Albany, New York
Cost of living, housing, income, commute, climate, and safety — compiled for relocators researching Albany.
Key figures
Each metric shows how Albany compares with the U.S. baseline (ACS/BLS nationals where available; catalog-city averages for crime, climate, and commute). Income, housing, population, and crime are for the incorporated city (city limits), not the broader metro/MSA — unemployment is county-level (BLS LAUS).
- Population
- 99,224City limits · not metro/MSA
- Median household income
- $47,000Incorporated place (ACS)40% below U.S. avgU.S. $78,538
- Housing cost index
- 102ACS home+rent vs U.S. (100 = avg)Near U.S. avg (100)U.S. 100
- Median home value
- $230,000City limits (ACS)24% below U.S. avgU.S. $303,400
- Median rent
- $1,250City limits (ACS)7% below U.S. avgU.S. $1,348
- Unemployment
- 4.0%County LAUS · not city-onlyNear U.S. avg (4.2 pts)U.S. 4.2 pts
- Avg commute
- 20 min20% below U.S. avgU.S. 25 min
- Walk Score
- 6647% above U.S. avgU.S. 45
- Violent crime rate
- 58launch estimate, not FBI-verified yet
- Property crime rate
- 48launch estimate, not FBI-verified yet
- Summer high
- 82°F5.0°F below U.S. avgU.S. 87°F
- Winter low
- 16°F18.0°F below U.S. avgU.S. 34°F
- Annual rainfall
- 39 in19% above U.S. avgU.S. 32.9 in
- Sunny days
- 18829% below U.S. avgU.S. 266
Compare Albany with another city
Snow-belt Upstate and transit-heavy downstate markets feel like different worlds. Winter lows around 16°F mean heating costs and snow logistics belong on the checklist. Average one-way commute time is about 20 minutes, and Walk Score estimates land around 66/100. Labor-market readings near 4.0% unemployment are neither boom nor bust by national standards. Safety figures are still on the curated-seed baseline for this city; check back once FBI Crime Data Explorer enrichment has run for an actual per-100k rate.
Albany, New York counts about 99,224 residents inside the city limits. With median income around $47,000 and a cost index of 102, the market reads close to the national housing-cost baseline. A typical home near $230,000 and rents around $1,250 frame most shortlists.
Albany is compact enough that a single wrong neighborhood choice is easy to feel day to day — visit at commute hour before signing. Figures on this page are merged from Census ACS, BLS LAUS, FBI Crime Data Explorer, and NOAA Climate Normals — use them to compare Albany with nearby alternatives before you relocate.
Nearby & similar cities
Continue researching with these internal links — each page is a full data profile.
Sources
- Census / ACS: U.S. Census Bureau / American Community Survey (curated seed)
- BLS: Bureau of Labor Statistics (curated seed)
- Crime: FBI Crime Data Explorer (curated seed)
- Climate: NOAA Climate Normals (curated seed)
Last updated 2026-07-28