The 10 Worst Yonkers Suburbs For 2022


We used science and data to determine which Yonkers suburbs are the real pits.

Not everyone is cut out for city life. Some people would prefer to live in the cities and towns that surround Yonkers.

So the question arises, do the suburbs maintain a semblance of the larger-than-life appeal of their more famous neighbor?

Today, we'll use science and data to determine which Yonkers 'burbs need a little tender loving care - the sore thumbs of the Yonkers area if you will. Realistically, you can't expect all the suburbs to live up to Yonkers proper, although East Hills certainly tries.

Of course, not all suburbs of Yonkers are created equally, which is precisely why we set out to find the best ones..

We examined the 190 biggest suburbs of Yonkers to find out the worst places to live. And while you won't necessarily find them on the worst places to live in New York lists, these ten places are a little too far downwind of Yonkers in terms of quality of life.

Here are the 10 worst suburbs around Yonkers for 2022:

  1. Newark
  2. Passaic
  3. Paterson
  4. Haverstraw
  5. Spring Valley
  6. Peekskill
  7. Elizabeth
  8. East Orange
  9. Prospect Park
  10. Linden

What's the worst suburb of Yonkers? Newark ranks as the worst suburb of Yonkers for 2022 based on the most recent Census and FBI data.

Read on to see how we determined the places around Yonkers that need a pick-me-up. And remember, don't blame the messenger.

Or, if you're thinking of moving to elsewhere in New York check out the best places in New York overall or the worst.

And remember, there are some good places to live around Yonkers too.

Editor's Note: If you see a slight difference between the worst in state rankings and this suburb ranking, it's because of the methodology. We needed a way to include more places, so we eliminated crime and commute times as criteria for this analysis.

For more New York reading, check out:

The 10 Worst Yonkers Suburbs To Live For 2022

We'll get the ball rolling with Newark, the absolute worst place to live around Yonkers according to the data.

And in the world of worst rankings, Newark beat the competition pretty handily thanks to scoring in the bottom 15% in three major categories. Income is the 3rd worst in the Yonkers area, and to make matters worse, the city ranks 9th worst when it comes to home values.

But hey, at least it's cheap to live there. But there's a reason for that... it's Newark.

You won't feel bad about not having a great income for the area, there aren't a bunch of places to spend your money anyway.

Overall SnackAbility

4
/10

Population: 281,917
Rank Last Year: 2 (Up 1)
Median Income: $37,476 (3rd lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 10.6% (6th highest)
Median Home Value: $254,900 (9th lowest)
More on Newark:  Data | Photos

Newark, NJ

2. Passaic

Welcome to Passaic. Home to KMart, Big Lots, and a lot of gas stations.

This city is 14.9 miles to Yonkers. Income levels here are the 5th lowest in the metro area, where families bring in about $44,779 a year, which doesn't go a long ways even on a shoestring budget.

But on the bright side, there are a lot of fast food joints in the area.

Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 69,789
Rank Last Year: 10 (Up 8)
Median Income: $44,779 (5th lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 10.1% (7th highest)
Median Home Value: $348,000 (35th lowest)
More on Passaic:

Passaic, NJ

Source: Public domain

3. Paterson

Back up the highway we go for the third worst Yonkers suburb you can live in. You might have expected to see Paterson on here. While the cost of living is low, your entertainment and work options are limited. And that's an understatement.

In terms of numbers, it's in the worst 15% for insurance, and the adult high school drop out rate is poor compared to other Yonkers suburbs.

But at least there are nice parks to bring the kids during the day.

Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 145,484
Rank Last Year: 12 (Up 9)
Median Income: $45,141 (6th lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 7.4% (16th highest)
Median Home Value: $257,700 (10th lowest)
More on Paterson:

Paterson, NJ

If you live in Haverstraw, most likely you struggle to make ends meet every month. It ranks as the 2lowest Yonkers suburb when it comes to residents making money.

Not only that, but this is the 10th worst unemployed suburb you can live in if you choose to live near Yonkers. Remember, we looked at 190 cities for this study.

Haverstraw is about 16.5 miles to downtown.

Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 12,076
Rank Last Year: 3 (Down 1)
Median Income: $66,214 (2lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 8.7% (10th highest)
Median Home Value: $270,100 (12th lowest)
More on Haverstraw:  Data | Photos

Haverstraw, NY

Source: Public domain

Spring Valley has the distinction of being a Yonkers suburb. Which means that's about all it has going for it.

All snarkiness aside, Spring Valley has the 22nd lowest home values in the metro Yonkers area, where the median price is $312,100. To put that into perspective, in East Hills, the median income is $250,001, which is the best in the area.

Spring Valley has an unemployment rate of 6.81% which ranks 26th worst.

Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 32,295
Rank Last Year: 4 (Down 1)
Median Income: $45,646 (7th lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 6.8% (26th highest)
Median Home Value: $312,100 (22nd lowest)
More on Spring Valley:  Data | Photos

Spring Valley, NY

Peekskill has 24,111 residents that probably know it's a pretty crummy place to live when you look at the data. (Or, if you've ever been there, you don't need to look at the data.)

