Best PlacesStony Brook University, NY Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Stony Brook University, 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.
Stony Brook University ranks 839th of 50,333 U.S. towns on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on population health by a wide margin, and car insurance costs are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in Stony Brook University
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.
Stony Brook University's strengths and weaknesses
Where Stony Brook University ranks high
- Health outlookBetter than 99% of towns
- School gradeA+, better than 99% of towns
- Household income$171,133 median, better than 98% of towns
- Big-city accessBetter than 98% of towns
- Short commute14.4 minutes each way, better than 98% of towns
Where Stony Brook University ranks low
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than only 1% of towns
- Cheap childcare$1,476 a month, better than only 4% of towns
- Low property taxBetter than only 8% of towns
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 15% of towns
- State infrastructureBetter than only 19% of towns
Who lives in Stony Brook University
Stony Brook University runs younger than the country, though it still carries a larger-than-average share of residents over 65, 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 Stony Brook University.
Who works in Stony Brook University, and how
Work in Stony Brook University centers on education and professional & technical. Unemployment is low, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 40%
- Work from home 10%
- Transit, walk, or bike 51%
Life in Stony Brook University
The coast is about 6 minutes away. Distance to the water changes a lot across Stony Brook University, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in Stony Brook University, month by month
Stony Brook University sees roughly 69 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 86 degrees. January highs sit near 43, with lows near 25. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, and August through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 43° | 34° | 25° |
| April | 62° | 50° | 41° |
| July | 86° | 76° | 68° |
| October | 69° | 58° | 49° |
Flying in and out of Stony Brook University
The nearest airport, Long Island MacArthur, is about 8 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is John F Kennedy International, about 40 miles away.
The best schools in and around Stony Brook University
Schools across Stony Brook University average an A+, better than 99% of towns.
Top elementary schools
- Nassakeag Elementary SchoolA+ · 90% proficient
Top middle schools
- Robert Cushman Murphy Junior High SchoolA+ · 75% proficient
Top high schools
- Ward Melville Senior High SchoolA+ · 97% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Stony Brook University school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Stony Brook University 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 Stony Brook University against the other 50,332 towns.
Common questions about living in Stony Brook University
Is Stony Brook University a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Stony Brook University ranks 839th of 50,333 towns. It scores highest on population health, good schools, and high incomes, and lowest on car insurance costs and childcare costs. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Stony Brook University safe?
Yes, Stony Brook University is safer than 62% of towns. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $264 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in Stony Brook University?
July highs average about 86 degrees, and January highs near 43 with lows near 25. That works out to about 69 pleasant days a year, more than 24% of towns.
Compare Stony Brook University with other towns
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Stony Brook University. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Stony Brook University 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.
Stony Brook University detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Stony Brook University: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Stony Brook University: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Stony Brook University: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Stony Brook University: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Stony Brook University 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.
- 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.