Welcome to the land of the 1%. Where you’ll find lawyers, and doctors, and business executives. And while they aren’t made of ticky-tacky, they are definitely made of money.
These are the wealthiest neighborhoods that Buffalo has to offer — where houses go for well over the national median and household incomes follow suit.
But where exactly in Buffalo do the richest of the rich people live? That would be South Abbott, where the median income is a cool $80,316.
$80,316 median income
$76,898 median income
$74,251 median income
$72,990 median income
$71,004 median income
$68,808 median income
$68,676 median income
$68,309 median income
$63,047 median income
$61,585 median income
The receipts
Compare the top ten
Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is New York’s statewide median.
New York statewide median: $85,974
New York statewide median: $507,794
Saturday Night Science
How we determined the wealthiest neighborhoods in Buffalo for 2026
Every city has its best neighborhoods — where everyone wants to live — and the worst neighborhoods — where no one wants to live. And then you have the wealthiest neighborhoods, where no one can afford to live.
And by no one, we mean you because there’s always someone richer than you.
How do you quantify richer than you? We looked at one simple criterion:
- Highest median household income
Using Saturday Night Science, we researched income data from the Census and BLS for every neighborhood in Buffalo.
We ranked every neighborhood in Buffalo by median income from highest to lowest. The neighborhood with the highest median income, South Abbott, was named the wealthiest neighborhood in Buffalo.
We updated this article for 2026. This is our eleventh time ranking the most affluent neighborhoods to live in Buffalo.
The full plate
Richest neighborhoods in Buffalo for 2026 by median income
Click any column to sort. Search by neighborhood name.
| Rank | Neighborhood | Median Household Income |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | South Abbott | $80,316 |
| 2 | Parkside | $76,898 |
| 3 | Starin Central | $74,251 |
| 4 | Park Meadow | $72,990 |
| 5 | North Park | $71,004 |
| 6 | Albright | $68,808 |
| 7 | Central Business District | $68,676 |
| 8 | Abbott McKinley | $68,309 |
| 9 | Delaware Park | $63,047 |
| 10 | Forest | $61,585 |
| 11 | South Park | $61,144 |
| 12 | Delaware-West Ferry | $60,893 |
| 13 | Grant Ferry | $58,566 |
| 14 | University | $56,623 |
| 15 | Cold Spring | $50,303 |
| 16 | Triangle | $50,160 |
| 17 | Hamlin Park | $46,968 |
| 18 | North Delaware | $44,597 |
| 19 | Kaisertown | $44,263 |
| 20 | Kensington | $44,136 |
| 21 | Lasalle | $42,032 |
| 22 | Allen | $41,923 |
| 23 | Front Park | $41,665 |
| 24 | Bryant | $41,622 |
| 25 | Cazenovia Park | $40,789 |
| 26 | Black Rock | $40,531 |
| 27 | Seneca | $39,029 |
| 28 | Tifft | $38,752 |
| 29 | Military | $37,590 |
| 30 | Leroy | $36,770 |
| 31 | Kenfield | $36,236 |
| 32 | Waterfront | $35,846 |
| 33 | Columbus | $34,538 |
| 34 | Grider | $34,202 |
| 35 | Kingsley | $33,976 |
| 36 | South Ellicott | $33,740 |
| 37 | Medical Park | $32,992 |
| 38 | Emslie | $32,854 |
| 39 | Lovejoy | $32,108 |
| 40 | Mlk Park | $29,420 |
| 41 | Schiller Park | $28,852 |
| 42 | First Ward | $28,750 |
| 43 | Riverside Park | $28,679 |
| 44 | Squaw Island | $28,346 |
| 45 | Genesee Moselle | $27,957 |
| 46 | Valley | $27,932 |
| 47 | Lakeview | $26,270 |
| 48 | Willert Park | $25,014 |
| 49 | Babcock | $24,532 |
| 50 | Masten Park | $24,229 |
| 51 | Broadway-Fillmore | $23,868 |
| 52 | Emerson | $23,804 |
Source: U.S. Census ACS 2020-2024. All 52 Buffalo neighborhoods.
Summary
Summary: The wealthiest pockets of Buffalo
What’s the richest neighborhood to live in Buffalo for 2026? According to the most recent census data, South Abbott looks to be the richest Buffalo neighborhood to live in.
The richest neighborhoods in Buffalo are South Abbott, Parkside, Starin Central, Park Meadow, North Park, Albright, Central Business District, Abbott McKinley, Delaware Park, and Forest.
The poorest neighborhood? That would be Emerson.
We ranked the neighborhoods from richest to poorest in the chart below. Not sold on New York? Take the two-minute Find Your Place quiz and see which state actually fits you.
Questions and answers
Richest Neighborhoods In Buffalo FAQs
What is the richest neighborhood in Buffalo?
South Abbott is the richest neighborhood in Buffalo for 2026, with a median household income of $80,316. Parkside and Starin Central are next.
What are the richest neighborhoods in Buffalo?
The richest neighborhoods in Buffalo are South Abbott, Parkside, Starin Central, Park Meadow, North Park, Albright, Central Business District, Abbott McKinley, Delaware Park, and Forest. We ranked all 52 neighborhoods by median household income, highest to lowest.
How much do people make in South Abbott?
The median household in South Abbott earns $80,316 a year, and the median home there is worth $122,600. Those two numbers travel together in most cities, and Buffalo is no exception.
How do you rank the richest neighborhoods?
One measure: median household income from Census tract data, ranked highest to lowest. No composite score, no adjustments — just where the money lives.
What is the poorest neighborhood in Buffalo?
Emerson posts the lowest median household income of the 52 Buffalo neighborhoods we ranked. It anchors the bottom of the income table above.
