There’s a new list of the safest towns in the country and one NJ town came in as the 10th safest. Another new ranking of the nation’s safest counties placed one NJ county as 9th safest.
SmartAsset created a list of the top 20 safest suburbs in America, and two New Jersey towns made the list. Analysts used data from the FBI in 2022, County Health Rankings & Roadmap from 2024, and the Census Bureau’s 5-year American Community Survey from 2022 to compare 360 places that are within 15 to 45 minutes of the 100 largest U.S. cities by car, and that have at least 5,000 residents. They looked at metrics including reported crime, lethal car accidents, drug overdose deaths and excessive drinking.
The data placed Edgewater at No. 10 on the list. The borough overlooking NYC and the Hudson Rover has a low rate of violent crime and property crime reported per capita and a low incidence of motor vehicle crash deaths, among other data points. Fort Lee came in at No. 17, and also has a low rate of violent and property crime reported per capita. Other metrics like median monthly housing cost, median household income and annual income that goes to housing were also a part of the ranking.
The Top 20 Safest Suburbs in America, according to SmartAsset:
- Lehi, Utah
- Bethesda, Maryland
- Layton, Utah
- Rockville, Maryland
- Great Falls, Virginia
- Dacula, Georgia
- Buford, Georgia
- Elmhurst, Illinois
- Oak Brook, Illinois
- Edgewater, New Jersey
- Palo Alto, California
- Noblesville, Indiana
- Naperville, Illinois
- Mountain View, California
- Pacifica, California
- Fishers, Indiana
- Fort Lee, New Jersey
- Carmel, Indiana
- Livermore, California
- Massapequa, New York
In a separate analysis, U.S. News & World Report recently named The Safest Communities in America through its U.S. News Healthiest Communities analysis. Reviewers assessed dozens of factors across 3,000 counties and county equivalents across a 100-point scale, including crime, injuries, public safety capacity, violent and property crime rates, the share of the population in proximity to emergency facilities, spending on health and emergency services, vehicle crash fatality rate and more.
Bergen County is No. 9 on the national list. With a population of 953,243, the county’s public safety score is 88.52. It’s known for most of its residents living close to emergency facilities. The overall score is 81.41 and the overall rank is 41 on the Healthiest Communities Rankings.
Morris County placed 23rd on the national list. With a population of 508,816, the public safety score is 82.84, and the county has a low vehicle crash fatality rate. The overall score is 86.75 and the overall rank is 16.
Rockland County, which borders northern New Jersey, placed third on the list. With a population of 337, 326, it has a public safety score of 93.86 and is known for its top-notch health and emergency services. The overall score is 68.62 and an overall rank of 289.
The Top 10 Safest Counties in America, according to U.S. News & World Report, are:
- Nassau County, New York
- Alexandria, Virginia
- Rockland County, New York
- Rio Blanco County, Colorado
- Arlington County, Virginia
- Westchester County, New York
- Manassas Park, Virginia
- Putnam County, New York
- Bergen County, New Jersey
- Brown County, Minnesota
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