Incomes are towards the bottom and the poverty rate sits at 13.021660951743751%.

Overall SnackAbility

8
/10

Population: 24,111
Rank Last Year: 8 (Up 2)
Median Income: $66,067 (20th lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 6.4% (38th highest)
Median Home Value: $288,300 (15th lowest)
More on Peekskill:  Data | Photos

Peekskill, NY

7. Elizabeth

Ah, Elizabeth. You rank as the 7th worst place to live around Yonkers.

It's the place with the 52nd most out of work residents in the Yonkers metro area (5.99%).

Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 128,484
Rank Last Year: 5 (Down 2)
Median Income: $50,647 (9th lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 6.0% (52nd highest)
Median Home Value: $291,300 (16th lowest)
More on Elizabeth:

Elizabeth, NJ

8. East Orange

East Orange is a city about 21.9 miles from Yonkers, but Yonkers probably wishes it was further away. It ranks as the 8th worst burb for 2018.

You'd be hard pressed to find a worse place to live. East Orange has the 24th most uninsured people, 10th worst incomes, and has the 2nd highest unemployment rate (11.97%) in the entire Yonkers metro area.

Homes only cost $226,000 for a reason. That's cheap for Yonkers standards.

Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 64,650
Rank Last Year: 7 (Down 1)
Median Income: $50,990 (10th lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 12.0% (2nd highest)
Median Home Value: $226,000 (3rd lowest)
More on East Orange:

East Orange, NJ

Source: Public domain

9. Prospect Park

If you absolutely have to live near Yonkers, then Prospect Park might be a place for you to consider as it's only the 9th worst Yonkers suburb.

About 6.45% of residents are out of work.

Overall SnackAbility

7
/10

Population: 5,853
Rank Last Year: 23 (Up 14)
Median Income: $48,838 (8th lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 6.4% (35th highest)
Median Home Value: $280,100 (14th lowest)
More on Prospect Park:

10. Linden

Rounding out the ten worst Yonkers suburbs to call home is Linden.

Located 29.4 miles outside the city, Lindens is a real pit when you look at the data. Its residents have the 48th highest unemployment rate (6.12%), and poverty is far above the area average.

Overall SnackAbility

8
/10

Population: 42,332
Rank Last Year: 9 (Down 1)
Median Income: $75,084 (33rd lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 6.1% (48th highest)
Median Home Value: $293,700 (17th lowest)
More on Linden:

Linden, NJ

Methodology: Determining The Worst Suburbs Around Yonkers for 2022

To figure out how bad a place is to live in, we only needed to know what kinds of things people like and then decide what cities have the least amount of those things.

We threw a lot of criteria at this one in order to get the best, most complete results possible. Using the most recent American Community Survey data from 2016-2020, this is the criteria we used:

  • High unemployment rate
  • Low median household incomes
  • Low population density (no things to do)
  • Low home values
  • A lot of high school drop outs
  • High poverty
  • High rate of uninsured families

FYI: We defined a suburb as being within 30 miles of Yonkers.

Additionally, we limited the analysis to places that have over 2,000 people. This left us with a grand total of 190 suburbs to evaluate around Yonkers.

We ranked each place with scores from 1 to 190 in each category, where 1 was the "worst".

Next, we averaged the rankings for each place to create a quality of life index.

And finally, we crowned the city with the worst quality of life index the "Worst Suburb near Yonkers." We're lookin' at you, Newark. You can download the data here.

Read on below to learn more about what it's like to live in the worst of the worst. Or skip to the end to see the list of all the suburbs ranked from worst to best.

Summary: The areas around Yonkers where the dream is more of a nightmare for 2022

Well there you have it -- the worst of the 'burbs surrounding Yonkers with Newark casting itself ahead of the pack.

As we mentioned earlier, the suburbs around Yonkers aren't all bad. East Hills takes the cake as the best place to live around Yonkers.

  • East Hills
  • East Williston
  • Scarsdale

For more New York reading, check out:

