Ocean County, NJ

County

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2024 Population

654,362

US Senator

Cory Booker

Democratic Party

US Senator

Andy Kim

Democratic Party

2024 Median Age

41.2

0.483% 1-year decrease

2024 Poverty Rate

10.5%

0.822% 1-year increase

2024 Median Household Income

$89,863

3.99% 1-year growth

2024 Median Property Value

$398,400

8.67% 1-year growth

2024 Employed Population

283,847

1.65% 1-year growth

About

None of the households in Ocean County, NJ reported speaking a non-English language at home as their primary shared language. This does not consider the potential multi-lingual nature of households, but only the primary self-reported language spoken by all members of the household.

97% of the residents in Ocean County, NJ are U.S. citizens.

The largest universities in Ocean County, NJ are Beth Medrash Govoha (1,552 degrees awarded in 2023), Ocean County College (1,384 degrees), and Georgian Court University (526 degrees).

In 2024, the median property value in Ocean County, NJ was $398,400, and the homeownership rate was 80.7%.

Most people in Ocean County, NJ drove alone to work, and the average commute time was 30 minutes. The average car ownership in Ocean County, NJ was 2 cars per household.

Ocean County, NJ borders Atlantic County, NJ, Burlington County, NJ, and Monmouth County, NJ.

United States New Jersey New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA

Population & Diversity

Ocean County, NJ is home to a population of 654k people, from which 97% are citizens. As of 2024, 7.98% of Ocean County, NJ residents were born outside of the country (52.2k people).

In 2024, there were 19.1 times more White (Non-Hispanic) residents (531k people) in Ocean County, NJ than any other race or ethnicity. There were 27.8k Two Races Including Other (Hispanic) and 22.6k Other (Hispanic) residents, the second and third most common ethnic groups.

Population & Diversity

Citizenship

97%

2024 Citizenship

97.1%

2023 Citizenship

As of 2024, 97% of Ocean County, NJ residents were US citizens, which is higher than the national average of 93.2%. In 2023, the percentage of US citizens in Ocean County, NJ was 97.1%, meaning that the rate of citizenship has been decreasing.

The following chart shows US citizenship percentages in Ocean County, NJ compared to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

Diversity

Race and Ethnicity

The 3 largest ethnic groups in Ocean County, NJ

White (Non-Hispanic)
531k ± 1.84k
Two Races Including Other (Hispanic)
27.8k ± 2.19k
Other (Hispanic)
22.6k ± 2.36k

10.9%

Hispanic Population

71.4k people

10.9% of the people in Ocean County, NJ are hispanic (71.4k people).

The following chart shows the 8 races represented in Ocean County, NJ as a share of the total population.

Global Diversity

The PUMS dataset is not available at the County level, so we are showing data for New Jersey.

Most Common Origin

India
273,706 ± 12,653 people
Dominican Republic
205,965 ± 11,018 people
Mexico
107,667 ± 8,009 people

In 2023, the most common birthplace for the foreign-born residents of New Jersey was India, the natal country of 273,706 New Jersey residents, followed by Dominican Republic with 205,965 and Mexico with 107,667.

Foreign-Born Population

7.98%

2024 Foreign-Born Population

52.2k people

7.89%

2023 Foreign-Born Population

51k people

As of 2024, 7.98% of Ocean County, NJ residents (52.2k people) were born outside of the United States, which is approximately the same as the national average of 14%. In 2023, the percentage of foreign-born citizens in Ocean County, NJ was 7.89%, meaning that the rate has been increasing.

The following chart shows the percentage of foreign-born residents in Ocean County, NJ compared to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

Military

Veterans

Most Common Service Period

Vietnam
12,363 ± 726
Gulf War (2001-)
5,489 ± 696
Korea
2,562 ± 407

Ocean County, NJ has a large population of military personnel who served in Vietnam, 2.25 times greater than any other conflict.

The chart shows the distribution of veterans by conflict in Ocean County, NJ.

Economy

The economy of Ocean County, NJ employs 284k people. In 2024, the largest industries in Ocean County, NJ were Health Care & Social Assistance (45,211 people), Educational Services (35,900 people), and Retail Trade (35,474 people), and the highest paying industries were Utilities ($100,534), Management of Companies & Enterprises ($91,091), and Public Administration ($88,412).

Employment

Occupations

284k

2024 Value

± 4,520

1.65%

1 Year growth

± 2.22%

From 2023 to 2024, employment in Ocean County, NJ grew at a rate of 1.65%, from 279k employees to 284k employees.

