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Place dossier plate
SheetNJ-CLIFTON-NJ · Clifton, NJ 89,247 pop · income 77th pct · 211 tracts
Instrument codes from this place’s ACS population and household income, BEA state COL, FBI safety, national income percentile, photo-finish peer city, home-value band, and matched Census-tract book - not a moving recommendation.
Income neighbourhood around Clifton
Lowest/highest poles plus peers nearest Clifton on median household income. Full ladder: /browse and /rankings.
median HH income
Camden · lowest
40,450
Camden · lowest
40,450 median HH income
40.8% of the leader · rank #1
Orland Park · near
98,979
Orland Park · near
98,979 median HH income
100.0% of the leader · rank #2
Greenwood · near
99,000
Greenwood · near
99,000 median HH income
100.0% of the leader · rank #3
Clifton · this city
99,003
Clifton · this city
99,003 median HH income
100.0% of the leader · rank #4
Marblemount · near
99,006
Marblemount · near
99,006 median HH income
100.0% of the leader · rank #5
Highland · near
99,010
Highland · near
99,010 median HH income
100.0% of the leader · rank #6
Daleville · highest
99,028
Daleville · highest
99,028 median HH income
100.0% of the leader · rank #7
What this shows Neighbourhood peers only - not a full nationwide city board. Open a near peer when the gap is small; open the poles when the spread is wide.
Compare beyond this state
Nationwide peers by population, income, and FBI crime rate
Out-of-state nearest neighbors for Clifton on ACS population and median household income
, plus FBI UCR reporting rate when the extract covers this place. Link sets are deduped so each column is a distinct comparison path, not a forecast that peers share a labor market or climate.
Similar population
Nearest out-of-state cities by ACS population. This city: 89,247.
Agency-reported UCR totals per 100,000 population, not a neighborhood safety grade or a prediction of personal risk.
Clifton - the verdict
Nationally, Clifton sits in the 77th percentile for household income and the 24th percentile for safety among US cities with a population of 1,000 or more. Source: Census ACS + FBI UCR.
77th
percentile, household income
81st
percentile, home value
94th
percentile, median rent
24th
percentile, safety
📝 How we sourced this
Population, income, and housing-cost figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates (B-series tables). Crime data uses FBI UCR; climate uses NOAA Climate Normals; school counts come from NCES Common Core of Data; permits use the Census Building Permits Survey (BPS). See our methodology page for the full ETL pipeline and OMB / FIPS join keys.
Data Snapshot: Clifton, NJ
New Jersey's Clifton is a small city, with 89,247 residents per the latest Census Bureau ACS figures. The typical household in Clifton brings in $99,003 a year, placing it in the top quartile of U.S. cities for household income, with a poverty rate of 6.1%. Clifton's housing stock carries a median value of $444,300, and the median resident age is 41.1 years. 34.5% of adults here have a bachelor's degree or higher; 63.5% of working-age residents are in the labor force.
In 2024, 155 residential building permits were authorized in Clifton (Building Boom), up 1007% from five years earlier, per Census BPS data. Crime here tracks close to the national norm: per-100,000 total crime stands at 2431.3 in FBI UCR data, near the national average (a voluntary reporting program, read this as reporting activity, not a definitive danger score).
New Jersey carries a cost-of-living premium: on BEA's 100-equals-national-average cost index, New Jersey scores 108.8 (Well Above Average), per the 2024 Regional Price Parities release. A typical two-bedroom carries a HUD Fair Market Rent of $2,132 per month statewide. EIA 2023 residential energy data puts New Jersey's average monthly utility costs around $275 (state average). Commute times here average 26.1 minutes, with 68.6% driving alone and 10.4% working from home, per Census ACS commuting data. FEMA's National Risk Index rates natural-hazard exposure at 90.8 out of 100 (Very High).
A decision-led reading path
Useful questions to ask of Clifton's data
How this reading path is ordered
This is not a composite city score. It is a city-specific route through the available public records, ordered for this profile so the page starts with questions the joined data can actually answer. The route here runs from reported crime to housing and income to population change to comparison shortlist to schools and households to within-city variation to work and mobility; another city can have a different sequence or fewer supported layers because the source joins are not uniform.
For Clifton, city-specific coverage includes FBI reported-crime rates, annual population history, within-city Census tract profiles, local building permits, matched public-school count, commute-mode shares.
All six city-specific enrichment layers used by this profile are present.
1. Reported crime
What can the FBI record say about safety in Clifton?