Detailed List Of The Worst Yonkers Suburbs

Rank City Population Median Income Median Home Values
1 Newark 281,917 $37,476 $254,900
2 Passaic 69,789 $44,779 $348,000
3 Paterson 145,484 $45,141 $257,700
4 Haverstraw 12,076 $66,214 $270,100
5 Spring Valley 32,295 $45,646 $312,100
6 Peekskill 24,111 $66,067 $288,300
7 Elizabeth 128,484 $50,647 $291,300
8 East Orange 64,650 $50,990 $226,000
9 Prospect Park 5,853 $48,838 $280,100
10 Linden 42,332 $75,084 $293,700
11 Greenville 12,743 $40,347 $99,700
12 West New York 52,778 $64,378 $340,800
13 Hempstead 55,153 $68,946 $339,500
14 Guttenberg 11,284 $63,189 $307,300
15 Roselle 21,699 $65,307 $230,600
16 Kearny 41,190 $73,554 $354,700
17 West Haverstraw 10,220 $69,303 $265,800
18 Kenilworth 8,182 $95,590 $356,800
19 East Newark 2,634 $60,833 $317,300
20 Fairview 14,218 $58,072 $426,700
21 Norwalk 88,755 $89,486 $438,900
22 Haledon 8,298 $72,635 $274,500
23 Bayonne 65,112 $69,511 $346,000
24 Hackensack 44,266 $71,079 $306,700
25 Greenwood Lake 3,080 $93,406 $242,700
26 Woodland Park 12,608 $80,286 $381,100
27 Elmsford 5,197 $102,601 $460,600
28 Harrison 18,313 $66,699 $338,500
29 Port Chester 29,210 $81,586 $458,000
30 Elmwood Park 20,019 $75,779 $369,500
31 Little Ferry 10,761 $69,224 $363,900
32 Union 6,777 $63,657 $105,200
33 Mount Vernon 67,623 $59,291 $367,200
34 Bloomingdale 8,080 $97,386 $320,300
35 Lodi 24,389 $64,249 $389,400
36 Moonachie 2,714 $72,000 $359,100
37 Clifton 85,201 $83,086 $354,700
38 Englewood 28,390 $86,485 $403,800
39 New Rochelle 79,367 $81,735 $562,300
40 Ridgefield 11,209 $79,696 $471,400
41 Sleepy Hollow 10,089 $86,026 $693,900
42 Wallington 11,553 $72,389 $386,600
43 Stamford 130,057 $96,885 $541,600
44 Jersey City 262,652 $76,444 $406,200
45 Freeport 42,993 $85,540 $361,000
46 Garfield 31,722 $64,242 $357,000
47 Mount Kisco 10,949 $85,412 $411,900
48 New York 8,379,552 $67,046 $635,200
49 Lincoln Park 10,220 $100,248 $344,400
50 Harriman 2,996 $75,300 $244,900
51 Ridgefield Park 12,928 $81,908 $367,500
52 Airmont 8,771 $100,712 $556,400
53 Roselle Park 13,574 $80,842 $295,800
54 White Plains 58,171 $96,715 $558,100
55 Chestnut Ridge 8,041 $93,125 $536,700
56 East Rutherford 9,707 $76,777 $381,000
57 Palisades Park 20,693 $79,063 $577,900
58 New Square 8,589 $24,164 $561,700
59 Glen Cove 27,172 $79,131 $509,500
60 Pompton Lakes 10,998 $98,348 $324,700
61 Boonton 8,510 $85,211 $406,300
62 Wanaque 11,719 $95,685 $318,400
63 Ossining 24,966 $83,060 $363,200
64 Sloatsburg 3,114 $88,304 $360,600
65 Kaser 5,367 $23,030 $1,096,200
66 Suffern 10,945 $86,383 $308,500
67 Secaucus 20,667 $125,142 $473,600
68 North Arlington 15,681 $87,589 $372,400
69 North Haledon 8,425 $101,867 $423,200
70 Cliffside Park 25,410 $83,989 $454,400
71 Hasbrouck Heights 12,026 $95,784 $432,000
72 Manorhaven 6,725 $86,231 $530,200
73 Ringwood 12,229 $123,559 $360,500
74 Bergenfield 27,375 $102,724 $369,500
75 Totowa 10,810 $96,750 $370,300
76 Buchanan 2,274 $111,250 $381,600
77 Carlstadt 6,158 $103,720 $403,200
78 Highland Falls 3,826 $78,137 $238,600
79 Pomona 3,058 $125,417 $568,400
80 Island Park 4,835 $95,574 $418,900
81 Maywood 9,626 $98,511 $396,000
82 Butler 7,669 $99,519 $366,000
83 New Milford 16,477 $94,821 $433,000
84 Mamaroneck 19,247 $106,828 $614,900
85 Bogota 8,375 $99,107 $335,400
86 Fort Lee 37,843 $88,457 $348,300
87 Northvale 4,911 $102,361 $455,100
88 Dumont 17,598 $107,172 $383,900
89 East Rockaway 9,810 $86,016 $473,700
90 Westbury 15,339 $108,992 $473,800
91 Pleasantville 7,256 $159,755 $694,400
92 Riverdale 4,179 $112,688 $336,500
93 Rye Brook 9,554 $141,045 $784,200
94 Hawthorne 18,762 $103,586 $411,900
95 Valley Stream 37,489 $116,746 $450,100
96 Rutherford 18,376 $106,817 $476,200
97 Harrison 28,363 $128,393 $871,800
98 Great Neck 10,172 $102,799 $864,700
99 Leonia 9,059 $96,468 $522,000
100 Montvale 8,538 $156,042 $612,600

How Is Your Town In ?

Editor's Note: This article is an opinion based on facts and is meant as infotainment. Don't freak out we updated this article for 2022. This is our ninth time ranking the worst suburbs around Yonkers.
About Chris Kolmar

Chris Kolmar has been in the real estate business for almost ten years now. He originally worked for Movoto Real Estate as the director of marketing before founding HomeSnacks.

He believes the key to finding the right place to live comes down to looking at the data, reading about things to do, and, most importantly, checking it out yourself before you move.

If you've been looking for a place to live in the past several years, you've probably stumbled upon his writing already.

You can find out more about him on LinkedIn or his website.