Middlesex-Monmouth

The Middlesex-Monmouth area in New Jersey, located south and southwest of New York City, has a population of roughly 1.5 million, which has grown moderately over the last twenty years. Its major cities include New Brunswick, Perth Amboy, Long Branch, and Asbury Park. This area encompasses a number of higher educational institutions, notably Rutgers and Monmouth universities, as well as a plethora of medical facilities and pharmaceutical companies. It also includes popular points on the Jersey Shore, helping to make leisure and hospitality an important industry sector in the local economy. Employment in Middlesex-Monmouth, which had grown somewhat faster than the rest of the state during the last decade, fell sharply during the pandemic but had fully reversed those losses as of mid-2022—even in its key leisure and hospitality sector, which had seen outsized losses during the pandemic. Income and educational attainment are higher than for the nation, and slightly higher than for New Jersey as a whole.

Economic and Demographic Trends
Middlesex-Monmouth Newark* Bergen-Hudson-Passaic* New Jersey USA
Population1 1,507,000 2,625,000 2,205,000 9,289,000 331,449,000
Pop growth, 10-year change1 4.6% 6.2% 8.0% 5.7% 7.4%
GDP, billions1 $100 $201 $150 $619 $20,894
Job growth, 5-year change2 0.9% -2.3% -3.5% -1.2% 1.2%
Median household income1 $99,000 $90,100 $86,500 $86,700 $67,000
Median home price1 $390,000 $400,000 $450,000 $350,000 $250,000
Pop share age 25+ with BA+1 48.1% 45.3% 46.1% 43.1% 35.1%


1 2020

2 2021

* Neighboring Metros

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics; U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis; IPUMS USA-University of Minnesota. Data retrieved through data.census.gov, Moody's Economy.com, or directly from source.



Reports & Analysis
Regional Employment Trends (September 8, 2023)
LSE Blog: Businesses Want Remote Work, Just Not as Much (August 23, 2023)
Press Briefing: The Region’s Recovery from the Pandemic Recession (April 13, 2023)
LSE Blog: The Tri-State Region’s Recovery from the Pandemic Recession Three Years On (April 13, 2023)
Press Briefing: Employment and Housing Conditions in the Second District (Nov 10, 2022)
A Look at the New York-Northern New Jersey Region’s Pandemic Housing Boom (Nov 10, 2022)
Jaison Abel's Briefing on Economic Conditions in the Region (Nov 5, 2021)
Severe Supply Disruptions Are Impeding Business Activity in the Region (Oct 21, 2021)
Tough Choices: New Jersey Schools during the Great Recession and Beyond (July 2021)
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