Treat this as a reporting-rate comparison, not a prediction of personal risk or a neighborhood-level safety grade. Tourism, daytime population, reporting practices, and variation inside the city are not adjusted away. The state rank and same-state peer table are the narrower comparisons available on this page.
The joined FBI UCR record reports 2431.3 violent and property crimes per 100,000 residents, near the 2280.5 national reference used here. The difference is 7% higher in arithmetic terms, but agency participation is voluntary and reporting completeness varies.
How far does income reach against housing in Clifton?
The home-value-to-income reference is comparatively stretched: the ACS median home value is 4.5 times median household income. The ACS poverty estimate is 6.1%, which keeps the citywide median from describing every household.
This is a citywide price-to-income reference, not a mortgage-affordability test; it does not include interest rates, taxes, insurance, household size, or an individual buyer's down payment. Housing value is high relative to the citywide income median. That flags a question for comparison, not a verdict: tenure, household composition, financing costs, and the age of the ACS estimate can all change what a resident actually pays.
Which cities make useful reference points for Clifton?
Within New Jersey, the closest population matches are Trenton (89,966 residents, $47,102 income); Toms River (93,915 residents, $95,759 income); Camden (71,471 residents, $40,450 income). Outside the state, the closest population matches in this dataset are Fort Smith, AR (89,496 residents); Waukegan, IL (88,919 residents); Bloomington, MN (88,838 residents). A third, income-matched reference set of 6 out-of-state cities sits in the income neighbourhood chart near the Place Dossier plate. These are mechanical peer sets, not claims that the places share a labor market, climate, culture, or metro context.
Use the in-state set to hold state policy and broad price conditions more nearly constant. Use the nationwide size set to ask whether cities with a similar resident count produce different housing, income, or commute outcomes. The income set is a third lens, deliberately separate from population matching. The nationwide peer panel below adds a fourth FBI UCR reporting-rate lens, not personal risk.
That layer breaks the citywide income, rent, and home-value medians into smaller Census geographies, which can reveal differences that one municipal median necessarily hides. A tract is a statistical area, not a locally defined neighborhood or a promise about conditions on a particular block. Start with the city profile for the broad comparison, then use the tract layer to test whether the same housing and income pattern is consistent across the city. Large within-city spreads are a reason to avoid treating any citywide median as a universal resident experience.
PlainCities matches 211 Census tracts to this city.
These joined records add useful context, but they do not need another full-size panel. Each remains a separate measure with its own geography and source boundary.
Population change
Is Clifton growing, shrinking, or holding steady?
Recent estimates point upward. Growth can increase housing demand and service needs, but the permit record must move in the same direction before calling it a supply response; the two series measure different things.
Census PEP estimates show the population grew by +1,579 residents from 2020 to 2025, a +1.8% change. Separately, Census BPS recorded 155 housing units authorized in 2024. PEP and ACS are different Census series, so the trend is kept separate from the headline ACS population.
Period change
+1.8%
2025 estimate
91,127
2020 estimate
89,548
Census Population Estimates Program, 2020–2025; permit context uses Census BPS.
The NCES join finds 1 public school within the city match. 34.5% of adults age 25+ hold a bachelor's degree or higher in the ACS estimate. These measures answer different questions: the school count describes local institutions, while adult attainment describes residents and cannot be used as a school-quality rating.
The matched institution count is small, so district boundaries and schools outside the city line may matter more than the municipal count suggests. Use the number as a coverage cue, then verify attendance zones with the district before making a household decision.
Matched public schools
1
Bachelor's degree+
34.5%
Poverty estimate
6.1%
NCES Common Core of Data school locations plus Census ACS resident characteristics.
What does the journey to work look like in Clifton?
Mode share answers how workers usually travel; it does not measure congestion, reliability, distance to a particular job, or the quality of transit service. No single mode completely explains the work trip here. The mix is more useful than a one-number commute grade, especially when comparing places where transit, walking, and remote work divide the non-driving share differently.
Driving alone is the largest reported mode at 68.6%. The reported mean trip to work is 26.1 minutes.
Public transit
9.6%
Work from home
10.4%
Drive alone
68.6%
City-level Census ACS commuting estimates covering 45,387 workers age 16+.
Comparative score against U.S. cities with population of 1,000 or more on Census ACS medians
(income, poverty, bachelor's share, cost of living) and FBI UCR violent-crime rates when
published. Higher means a stronger standing on those published figures, not a livability
rating, not a recommendation to move, buy, or pick a "best" city. Missing inputs drop out
and redistribute weight.