The most common job groups, by number of people living in Ocean County, NJ, are Office & Administrative Support Occupations (36,501 people), Sales & Related Occupations (31,987 people), and Management Occupations (31,834 people). This chart illustrates the share breakdown of the primary jobs held by residents of Ocean County, NJ.

Unemployment Insurance Claims

Data is only available at the state level. Showing data for New Jersey.

This chart shows weekly unemployment insurance claims in New Jersey (not-seasonally adjusted) compared with the four states with the most similar impact.

The most recent data point uses Advance State Claims data, which can be revised in subsequent weeks.

Industries

Employment by Industries

284k

2024 Value

± 4,520

1.65%

1 Year growth

± 2.22%

From 2023 to 2024, employment in Ocean County, NJ grew at a rate of 1.65%, from 279k employees to 284k employees.

The most common employment sectors for those who live in Ocean County, NJ, are Health Care & Social Assistance (45,211 people), Educational Services (35,900 people), and Retail Trade (35,474 people). This chart shows the share breakdown of the primary industries for residents of Ocean County, NJ, though some of these residents may live in Ocean County, NJ and work somewhere else. Census data is tagged to a residential address, not a work address.

Median Earnings by Industry

$66,817

Median earning men ± $1,518

$44,826

Median earning women ± $1,154

The industries with the best median earnings for men in 2024 are Information ($104,947), Finance & Insurance, & Real Estate & Rental & Leasing ($101,550), and Public Administration ($97,472).

The industries with the best median earnings for women in 2024 are Public Administration ($70,309), Information ($66,411), and Finance & Insurance, & Real Estate & Rental & Leasing ($59,136).

Employment by Industry Sector

Data is only available at the state level. Showing data for New Jersey.

Y-Axis

2.27%

Year-over-year growth

Employment change between February 2022 and February 2023

As of February 2023, there are 4.24M people employed in New Jersey. This represents a 2.27% increase in employment when compared to February 2022.

Right after the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, during April 2020, a general dip can be seen across industry sectors, resulting in an overall decline in employment by 16.5%.

The following chart shows monthly employment numbers for each industry sector in New Jersey.

Establishments by Size

The industries with the most establishments

1,411
Construction
975
Retail Trade
973
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services

The visualization shows the distribution of establishments by industry and by size according to the number of employees.

The visualization shows the number of establishments and its share across establishment sizes.

Payroll by Industry Sector

The industries with the highest total annual payroll

$2.22M
Health Care and Social Assistance
$1.13M
Retail Trade
$637k
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services

The chart shows the total annual payroll and the average annual payroll by industry.

Education

In 2023, universities in Ocean County, NJ awarded 4,588 degrees. The student population of Ocean County, NJ in 2023 is skewed towards men, with 14,341 male students and 6,507 female students.

Most students graduating from Universities in Ocean County, NJ are White (3,679 and 81.2%), Hispanic or Latino (376 and 8.29%), Black or African American (175 and 3.86%), and Unknown (173 and 3.82%).

The largest universities in Ocean County, NJ by number of degrees awarded are Beth Medrash Govoha (1,552 and 33.8%), Ocean County College (1,384 and 30.2%), and Georgian Court University (526 and 11.5%).

The most popular majors in Ocean County, NJ are Talmudic Studies (1,812 and 39.5%), Liberal Arts & Sciences (402 and 8.76%), and General Studies (387 and 8.44%).

The median tuition cost for private four year colleges is $11,405.

Admissions & Enrollments

Applicants, Admissions & Enrolled

University

Measure

In 2023 in Ocean County, NJ, the percentage of applicants admitted was 67%, while the percentage of admitted who enrolled was 31.8%. The number of students enrolled in 2023 was 20,848 (68.8% men and 31.2% women).

The line chart shows the evolution of the percentage of applicants admitted, admitted who enrolled or the number of students enrolled according to the option selected in the upper button.

Enrollments by Gender and Races

Universities

In 2023 there were 20,848 students enrolled in Ocean County, NJ, 68.8% men and 31.2% women.

By race, the largest number of students enrolled was concentrated in White with 16,870 records, of which 24.7% were women and 75.3% men.

Completions

Concentrations

Most Common

Liberal Arts & Sciences
402 degrees awarded
General Studies
387 degrees awarded
General Business Administration & Management
198 degrees awarded

In 2023, the most common concentation for Associates Degree recipients in Ocean County, NJ was Liberal Arts & Sciences with 402 degrees awarded.

