With a population of more than 2.5 million, the Newark metropolitan division covers much of northern New Jersey, including Essex, Union, Morris, Sussex, Somerset, and Hunterdon counties, as well as Pike County in Pennsylvania. Employment growth in the region has been slower than that of the nation through the expansion, and significantly slower than in New York City. Some of the major industries include insurance, air transportation, communications, pharmaceuticals, and health care. On average, the area’s population is significantly more affluent and well-educated than the nation’s, and slightly more so than New Jersey’s as a whole. Still, there are large pockets of poverty in many of this area’s cities, such as Newark, Elizabeth, East Orange, and Plainfield, and these cities had many foreclosures during and after the Great Recession.
| Newark | Bergen-Hudson-Passaic* | Middlesex-Monmouth* | New Jersey | USA | |
| Population1 | 2,505,000 | 2,116,000 | 1,451,000 | 8,909,000 | 327,167,000 |
| Pop growth, 10-year change1 | 2.2% | 5.3% | 1.7% | 2.3% | 7.6% |
| GDP, billions2 | $168 | $141 | $99 | $599 | $19,485 |
| Job growth, 5-year change1 | 4.6% | 5.6% | 10.2% | 5.9% | 9.3% |
| Median household income2 | $84,000 | $76,000 | $90,000 | $79,000 | $60,000 |
| Median home price2 | $380,000 | $400,000 | $350,000 | $320,000 | $200,000 |
| Pop share age 25+ with BA+2 | 41.8% | 42.1% | 45.0% | 39.7% | 32.0% |