How it is calculated.
Household income B+
$99,003
Median household income vs U.S. cities (pop ≥1,000); ACS.
Bachelor's+ share B-
34.5%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or higher; ACS.
Poverty rate C
6.1%
Share of residents below the poverty line; lower scores better on this axis.
Violent crime C-
166 /100k
FBI UCR violent offenses per 100,000 residents; lower is stronger on this axis.
Cost of living F
108.8 index
BEA state Regional Price Parities index (100 ≈ national average); lower is stronger on this axis. Same value for every city in the state.
Clifton profile (scored ACS/FBI dimensions)Read the chart values
Household income: 76/100 (B+) · $99,003
Bachelor's+ share: 66/100 (B-) · 34.5%
Poverty rate: 58/100 (C) · 6.1%
Violent crime: 54/100 (C-) · 166 /100k
Cost of living: 10/100 (F) · 108.8 index
Where Clifton sits on home value vs crime among peer cities
Clifton's median home value and FBI crime rate plotted with similar-size and
same-state peers (padded with large cities when the peer set is thin). The second
read: pricey does not always mean safer, check which quadrant this city lands in.
Census ACS median home value vs FBI UCR crime rate - Clifton highlighted among 9 peers.Read the chart values
Clifton, NJ (this city): home $444,300, crime 2,431/100k
Fort Smith, AR : home $168,100, crime 4,527/100k
Waukegan, IL : home $177,600, crime 2,060/100k
Bloomington, MN : home $346,200, crime 3,776/100k
Champaign, IL : home $199,700, crime 2,781/100k
Merced, CA : home $347,700, crime 3,577/100k
Greenville, NC : home $213,100, crime 3,367/100k
Trenton, NJ : home $122,500, crime 3,315/100k
Passaic, NJ : home $406,500, crime 2,557/100k
How does Clifton compare to other US cities?
Clifton measured against every US city with 1,000+ residents, computed live from the same Census and FBI data shown throughout this page.
Household income77% higher than other cities
Home value81% pricier than other cities
Median rent94% pricier than other cities
Safety24% safer than other cities
"Safer than" reflects total crime rate from FBI UCR; the others use Census ACS estimates.
National percentiles can mask local variation. Looking only at New Jersey, Clifton ranks #202 of 238 New Jersey cities by lowest crime rate - a narrower, more locally useful cut than the national comparison above.
How we calculate these percentiles & ranks
Each percentile compares Clifton against every qualifying US city; each in-state rank narrows that to New Jersey only. Full formula and direction notes: methodology.
New Jersey-relative analysis
Median Gross Rent places Clifton near the bottom of New Jersey's cities
Among the 686 New Jersey cities PlainCities tracks with reported median gross rent data, Clifton ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide percentiles above: it compares Clifton only against its own state's cities, not the full US field.
Median Household Income
#390 of 659
41st percentile in New Jersey
Median Gross Rent
#1 of 686
0th percentile in New Jersey
Median Home Value
#274 of 672
59th percentile in New Jersey
Poverty Rate
#190 of 680
72nd percentile in New Jersey
Bachelor's Degree or Higher
#425 of 686
38th percentile in New Jersey
How in-state ranks are ordered
Ranked by raw value (highest first); a higher rank is not automatically "better" for every measure, see each metric's own context above. This is a comparison within New Jersey only, not a livability score. See the methodology for the source and calculation.
Gauge source note
77th percentile nationally for median household income · 24th percentile for safety (lower crime rate). Source: Census ACS 2023 / FBI UCR 2023.
Clifton's profile vs. every US city
Income, affordability, and safety percentile
Clifton's percentile rank on 3 favorable-direction measures (income, affordability, safety) vs. every tracked US city -- higher on every axis is more favorable. Not a composite quality score, just the arithmetic mean of the axes shown.
How Clifton's home value compares nationally
Median home value vs. every US city (population 1,000+)
$444,30019th percentilemore affordable than 19% of 15,600 US cities
Show national distribution
Each bar is a $25K-wide band; taller bars hold more US cities. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2023
Clifton's home-value-to-income ratio: 4.5×
ACS median home value divided by median household income.
Band
moderate
3.0–5.0×
National rank
#11,944 of 15,516
More affordable than 23% of tracked cities (pop. 1,000+)
Size class
#392 of 750
Mid-size cities (50,000–199,999)
At 4.5×, Clifton sits in the moderate band:
national rank #11,944 of 15,516 and #392 of 750mid-size cities (50,000–199,999).
