It’s true what you read about New Jersey in the news. Some cities in the Garden State make Long Island, NY, look like the home of the middle class.
We know that New Jerseyites can make a fantastic bagel. They are one of the top producers of cranberries, and most drugmakers call it home, but what keeps this larger-than-life state ticking? That would be the millionaires that call it home.
To get into one of these cities, you can marry a New Jersey Housewife or find a job that pays an average of $160,000/year. I suggest a job in banking. Someone has to help all of those rich New Jerseyites manage their money.
To create this list, we asked ourselves, what is important to rich people in New Jersey? Besides crazy expensive beach houses down the Jersey Shore, the cities on our list have the highest incomes and home prices.
It turns out that many of our best places to live in New Jersey are also on our richest list.
$250,001 median income · 2.3% poverty · #5 income in New Jersey
Located in
Essex County, New Jersey
Short Hills is an unincorporated community and census-designated place located within Millburn Township, in Essex County, New Jersey, United States. It is a popular commuter town for residents who work in New York City.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$250,001 median income · 3.2% poverty · #5 income in New Jersey
Located in
Monmouth County, New Jersey
Rumson is a borough in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States and is part of the New York Metropolitan Area. As of the 2010 census, the borough’s population was 7,122, reflecting a decline of 15 from 7,137 in 2000, which had in turn increased by 436 from 6,701 in 1990.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$250,001 median income · 1.1% poverty · #5 income in New Jersey
Located in
Monmouth County, New Jersey
Fair Haven is a borough in Monmouth County, New Jersey, along the Navesink River and is part of the New York Metropolitan Area. Fair Haven is located on the Rumson peninsula and is bordered by Red Bank and Little Silver to the west. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough’s population was 6,121, reflecting an increase of 184 from the 5,937 counted in the 2000 Census, which had in turn increased by 667 from the 5,270 counted in the 1990 Census.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$250,001 median income · 4.5% poverty · #5 income in New Jersey
Located in
Bergen County, New Jersey
Upper Saddle River is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough’s population was 8,208, reflecting an increase of 467 from the 7,741 counted in the 2000 Census, which had in turn increased by 543 from the 7,198 counted in the 1990 Census. It is not to be confused with the neighboring borough of Saddle River.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$250,001 median income · 0.0% poverty · #5 income in New Jersey
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$235,795 median income · 3.4% poverty · #14 income in New Jersey
Located in
Bergen County, New Jersey
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$230,611 median income · 5.2% poverty · #16 income in New Jersey
Located in
Bergen County, New Jersey
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$250,001 median income · 1.9% poverty · #5 income in New Jersey
Located in
Essex County, New Jersey
Upper Montclair is a census-designated place, unincorporated community and neighborhood within Montclair in Essex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the population for the CDP was 11,565. The area is served as United States Postal Service ZIP code 07043. It is often misperceived, even by Montclair residents, to be a separate municipality from Montclair, perhaps aided by this postal designation.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$241,500 median income · 2.2% poverty · #10 income in New Jersey
Located in
Morris County, New Jersey
The Chathams is a term used in reference to shared services for two neighboring municipalities in Morris County, New Jersey, United States – Chatham Borough and Chatham Township. The two are separate municipalities. The first, a town that was settled in 1710 as a colonial English village in the Province of New Jersey, that in 1773 adopted a name change to “Chatham”. There are numerous references to this village as “Chatham, New Jersey” dating from that time. The second, more southern, without a town center, and less densely populated, is the vestige of a regional government that was formed in 1806 as a township, a form of municipal government peculiar to the state of New Jersey. It had jurisdiction over a region including a large area of open space and several villages. One of those, the village of Chatham, dating from 1710, was the source for its name, Chatham Township.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$212,143 median income · 4.3% poverty · #22 income in New Jersey
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
The receipts
Compare the top ten
Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is New Jersey’s statewide median.
New Jersey statewide median: $103,556
New Jersey statewide median: $569,411
New Jersey statewide median: 9.7%
New Jersey statewide median: 6.3%
On the map
Where the money lives in New Jersey
Saturday Night Science
How we determined the richest places in New Jersey for 2026
The first thing most people reach for is personal income. After all, rich people have really high salaries. But one statistic doesn’t capture what it means to be one of the “richest places,” so we applied Saturday Night Science to two measures from the 2020-2024 American Community Survey:
- Median household income
- Median home value
Median household income is the most digestible way to understand how rich a place is, and home values are a measure of accumulated wealth. The two combine to define a “Rich City.”
After collecting the data for all 347 places in New Jersey with more than 3,000 people, we ranked each place from 1 to 347 on both criteria, then averaged the two ranks into a “Rich Score.” The place with the lowest Rich Score, Short Hills, is crowned the richest city in New Jersey for 2026. The median New Jersey home is 55 years old — old enough that it pays to compare home warranty plans before something expensive breaks.
