New Rochelle vs Norwalk
The short version
- Norwalk is cheaper overall: prices in its metro run 5% lower than in the New Rochelle area (BEA 2024).
- The median home costs $558,000 in Norwalk and $702,500 in New Rochelle.
- New Rochelle is growing faster: +7.7% since 2020 vs +3.6%.
- Commutes are shorter in Norwalk (27 vs 33 minutes each way).
Side by side
| New Rochelle, NY | Norwalk, CT | |
|---|---|---|
| People | ||
| Population (2025) | 85,864 | 94,508 |
| Growth since 2020 | +7.7% | +3.6% |
| People per square mile | 8,348 | 4,129 |
| Median age | 42.3 | 40.6 |
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 52% | 45% |
| Money and housing | ||
| Median household income | $109,167 | $107,616 |
| Median home value | $702,500 | $558,000 |
| Home value to income | 6.4× | 5.2× |
| Median rent (with utilities) | $1,917 | $2,073 |
| Metro price level (US = 100) | 112.6 | 106.9 |
| Housing price level (US = 100) | 148.6 | 150.5 |
| $75,000 elsewhere equals | $84,400 | $80,100 |
| Homeowners | 54% | 56% |
| Top state income tax | 10.9% | 6.99% |
| Combined sales tax | 8.54% | 6.35% |
| Work and commute | ||
| Average commute (minutes) | 32.5 | 27.1 |
| Work from home | 18% | 15% |
| Take public transit | 16% | 7% |
| Unemployment (2020-24 avg) | 5.9% | 5.2% |
| Poverty rate | 10.1% | 9.1% |
| Weather | ||
| January high / low | 40° / 29° | 38° / 24° |
| July high / low | 86° / 72° | 83° / 68° |
| Precipitation per year | 45 in | 44 in |
| Snowfall per year | 30 in | 34 in |
| Days 90°F or hotter | 22 | 9 |
| Nights below freezing | 62 | 92 |
| Comfortable months | 5 | 6 |
| Risks, air and home prices | ||
| Natural hazard risk (FEMA, county) | Relatively High | n/a |
| FEMA risk score (lower is safer) | 96.2 | n/a |
| Good air days, 2025 | 42% | 65% |
| Home prices, past year | +5.7% | +5.1% |
| Home prices, past 5 years | +45.1% | +53.3% |
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: New Rochelle: May to June and August to October. Norwalk: May to October.
Full monthly tables: New Rochelle weather by month and Norwalk weather by month.
What $75,000 is worth
A $75,000 salary in an average-priced US city buys about the same as $84,400 in New Rochelle and $80,100 in Norwalk. Moving from New Rochelle to Norwalk, you would need about $71,200 to match a $75,000 salary.
Moving between New Rochelle and Norwalk
IRS county-to-county migration, 2022 to 2023 tax years, for the counties that contain each city. See where else people move from New Rochelle and Norwalk.
Which would you pick?
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