Best PlacesSoutheast Ridgewood, Ridgewood, NJ Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Local pay runs high here, and housing takes the biggest bite out of it. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood ranks 192nd of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on high incomes by a wide margin, and state finances rank lowest.
The best neighborhoods in Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood
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.
Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood's strengths and weaknesses
Where Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood ranks high
- Household income$224,287 median, better than 98% of neighborhoods
- Tree shadeBetter than 98% of neighborhoods
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 97% of neighborhoods
- Healthcare accessBetter than 96% of neighborhoods
- Internet speedBetter than 96% of neighborhoods
Where Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood ranks low
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 1% of neighborhoods
- Nice weatherabout 57 pleasant days a year, better than only 4% of neighborhoods
- Low property taxBetter than only 4% of neighborhoods
- Cell coverageBetter than only 15% of neighborhoods
- Cheap childcare$1,508 a month, better than only 20% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood
A household needs to earn about $260,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $224,287, 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 Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood'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 and rents, renting stays cheaper than buying across the first 10 years here, so the case for buying rests on staying much longer or on prices rising faster than assumed. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood
Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood's age mix sits close to the national median, 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 Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood.
Who works in Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood, and how
Work in Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood centers on professional & technical and education. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 52%
- Work from home 34%
- Transit, walk, or bike 14%
Life in Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood
The coast is about 29 minutes away. Distance to the water changes a lot across Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood, month by month
Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood sees roughly 57 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 90 degrees. January highs sit near 44, with lows near 26. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 44° | 34° | 26° |
| April | 65° | 53° | 42° |
| July | 90° | 79° | 69° |
| October | 71° | 59° | 48° |
Flying in and out of Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood
Laguardia sits about 18 miles away. It is a large hub and boarded 16.3 million passengers in 2025, with 118 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood
Schools across Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood average a B+, better than 83% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- Travell Elementary SchoolA− · 57% proficient
- Hawes Elementary SchoolB+ · 53% proficient
- Somerville Elementary SchoolB+ · 53% proficient
Top middle schools
- Benjamin Franklin Middle SchoolB · 46% proficient
Top high schools
- Ridgewood High SchoolA− · 63% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood 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 Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Common questions about living in Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood
Is Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood ranks 192nd of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on high incomes, tree cover, and what local pay buys, and lowest on state finances and the weather. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $860,571. The overall cost of living runs about 40% above the national average. Set against a $224,287 median income, cost of living beats 97% of neighborhoods.
Is Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood safe?
Yes, Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood is safer than 82% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $198 per resident a year.
Compare Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood 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.
Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Southeast Ridgewood, Ridgewood 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.