The full plate
All 100 richest cities in New Jersey, ranked
Click any column to sort. Search by city name.
| Rank | City | Rich Score | Population | Median income | Median home value | Poverty | Unemployment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Short Hills | 3.00 | 14,923 | $250,001 | $2,309,383 | 2.3% | 3.4% |
| 2 | Rumson | 4.00 | 7,241 | $250,001 | $2,183,827 | 3.2% | 4.5% |
| 3 | Fair Haven | 5.50 | 6,170 | $250,001 | $1,483,127 | 1.1% | 4.9% |
| 4 | Upper Saddle River | 6.50 | 8,439 | $250,001 | $1,412,975 | 4.5% | 7.3% |
| 5 | Ho-Ho-Kus | 7.50 | 4,270 | $250,001 | $1,369,018 | 0.0% | 1.7% |
| 6 | Franklin Lakes | 9.50 | 11,084 | $235,795 | $1,557,852 | 3.4% | 2.3% |
| 7 | Englewood Cliffs | 10.00 | 5,362 | $230,611 | $1,733,277 | 5.2% | 4.8% |
| 8 | Upper Montclair | 10.00 | 12,457 | $250,001 | $1,239,321 | 1.9% | 5.0% |
| 9 | Chatham | 10.50 | 9,407 | $241,500 | $1,310,369 | 2.2% | 5.2% |
| 10 | Saddle River | 12.00 | 3,389 | $212,143 | $2,270,388 | 4.3% | 7.3% |
| 11 | Mountain Lakes | 12.50 | 4,585 | $250,001 | $1,190,632 | 1.3% | 2.4% |
| 12 | Westfield | 13.50 | 31,111 | $232,629 | $1,269,853 | 1.8% | 3.6% |
| 13 | Glen Ridge | 14.50 | 7,943 | $250,001 | $1,125,697 | 1.1% | 7.6% |
| 14 | Haworth | 15.50 | 3,363 | $236,765 | $1,191,256 | 3.7% | 2.5% |
| 15 | Little Silver | 18.00 | 6,105 | $240,853 | $1,110,500 | 1.2% | 3.3% |
| 16 | Demarest | 18.00 | 4,911 | $208,036 | $1,462,793 | 1.1% | 7.1% |
| 17 | Woodcliff Lake | 18.50 | 6,152 | $213,981 | $1,228,602 | 1.0% | 12.0% |
| 18 | Tenafly | 21.00 | 15,319 | $208,200 | $1,262,422 | 3.5% | 6.8% |
| 19 | Summit | 22.00 | 22,705 | $190,304 | $1,372,011 | 5.5% | 5.4% |
| 20 | Ridgewood | 22.50 | 26,308 | $208,211 | $1,200,489 | 4.2% | 3.4% |
| 21 | Old Tappan | 23.50 | 6,008 | $205,385 | $1,224,145 | 2.3% | 2.2% |
| 22 | North Caldwell | 24.50 | 6,656 | $208,245 | $1,133,696 | 1.7% | 6.0% |
| 23 | Glen Rock | 26.50 | 12,154 | $215,096 | $1,056,914 | 1.3% | 6.0% |
| 24 | Belle Mead | 27.50 | 6,394 | $223,250 | $1,015,391 | 3.3% | 4.6% |
| 25 | Bernardsville | 27.50 | 7,916 | $236,115 | $1,003,867 | 1.1% | 4.3% |
| 26 | Closter | 28.00 | 8,606 | $190,469 | $1,153,806 | 8.1% | 3.3% |
| 27 | Blackwells Mills | 28.50 | 10,301 | $250,001 | $921,032 | 1.7% | 4.8% |
| 28 | Mountainside | 29.00 | 7,049 | $211,538 | $1,043,568 | 3.7% | 3.5% |
| 29 | Mendham | 29.50 | 4,973 | $211,944 | $1,027,296 | 3.5% | 3.4% |
| 30 | Brielle | 31.00 | 4,956 | $172,250 | $1,263,557 | 1.3% | 6.6% |
| 31 | Oradell | 33.00 | 8,235 | $221,322 | $975,412 | 3.6% | 2.3% |
| 32 | Lincroft | 38.50 | 6,939 | $189,000 | $1,007,765 | 2.0% | 5.2% |
| 33 | Watchung | 39.50 | 6,485 | $173,672 | $1,060,985 | 1.2% | 6.1% |
| 34 | Robertsville | 42.50 | 12,035 | $210,661 | $858,503 | 2.6% | 3.0% |
| 35 | Martinsville | 43.50 | 11,559 | $205,000 | $902,737 | 1.4% | 2.8% |
| 36 | Harrington Park | 45.00 | 4,954 | $180,500 | $967,522 | 6.8% | 3.3% |
| 37 | Shrewsbury | 46.50 | 4,179 | $178,958 | $942,549 | 3.6% | 4.6% |
| 38 | Madison | 47.00 | 16,447 | $171,471 | $990,723 | 3.2% | 6.3% |
| 39 | Cresskill | 47.50 | 9,174 | $170,376 | $1,000,899 | 3.3% | 5.2% |
| 40 | Allendale | 48.00 | 6,865 | $160,162 | $1,073,640 | 3.7% | 4.1% |
