Best PlacesNiagara Falls, NY Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Niagara Falls, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Several measures below read low, and the ranked lists name which ones. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
Niagara Falls ranks 1,527th of 2,098 U.S. cities on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on low disaster risk by a wide margin, and a weak job market ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in Niagara Falls
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.
Niagara Falls' strengths and weaknesses
Where Niagara Falls ranks high
- Disaster safetyBetter than 99% of cities
- Short commute18.9 minutes each way, better than 91% of cities
- WalkabilityBetter than 85% of cities
- Air qualityBetter than 80% of cities
- BikingBetter than 78% of cities
Where Niagara Falls ranks low
- Local economyBetter than only 3% of cities
- Household income$59,573 median, better than only 8% of cities
- Low vacancyBetter than only 13% of cities
- State infrastructureBetter than only 14% of cities
- Health outlookBetter than only 14% of cities
What it costs to buy a home in Niagara Falls
A household needs to earn about $42,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Niagara Falls home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $59,573, so a typical household can afford the median home outright.
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 Niagara Falls' effective rate of 1.70%, 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 6 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Niagara Falls
Niagara Falls's age mix sits close to the national median, and households here run smaller than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Niagara Falls.
Who works in Niagara Falls, and how
Work in Niagara Falls centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment runs well above the national rate, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 80%
- Work from home 9%
- Transit, walk, or bike 11%
Life in Niagara Falls
Niagara Falls has more restaurants and bars per resident than 98% of cities and more parkland per resident than 99% of cities. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of Niagara Falls and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in Niagara Falls, month by month
Niagara Falls sees roughly 80 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 85 degrees. January highs sit near 36, with lows near 21. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 36° | 28° | 21° |
| April | 58° | 46° | 35° |
| July | 85° | 74° | 63° |
| October | 65° | 54° | 45° |
Flying in and out of Niagara Falls
The nearest airport, Niagara Falls International, is about 3 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Cleveland-Hopkins International, about 187 miles away.
The best schools in and around Niagara Falls
Schools across Niagara Falls average a B, better than 72% of cities.
Top elementary schools
- Errick Road Elementary SchoolA+ · 88% proficient
- West Street Elementary SchoolA+ · 80% proficient
- Intermediate Education CenterA+ · 80% proficient
Top middle schools
- Lewiston Porter Middle SchoolA+ · 68% proficient
- North Tonawanda Intermediate SchoolB+ · 52% proficient
- Veronica E Connor Middle SchoolB · 46% proficient
Top high schools
- Lewiston Porter Senior High SchoolA+ · 98% proficient
- Grand Island Senior High SchoolA+ · 96% proficient
- Niagara-wheatfield Senior High SchoolA+ · 95% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Niagara Falls school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Niagara Falls 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 Niagara Falls against the other 2,097 cities.
Who Niagara Falls suits
Retirees
Set weather, quiet, and health care weights on the map to test the fit.
Common questions about living in Niagara Falls
Is Niagara Falls a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Niagara Falls ranks 1,527th of 2,098 cities. It scores highest on low disaster risk, short commutes, and walkability, and lowest on a weak job market and low incomes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Niagara Falls expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $142,690. The overall cost of living runs about 18% below the national average. Set against a $59,573 median income, cost of living beats 17% of cities.
Is Niagara Falls safe?
Niagara Falls is safer than 30% of cities. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $455 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in Niagara Falls?
July highs average about 85 degrees, and January highs near 36 with lows near 21. That works out to about 80 pleasant days a year, more than 44% of cities.
Is Niagara Falls good for families?
Schools beat 72% of cities, crime safety beats 30%, and childcare runs $1,089 a month.
Compare Niagara Falls with other cities
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Niagara Falls. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Niagara Falls 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.
Niagara Falls detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Niagara Falls: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Niagara Falls: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Niagara Falls: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Niagara Falls: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Niagara Falls 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.