Best Places08861, NJ Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 08861, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. The coast is close, and the measures below put a number on how close. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
08861 ranks 24,385th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on big-city access by a wide margin, and state finances rank lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 08861
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
08861's strengths and weaknesses
Where 08861 ranks high
- Big-city accessBetter than 98% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than 95% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than 93% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than 92% of zip codes
Where 08861 ranks low
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 1% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 2% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than only 2% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 4% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 08861
A household needs to earn about $106,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 08861 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $69,690, so buying stretches a typical household.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses 08861's effective rate of 1.96%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 9 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 08861
08861 runs younger than the country, and households here run larger than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 08861.
Who works in 08861, and how
Work in 08861 centers on transportation & warehousing and retail trade. Unemployment runs well above the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 80%
- Work from home 7%
- Transit, walk, or bike 13%
Life in 08861
08861 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 78% of zip codes and more parkland per resident than 72% of zip codes. The coast is about 6 minutes away. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 08861 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 08861, month by month
08861 sees roughly 77 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 87 degrees. January highs sit near 42, with lows near 29. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 42° | 35° | 29° |
| April | 64° | 54° | 46° |
| July | 87° | 78° | 71° |
| October | 68° | 59° | 52° |
Flying in and out of 08861
Newark Liberty International sits about 13 miles away. It is a large hub and boarded 23.5 million passengers in 2025, with 242 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around 08861
Schools across 08861 average a D, better than 5% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Lafayette Estates Elementary SchoolC− · 29% proficient
- Middlesex County Stem Charter SchoolD · 18% proficient
- James J. Flynn Elementary SchoolD · 17% proficient
Top middle schools
- Fords Middle SchoolD · 22% proficient
- Samuel E. Shull Middle SchoolD− · 16% proficient
- William C. Mcginnis Middle SchoolD− · 14% proficient
Top high schools
- Woodbridge Academy Magnet SchoolA+ · 93% proficient
- John F. Kennedy Memorial High SchoolB− · 41% proficient
- Woodbridge High SchoolC− · 28% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 08861 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
08861 measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare 08861 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 08861 suits
Remote workers
Internet is fast and widely advertised and 7% already work from home.
Retirees
Set weather, quiet, and health care weights on the map to test the fit.
Common questions about living in 08861
Is 08861 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 08861 ranks 24,385th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on big-city access, walkability, and cell coverage, and lowest on state finances and civic engagement. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 08861 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $349,587. The overall cost of living runs about 9% above the national average. Set against a $69,690 median income, cost of living beats 14% of zip codes.
Is 08861 safe?
08861 is safer than 31% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $268 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 08861?
July highs average about 87 degrees, and January highs near 42 with lows near 29. That works out to about 77 pleasant days a year, more than 40% of zip codes.
Is 08861 good for families?
Schools beat 5% of zip codes, crime safety beats 31%, and childcare runs $1,499 a month.
Compare 08861 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 08861. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 08861 represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
08861 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 08861: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 08861: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 08861: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 08861: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
08861 detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.