| 41 | Montvale | 48.50 | 8,901 | $178,269 | $920,951 | 4.0% | 5.9% |
| 42 | Norwood | 50.00 | 5,724 | $178,311 | $898,894 | 2.8% | 0.9% |
| 43 | Haddonfield | 50.00 | 12,595 | $200,400 | $830,377 | 3.1% | 3.6% |
| 44 | Hoboken | 50.50 | 58,668 | $180,579 | $855,399 | 7.8% | 3.8% |
| 45 | Monmouth Beach | 51.50 | 3,207 | $150,188 | $1,107,170 | 0.2% | 4.7% |
| 46 | Richwood | 51.50 | 3,197 | $216,196 | $744,470 | 4.2% | 1.3% |
| 47 | Hillsdale | 51.50 | 10,144 | $186,688 | $843,788 | 2.2% | 3.4% |
| 48 | Kinnelon | 52.00 | 10,013 | $187,438 | $836,759 | 2.0% | 8.1% |
| 49 | Florham Park | 52.50 | 13,564 | $158,696 | $1,025,256 | 8.7% | 5.4% |
| 50 | East Freehold | 53.50 | 5,096 | $189,219 | $809,381 | 4.7% | 6.4% |
| 51 | Fanwood | 54.00 | 7,799 | $195,529 | $791,728 | 1.0% | 2.7% |
| 52 | New Providence | 54.00 | 13,727 | $161,599 | $990,084 | 2.1% | 3.8% |
| 53 | Manasquan | 54.50 | 5,922 | $142,944 | $1,158,873 | 3.0% | 2.7% |
| 54 | Park Ridge | 57.00 | 9,406 | $171,029 | $845,038 | 1.5% | 3.2% |
| 55 | Point Pleasant Beach | 60.00 | 4,855 | $141,716 | $1,068,548 | 5.2% | 5.6% |
| 56 | Paramus | 60.50 | 26,568 | $144,349 | $1,039,757 | 4.7% | 7.7% |
| 57 | Oakhurst | 61.00 | 3,538 | $145,893 | $1,007,290 | 1.4% | 5.1% |
| 58 | Ramsey | 62.00 | 14,805 | $160,996 | $863,404 | 4.3% | 3.2% |
| 59 | Morganville | 63.00 | 5,902 | $161,500 | $851,870 | 3.5% | 1.1% |
| 60 | Roseland | 63.50 | 6,268 | $164,458 | $819,880 | 2.5% | 4.9% |
| 61 | Yorketown | 65.00 | 7,261 | $173,510 | $749,357 | 4.2% | 5.9% |
| 62 | River Edge | 66.00 | 12,091 | $159,028 | $839,655 | 4.4% | 4.7% |
| 63 | Waldwick | 66.00 | 10,164 | $177,962 | $738,299 | 1.4% | 2.2% |
| 64 | Westwood | 66.50 | 11,283 | $165,781 | $755,182 | 7.1% | 2.5% |
| 65 | Green Knoll | 69.00 | 6,789 | $165,227 | $748,229 | 3.3% | 4.2% |
| 66 | Oakland | 70.50 | 12,768 | $162,019 | $750,020 | 3.1% | 5.4% |
| 67 | Kendall Park | 72.00 | 10,011 | $165,958 | $728,058 | 4.2% | 6.8% |
| 68 | Franklin Center | 74.00 | 6,646 | $157,212 | $766,901 | 7.3% | 4.6% |
| 69 | Emerson | 74.00 | 7,305 | $155,536 | $780,190 | 3.1% | 5.6% |
| 70 | Bradley Gardens | 76.50 | 14,165 | $177,849 | $684,571 | 4.1% | 3.6% |
| 71 | Margate City | 77.00 | 5,234 | $121,800 | $1,097,066 | 6.3% | 4.1% |
| 72 | Brookdale | 78.00 | 9,960 | $161,779 | $718,656 | 3.8% | 4.3% |
| 73 | Morris Plains | 83.00 | 6,315 | $154,923 | $727,186 | 3.2% | 5.0% |
| 74 | Oceanport | 83.50 | 6,195 | $126,094 | $910,435 | 4.1% | 7.3% |
| 75 | Midland Park | 84.50 | 7,019 | $146,841 | $732,465 | 2.8% | 7.2% |
| 76 | Princeton Meadows | 85.00 | 15,561 | $131,213 | $834,192 | 5.1% | 4.6% |
| 77 | Rutherford | 86.50 | 18,894 | $143,153 | $738,683 | 5.5% | 4.2% |
| 78 | Metuchen | 89.00 | 15,144 | $158,052 | $683,090 | 3.6% | 5.8% |
| 79 | Fairview | 89.25 | 3,892 | $165,135 | $654,535 | 0.7% | 5.3% |
| 80 | Leonia | 90.00 | 9,336 | $129,665 | $808,460 | 4.3% | 6.0% |
| 81 | Atlantic Highlands | 92.00 | 4,410 | $126,080 | $816,439 | 4.6% | 3.9% |
| 82 | Morristown | 92.50 | 20,453 | $121,340 | $887,262 | 7.8% | 5.3% |
| 83 | Succasunna | 93.00 | 9,799 | $161,712 | $650,100 | 2.2% | 4.6% |
| 84 | Moorestown-Lenola | 93.00 | 14,625 | $138,398 | $728,931 | 7.1% | 7.4% |