This visualization illustrates the percentage of students graduating with a Associates Degree from schools in Ocean County, NJ according to their major.

Universities

Gender

Race

Largest Universities by degrees awarded

Beth Medrash Govoha
1,552 degrees awarded
Ocean County College
1,384 degrees awarded
Georgian Court University
526 degrees awarded

In 2023, the institution with the largest number of graduating students was Beth Medrash Govoha with 1,552 degrees awarded.

Student Diversity

University

In 2023, 2,615 men were awarded degrees from institutions in Ocean County, NJ, which is 1.33 times more than the 1,973 female students who received degrees in the same year.

In 2023, the most common race/ethnicity group awarded degrees at institutions was White students. These 3,679 degrees mean that there were 9.78 times more degrees awarded to White students then the next closest race/ethnicity group, Hispanic or Latino, with 376 degrees awarded.

Awarded Degrees over Time

The graph shows the evolution of awarded degrees by degrees. Under the paragraphs, the average number of awarded degrees by university in each degree is shown.

Tuition

Average Net Price by Sector

Universities

Private not-for-profit, 2-year ($12,000) is the sector with the highest median state tuition in 2023.

Private not-for-profit, 2-year ($600) is the sector with the highest median state fee in 2023.

Public, 2-year ($438) is the sector with the highest average net price of books and supplies.

The graph shows the average net price by sector and year.

Housing & Living

The median property value in Ocean County, NJ was $398,400 in 2024, which is 1.2 times larger than the national average of $332,700. Between 2023 and 2024 the median property value increased from $366,600 to $398,400, a 8.67% increase. The homeownership rate in Ocean County, NJ is 80.7%, which is higher than the national average of 65.2%.

People in Ocean County, NJ have an average commute time of 30 minutes, and they drove alone to work. Car ownership in Ocean County, NJ is approximately the same as the national average, with an average of 2 cars per household.

In 2025, 18% of the population was living with severe housing problems in Ocean County, NJ. From 2014 to 2025, the indicator declined 2.56%.

Housing

Property

$398,400

Median Property Value 2024

±$3,284

$196,874

Median Property Taxes

±$3,175

The following chart display owner-occupied housing units distributed between a series of property tax buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. In Ocean County, NJ the largest share of households pay taxes in the $3k+ range.

The chart underneath the paragraph shows the property taxes in Ocean County, NJ compared to it's parent and neighbor geographies.

Rent vs Own

80.7%

Homeownership

2024

59.7%

Homeowners with Mortgage

2024

In 2024, 80.7% of the housing units in Ocean County, NJ were occupied by their owner. This percentage grew from the previous year's rate of 80.2%.

This chart shows the percentage of owner in Ocean County, NJ compared it's parent and neighboring geographies.

Equity

Household Income

Please note that the buckets used in this visualization were not evenly distributed by ACS when publishing the data.

$89,863

Median Household Income

± $1,555

244k

Number of Households

± 4,243

In 2024, the median household income of the 244k households in Ocean County, NJ grew to $89,863 from the previous year's value of $86,411.

The following chart displays the households in Ocean County, NJ distributed between a series of income buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. The largest share of households have an income in the $200k+ range.

Wage Distribution

The closest comparable wage GINI for Ocean County, NJ is from New Jersey.

0.486

2023 Wage GINI in New Jersey

0.489

2022 Wage GINI in New Jersey

In 2023, the income inequality in New Jersey was 0.486 according to the GINI calculation of the wage distribution. Income inequality had a 0.709% decline from 2022 to 2023, which means that wage distribution grew somewhat more even. The GINI for New Jersey was higher than than the national average of 0.476. In other words, wages are distributed less evenly in New Jersey in comparison to the national average.

This chart shows the number of workers in New Jersey across various wage buckets compared to the national average.

Transportation

Commuter Transportation

Most Common Commute in 2024

Drove Alone (75.4%)
Worked At Home (12.5%)
Carpooled (8.31%)

In 2024, 75.4% of workers in Ocean County, NJ drove alone to work, followed by those who worked at home (12.5%) and those who carpooled to work (8.31%).

The following chart shows the number of households using each mode of transportation over time, using a logarithmic scale on the y-axis to help better show variations in the smaller means of commuting.

