the share who are owner-occupiers is 91%.
$797KZillow home value
Typical home value
West Hempstead$797K
New York$525K
Market temperature
34
days on market
99.7%
sale-to-list price
+5.9%
value change, 1 year
10
homes sold in September
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Work & commute
Most of West Hempstead’s workers commute out: the town has 0.4 jobs for each of them
Just 5% of West Hempstead’s working residents have a job in town. Employers in West Hempstead shed 1,187 jobs between 2013 and 2023, to 3,683. The middle household income for West Hempstead comes to $164,000. Half of commuters travel less than 11 miles.
5%work in town
| West Hempstead | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $164,000 | $82,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 36 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 4.5% | 9.5% | 9.6% |
| Work from home | 16% | 12% | 11% |
Where working residents work
In West Hempstead5%
New York44%
Hempstead27%
North Hempstead10%
Oyster Bay5%
11 mi
median commute distance
3,683
jobs based in West Hempstead
A commuter town
jobs vs. working residents
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Natural hazards
Natural hazards: low risk in West Hempstead, mostly inland flooding
Flood insurance has paid out on 16 claims here since 1979. West Hempstead’s FEMA risk score comes in at 25 of 100. FEMA puts two thirds of the town’s expected hazard losses down to inland flooding, and 11% to earthquakes.
25risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
Inland floodingEarthquakesHurricanes
16
paid flood claims since 1979
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Climate
In West Hempstead, expect four seasons and pleasant summers
In West Hempstead, the midsummer high is 85°F.
26″snow a winter
Typical low → high °F
Winter28–43°
Spring42–60°
Summer65–83°
Fall48–66°
Nov 14
typical first frost
Apr 2
typical last frost
+2.1°
vs. the 20th-century average
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Outdoors
Open space protected for good: 11.4% of West Hempstead
Trails total 1.0 miles in 5 parks and preserves. West Hempstead’s concentration of trails stands at 0.4 miles per square mile.
11.4%conserved
11.4%
conserved · 198 of 1,738 acres
1.0 mi
of trails · 0.4 per sq mi
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Hempstead Lake State Park | 0.9 mi | 163 |
| 2. Echo Park | — | 11 |
| 3. Halls Pond Park | — | 10 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Health
How healthy West Hempstead is
31% of adults have high blood pressure in West Hempstead. In West Hempstead, nearly one in ten adults smoke cigarettes, and 14% report frequent mental distress.
| West Hempstead | New York towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 21% | 23% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 8.6% | 13% | 14% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 16% | 17% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 41% | 37% | 36% |
32 measures vs. New York
17 better15 too close to call0 worse
| What stands out | West Hempstead | NY |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 8.5% | 12.8% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 11.5% | 17.2% |
Mercy Medical Center
In Rockville Centre · emergency room
None
primary care, dental or mental-health shortage
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Keep exploring
Everything we know about West Hempstead
17pages on West Hempstead
The big questions
Out and about
After high school
Colleges nearby
29 within 15 miles of the center of West Hempstead
Molloy UniversityUniversity or college · Private nonprofit · Rockville Centre1.5 mi$39,790 tuitionNassau Community CollegeCommunity college · Public · Garden City3.7 mi$6,330 in-state tuitionCUNY York CollegeUniversity or college · Public · Jamaica7.6 mi$7,358 in-state tuition
About 9 of every 100 West Hempstead residents are enrolled in college, against 7 across New York.
Famous people from West Hempstead
3 notable people were born in West Hempstead.
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About West Hempstead
Hamlet and census-designated place in New York, United States
West Hempstead is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) within the Town of Hempstead in Nassau County, on Long Island, in New York, United States. The population was 19,835 at the time of the 2020 census. It is an unincorporated area in the Town of Hempstead and is represented by Councilman Edward Ambrosino.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 2.7 sq mi
- Elevation
- 66 ft
- ZIP code
- 11552
West Hempstead’s neighbors
5 towns share a border with West Hempstead.
HempsteadFranklin SquareLakeviewGarden CityMalverne Park OaksWest Hempstead
How the neighbors grade
| Town | NY rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Hempstead | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Hempstead | #692 | D | D | C | C− | C |
| Franklin Square | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Lakeview | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Garden City | #17 | A+ | D− | A− | A+ | A+ |
| Malverne Park Oaks | — | — | — | — | — | — |
West Hempstead, Franklin Square, Lakeview and Malverne Park Oaks aren’t graded (fewer than 1,000 residents, or not enough data). Compare West Hempstead with a neighbor →
Questions about West Hempstead
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is West Hempstead, NY a good place to live?
We don’t grade West Hempstead yet; the figures below are still real.