Income and home value move in the same broad scale; check same-state peers before treating the multiple as an advantage or a warning.
How this ratio is calculated
Ratio = Census ACS 2023 median home value ÷ median household income for cities with both fields and population ≥ 1,000.
Rank 1 = lowest ratio (most compact). Bands match the fleet affordability thresholds used on guides (<3.0 / 3.0–5.0 / >5.0).
This is not a mortgage payment estimate and does not include rates, taxes, insurance, or down payment.
Income distribution context
$99,003Clifton, NJ median household income (Census ACS)
Show U.S. national quintile / Lorenz context Clifton, NJ median household income (Census ACS 5-year) with U.S. national quintile shares for context. Diagonal = equality; the curve is national, not computed for Clifton, NJ.
Key socioeconomic indicators
Bachelor's degree or higher (adults 25+)34.5%
Census ACS S1501, educational attainment
Poverty rate (households below FPL)6.1%
Census ACS S1701, poverty status
Labor force participation (adults 16+)63.5%
Census ACS S2301, share of working-age residents in the labor force
Population
89,247
Median Income
$99,003
Median Home Value
$444,300
Median Age
41.1
Poverty Rate
6.1%
Labor force participation
63.5%
Bachelor's Degree+
34.5%
Safety & Crime
Total Crime Rate
2431.3
per 100,000 residents
Violent Crime
165.8
per 100,000 residents
Property Crime
2265.5
per 100,000 residents
Crime reporting caveat
Reflects incidents reported to the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting program — agency participation is voluntary and reporting completeness varies by jurisdiction and year, so this reflects reporting activity, not a definitive danger score. Not adjusted for tourism, commuter, or daytime population.
Schools
Total Schools
1
Public schools in this city
Population Change
PEP vintage
Annual U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program (PEP) estimates, 2020–2025
Clifton's Census PEP population estimates, 2020–2025.Read the chart as text
Period
Population
2020
89,548 residents
2021
89,021 residents
2022
88,730 residents
2023
89,785 residents
2024
91,027 residents
2025
91,127 residents
Housing Supply
BPS source
Census Bureau Building Permits Survey (BPS) - annual residential permits authorized
📈 Building Boom
Total Permits (2024)
155
housing units authorized
Single-Family
20
detached homes
Multifamily
135
apartments & condos
Supply Intensity
1.7
permits per 1,000 residents
5-Year Permit Trend (2019–2024)
Year
Total
Single-Family
Multifamily
Est. Value
2019
14
12
2
$3.0M
2020
33
17
16
$6.7M
2021
40
12
28
$3.8M
2022
329
24
305
$10.8M
2023
169
18
151
$7.1M
2024
155
20
135
$7.8M
Permit volume increased 1007% from 2019 to 2024.
Commute Patterns
Commute source
How workers travel to work, Census ACS 2023
Average Commute Time
26.1 minutes
Drive Alone
68.6%
Carpool
7.6%
Public Transit
9.6%
Walk
1.9%
Work from Home
10.4%
Other
1.9%
Based on 45,387 workers 16 and over.
Monthly Utility Costs
New Jersey statewide monthly utility average (EIA 2023): $275
EIA 2023 residential energy data puts average monthly utilities across New Jersey at $275 (electricity about $120 , water and sewer about $60 ).
These are New Jersey statewide averages, not a meter reading for Clifton. Actual bills vary by home size, usage, and local rates. Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023.
Living Costs & Risk
New Jersey's BEA cost-of-living index is 108.8 (Well Above Average; US average = 100, RPP 2024). HUD Fair Market Rent for a typical two-bedroom in the county around Clifton is $2,132/mo. FEMA's National Risk Index, averaged to New Jersey statewide on PlainCities, rates natural-hazard exposure at 90.8 / 100 (Very High).
Cost/risk geography note
Cost of living is a New Jersey statewide BEA average; rent is a county-level HUD Fair Market Rent for the county Clifton sits in; the FEMA hazard score shown here is a statewide average of county NRI inputs, not a parcel-level reading.
How Clifton compares to similar-size New Jersey cities
Same-state peer method
Closest same-state population matches, not geographic neighbors. Population + median household income come from Census Bureau ACS 5-year B01001 and B19013.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year 2023, FBI UCR, NCES CCD, Census BPS 2024, Census ACS B08301/B08136, U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) 2023, BEA Regional Price Parities 2024, HUD Fair Market Rents 2026, FEMA National Risk Index.