Commute Time

30 minutes

Average Travel Time

Using averages, employees in Ocean County, NJ have a longer commute time (30 minutes) than the normal US worker (26.4 minutes). Additionally, 4.72% of the workforce in Ocean County, NJ have "super commutes" in excess of 90 minutes.

The chart below shows how the median household income in Ocean County, NJ compares to that of it's neighboring and parent geographies.

Car Ownership

2 cars

Average Number

The following chart displays the households in Ocean County, NJ distributed between a series of car ownership buckets compared to the national averages for each bucket. The largest share of households in Ocean County, NJ have 2 cars.

Poverty

Severe Housing Problems

In 2025, 18% of the population was living with severe housing problems in Ocean County, NJ. From 2014 to 2025, the indicator declined 2.56%.

The graph shows the trend of the percentage of the population living with severe housing problems.

Poverty & Diversity

10.5% of the population for whom poverty status is determined in Ocean County, NJ (68k out of 647k people) live below the poverty line, a number that is lower than the national average of 12.5%. The largest demographic living in poverty are Females 75+, followed by Females < 5 and then Males 6 - 11.

The most common racial or ethnic group living below the poverty line in Ocean County, NJ is White, followed by Hispanic and Two Or More.

The Census Bureau uses a set of money income thresholds that vary by family size and composition to determine who classifies as impoverished. If a family's total income is less than the family's threshold than that family and every individual in it is considered to be living in poverty.

Children in Poverty

In 2025, 14.7% of the children was living in poverty in Ocean County, NJ. From 2014 to 2025, the indicator declined 3.9%.

The graph shows the trend of the percentage of the children living in poverty.

Social Needs

Data only available at the state level.

Most prevalent states

California
35,798 individuals
New York
5,087 individuals
Florida
4,915 individuals

In 2017, California had the highest estimated number of chronically homeless individuals in the nation, at 35,798. New York has the second highest (5,087), followed by Florida (4,915).

The following map shows the estimated number of chronically homeless individuals by state over multiple years.

Security

Crimes & Accidents

Indicator

In 2022, the number of reported violent crimes offenses per 100,000 population was 99.3 in Ocean County, NJ. From 2014 to 2022, the indicator declined 20.9 per 100,000 population.

The graph shows the trend in the number of reported violent crimes offenses per 100,000 population.

Health

95.9% of the population of Ocean County, NJ has health coverage, with 44% on employee plans, 20.3% on Medicaid, 17.8% on Medicare, 13.1% on non-group plans, and 0.67% on military or VA plans.

Primary care physicians in Ocean County, NJ see 2,606 patients per year on average, which represents a 0% change from the previous year (2,606 patients). Compare this to dentists who see 1681 patients per year, and mental health providers who see 470 patients per year.

By gender, of the total number of insured persons, 48.7% were men and 51.3% were women.

Coverage

Patient to Clinician Ratios

2,606 to 1

Patient to Primary Care Physician Ratio in Ocean County, NJ

Primary care physicians in Ocean County, NJ see an average of 2,606 patients per year. This represents a 0% change from the previous year (2,606 patients).

The following chart shows how the number of patients seen by primary care physicians has been changing over time in Ocean County, NJ in comparison to its neighboring geographies.

Health Care Diversity

In 2024, insured persons according to age ranges were distributed in 26.2% under 18 years, 17.4% between 18 and 34 years, 34.1% between 35 and 64 years, and 22.3% over 64 years.

By gender, of the total number of insured persons, 48.7% were men and 51.3% were women.

The following chart shows the number of people with health coverage by gender.

Uninsured People

4.1%

Uninsured

44%

Employer Coverage

20.3%

Medicaid

17.8%

Medicare

13.1%

Non-Group

0.67%

Military or VA

Between 2023 and 2024, the percent of uninsured citizens in Ocean County, NJ declined by 2.21% from 4.19% to 4.1%.

The following chart shows how the percent of uninsured individuals in Ocean County, NJ changed over time compared with the percent of individuals enrolled in various types of health insurance.

Health Indicators

Health Outcomes

Indicator

In 2025, the number of deaths among residents under age 18 per 100,000 population was 30.1 in Ocean County, NJ.

The graphic shows the trend of the indicator in Ocean County, NJ.

Health Behaviors

Indicator

In 2025, the percentage of the adult population (age 18 and older) that reports a body mass index (BMI) greater than or equal to 30 kg/m2 (age-adjusted) was 33.2% in Ocean County, NJ.

The graphic shows the trend of the indicator in Ocean County, NJ.