| 85 | Fair Lawn | 93.50 | 35,610 | $144,574 | $709,175 | 6.1% | 6.2% |
| 86 | Strathmore | 93.50 | 6,708 | $151,855 | $676,050 | 1.9% | 4.9% |
| 87 | Wanamassa | 94.00 | 4,279 | $140,972 | $714,395 | 8.4% | 3.8% |
| 88 | Heathcote | 94.50 | 7,717 | $141,295 | $711,137 | 3.4% | 2.0% |
| 89 | Northvale | 95.50 | 4,829 | $127,625 | $751,343 | 4.7% | 6.3% |
| 90 | Dayton | 98.00 | 7,952 | $151,902 | $654,995 | 2.5% | 6.8% |
| 91 | Springdale | 99.00 | 15,173 | $164,796 | $618,909 | 7.5% | 6.5% |
| 92 | Wood-Ridge | 99.50 | 10,218 | $136,108 | $709,508 | 6.9% | 4.8% |
| 93 | West Long Branch | 99.50 | 8,586 | $114,271 | $959,620 | 3.4% | 8.3% |
| 94 | Beach Haven West | 101.00 | 5,120 | $119,394 | $804,118 | 3.4% | 3.6% |
| 95 | Monmouth Junction | 102.50 | 9,141 | $133,585 | $690,687 | 6.2% | 4.3% |
| 96 | Secaucus | 105.00 | 21,778 | $139,821 | $662,670 | 5.8% | 5.6% |
| 97 | Ridgefield | 105.50 | 11,498 | $118,059 | $778,380 | 5.1% | 5.6% |
| 98 | North Haledon | 107.00 | 8,778 | $125,313 | $712,134 | 3.3% | 4.6% |
| 99 | Barclay | 107.50 | 4,607 | $163,365 | $584,198 | 7.6% | 2.5% |
| 100 | Edgewater | 107.50 | 14,759 | $124,050 | $714,157 | 7.7% | 8.0% |
Source: U.S. Census ACS 2020-2024, Zillow research. 347 cities with more than 3,000 residents.
Short Hills is the richest place in New Jersey for 2026
When we set out to identify the richest places in New Jersey, we weren’t sure what we’d find, but it ended up being some of the best places to live in the state. The richest cities in New Jersey are Short Hills, Rumson, and Fair Haven, and when you look at the data they sit at the very top of the income ladder for everyone who lives there.
Breaking into the top ten takes a median household income of at least $212,143. If you’re curious about the other end of the ledger, the poorest places are listed to the right. Not sold on New Jersey? Take the two-minute Find Your Place quiz and see which state actually fits you.
Questions and answers
Richest Cities In New Jersey FAQs
What is the richest city in New Jersey?
Short Hills is the richest city in New Jersey for 2026. The median household income in Short Hills is $250,001, the median home value is $2,309,383, and the poverty rate sits at 2.3%. Rumson and Fair Haven round out the top three.
Where do the richest people live in New Jersey?
The richest people in New Jersey live in Short Hills, Rumson, and Fair Haven, based on income and home value data from the American Community Survey. Every place in the top ten posts a median household income of at least $212,143.
How much money do you need to be considered rich in New Jersey?
You need a household income around $212,143 to keep up in the ten richest places in New Jersey. That is the lowest median income in the top ten; the highest is $250,001. The statewide median is $103,556.
How expensive are homes in the richest cities in New Jersey?
The median home value across the ten richest cities in New Jersey is $1,520,490, compared to $569,411 statewide. In Short Hills, the typical home runs $2,309,383.
What is the poorest city in New Jersey?
Crestwood Village is the poorest city in New Jersey. It ranks last of the 347 places we analyzed on income and home value.
