Auburn vs Jersey City
The short version
- Overall prices are about the same in both metro areas (BEA 2024).
- The median home costs $547,900 in Auburn and $566,900 in Jersey City.
- Auburn has the warmer winter: January highs of 48°F vs 40°F.
- Jersey City gets far more snow: 32 inches a year vs 6.
- Jersey City has more scorching days: 28 a year at 90°F or hotter vs 4.
- Jersey City is growing faster: +3.2% since 2020 vs -2.4%.
- Commutes are shorter in Auburn (31 vs 37 minutes each way).
- Washington has no state income tax on wages; New Jersey's top rate is 10.75%.
Side by side
| Auburn, WA | Jersey City, NJ | |
|---|---|---|
| People | ||
| Population (2025) | 86,301 | 302,013 |
| Growth since 2020 | -2.4% | +3.2% |
| People per square mile | 2,918 | 20,478 |
| Median age | 36.0 | 34.7 |
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 26% | 55% |
| Money and housing | ||
| Median household income | $97,884 | $97,710 |
| Median home value | $547,900 | $566,900 |
| Home value to income | 5.6× | 5.8× |
| Median rent (with utilities) | $1,786 | $2,007 |
| Metro price level (US = 100) | 111.1 | 112.6 |
| Housing price level (US = 100) | 151.3 | 148.6 |
| $75,000 elsewhere equals | $83,300 | $84,400 |
| Homeowners | 61% | 28% |
| Top state income tax | None | 10.75% |
| Combined sales tax | 9.57% | 6.6% |
| Work and commute | ||
| Average commute (minutes) | 30.5 | 36.8 |
| Work from home | 14% | 25% |
| Take public transit | 3% | 36% |
| Unemployment (2020-24 avg) | 6% | 5.5% |
| Poverty rate | 8.9% | 15.6% |
| Weather | ||
| January high / low | 48° / 38° | 40° / 26° |
| July high / low | 77° / 57° | 87° / 69° |
| Precipitation per year | 39 in | 47 in |
| Snowfall per year | 6 in | 32 in |
| Days 90°F or hotter | 4 | 28 |
| Nights below freezing | 25 | 80 |
| Comfortable months | 5 | 6 |
| Risks, air and home prices | ||
| Natural hazard risk (FEMA, county) | Very High | Relatively High |
| FEMA risk score (lower is safer) | 99.7 | 97.2 |
| Good air days, 2025 | 56% | 42% |
| Home prices, past year | +0.3% | +5.7% |
| Home prices, past 5 years | +24.6% | +45.1% |
Highlighted cells are the better value where "better" is clear (lower prices, higher income, shorter commutes). Sources: Census Bureau 2025 estimates and ACS 2020-2024, BEA 2024, NOAA 1991-2020, Tax Foundation 2026.
Weather, month by month
Most comfortable months: Auburn: May to September. Jersey City: April to June and August to October.
Full monthly tables: Auburn weather by month and Jersey City weather by month.
What $75,000 is worth
A $75,000 salary in an average-priced US city buys about the same as $83,300 in Auburn and $84,400 in Jersey City. Moving from Auburn to Jersey City, you would need about $76,000 to match a $75,000 salary.
Moving between Auburn and Jersey City
IRS county-to-county migration, 2022 to 2023 tax years, for the counties that contain each city. See where else people move from Auburn and Jersey City.
Which would you pick?
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