CitytisticsShortlist

Cost of living, pay and housing

42.01° N · 74.01° W · GEOID 3664056

Ruby

Ulster County, New York · part of the Kingston, NY metro

Limited data population under 5,000

New YorkRuby, NYRubyRuby

The short answer

Ruby is home to 1,098 people. Median household income is $104,831 a year and median rent is $1,352 a month, 15.5% of income (a ratio of two medians, not any one household's burden). Rent pressure is lighter than in most places. The median home is valued at $347,100, about 3.3x annual median household income.

Median gross rent
$1,352
1% below the median place
Median household income
$104,831
31% above the median place
Median home value
$347,100
9% above the median place
Unemployment
5.4%
11% above the median place

Compared with the median of the 6,645 places we track. The bundle was checked 2026-11-14; each measure may refer to an older release.

What stands out about Ruby

  • Between the 2020 and 2024 surveys, household income rose 13.7% a year while rent rose -1.5%, so pay gained on rent more than in 99% of the 2,476 places under 10,000 people we track. It is the lowest of 340 New York places.
  • The median rent takes only 15.5% of the median household's income, a smaller share than in 80% of places its size.

Rent is light relative to pay, but the county has a FEMA natural hazard risk score of 88 out of 100. Budget for insurance before counting the savings.

01

Moving to Ruby

Ulster County gains about 2.0 residents per 1,000 a year to moves between counties.

Moved in7,283
Moved out7,004
Net+279

Where people come from and where they go, top counties

Orange County, NY1,154909+245
Kings County, NY824380+444
New York County, NY412239+173
Greene County, NY190310−120
Queens County, NY258

Within New York, other states or abroad

Arrivals
Leavers
Within New YorkOther statesAbroad

Income per tax return

Arrivals$113K
Leavers$80K

People on tax returns who moved between counties, from IRS migration data, 2022 to 2023. Figures are for all of Ulster County; flows under 20 returns are not published.

Who moves here
5.8% of residents arrived from another county in the past year, 0.0% from another state. County figure.
Who arrives and who leaves
Households moving into Ulster County report $113,300 a year in income on average; those leaving, $79,600, so newcomers earn more than leavers.
Income you would need
$54,100 a year to rent the median home at the 30% line. From your city
Rent or buy
Median rent is $1,352 a month; owners with a mortgage pay $2,185 a month including taxes and insurance, on a median home of $347,100.
Getting to work
16 minutes each way on average; 17.6% work from home.
If it is close but not quite
Briar, TX matches it on character. Compare the two
Moved from another state1
0.0%
below the median place (median 2.0%)
Income of households moving in7
$113,328
61% above the median place
Income of households moving out7
$79,598
13% above the median place
All 5 moving measures
MeasureRubyAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Moved here in the past year1County figure5.8%1% above
Moved from another state10.0%below (median 2.0%)
Net movers per 1,000 people7County figure2.0above (median -0.6)
Income of households moving in7County figure$113,32861% above
Income of households moving out7County figure$79,59813% above
02

What it costs to live here

Rent to income is 15.5%, 24% below the median place.

Ruby15.5%
Typical place20.4%

Share of the median household income that goes to the median rent. Above 30% is the usual stress line.

Income needed to rent
$54,080
a year, at the 30% line
Rent to income
15.5%
24% below the median place
Home price to income
3.3x
13% below the median place

Could you afford it?

The median rent would take
15%
comfortably under the 30% line
Left after rent, in US prices
$89,900
a year
Vs the typical household here
Same
as the median household

Uses the median rent in Ruby, $1,352 a month, and local prices for everything else (98.8 against a US average of 100). It runs in your browser and stores nothing.

Moving from somewhere else? Work out the salary you would need in Ruby.

Sponsored · exampleMoving to Ruby? Compare quotes from licensed movers. No partner is signed yet. Sponsored offers are always labelled and never change the data.
Property tax rate1
1.7%
91% above the median place
Property tax paid (median)1
$6,047
85% above the median place
Owner costs with a mortgage1
$2,185
17% above the median place
All 16 cost and housing measures
MeasureRubyAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Median gross rent1$1,3521% below
Rent to income115.5%24% below
Property tax rate11.7%91% above
Home price to income13.3x13% below
Prices vs US average2Metro figure100.70% below
Fair market rent, 2 bedrooms3County figure$1,87816% above
HUD area median income4County figure$117,3009% above
Property tax paid (median)1$6,04785% above
Median home value1$347,1009% above
Home prices, 1-year change5County figure3.3%2% above
Home prices, 5-year change5County figure66.4%29% above
Homeownership172.0%8% above
Renters paying 30%+1County figure57.2%13% above
Owner costs with a mortgage1$2,18517% above
Vacant homes1County figure14.1%100% above
Median year built119740% below
03

Work and pay

Commutes by transit is 0.0%, below the median place (median 0.8%).

Commutes by transit1
0.0%
below the median place (median 0.8%)
Mean commute1
16 min
36% below the median place
Median household income1
$104,831
31% above the median place
All 10 work and pay measures
MeasureRubyAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Median household income1$104,83131% above
Income per person1$47,64019% above
Unemployment1County figure5.4%11% above
Average annual pay6County figure$63,4214% below
Pay growth, 1 year6County figure3.7%0% above
Jobs6County figure60,55460% below
Poverty rate1County figure14.6%36% above
Mean commute116 min36% below
Works from home1County figure17.6%41% above
Commutes by transit10.0%below (median 0.8%)
04

Who lives here

No health insurance is 0.0%, below the median place (median 6.4%).

No health insurance1
0.0%
below the median place (median 6.4%)
Homes with broadband1
75.1%
19% below the median place
High school or higher1
96.4%
4% above the median place

More about who lives here, against the typical place

Bachelor's or higher20.8% −35%
Household size2.8 +11%
Median age38.2 −2%
All 8 people measures
MeasureRubyAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Population11,0986646th largest
Median age138.22% below
Bachelor's or higher120.8%35% below
High school or higher196.4%4% above
Household size12.811% above
Born abroad1County figure8.1%8% below
No health insurance10.0%below (median 6.4%)
Homes with broadband175.1%19% below
05

Life in Ruby

207 sites are on the National Register of Historic Places, 8 of them National Historic Landmarks.

Out the door, against the typical place

Parks per 10k residents0.0 −100%
Playgrounds per 10k0.0 −100%
Grocery stores per 10k0.0 −100%
Restaurants, cafes and bars per 10k9.1 −18%
Libraries per 10k0.0 −100%
Named paths and bike trails0 km −100%
Bus and rail stops per sq mi0.0 −100%

Mapped by volunteers in OpenStreetMap inside the city limits (Census boundaries), so coverage is fuller in some places than others. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.

Businesses per 10,000 residents (county figures)

Restaurants and bars30.3 +46%
Shops36.9 +22%
Arts, recreation and fitness10.4 2.5×
Doctors' offices and clinics17.2 −15%
Child care centers3.1 +35%

Counts businesses with paid staff, so small owner-run shops are not included.

Students per teacher11
10.3
33% below the median place
Restaurants and bars per 10k8
30.3
46% above the median place
Arts, recreation and fitness per 10k8
10.4
154% above the median place
All 16 schools and local life measures
MeasureRubyAmong 6,645 placesVs median
Public schools11County figure42367% above
Public school students11County figure20,075310% above
Students per teacher11County figure10.333% below
Restaurants and bars per 10k8County figure30.346% above
Shops per 10k8County figure36.922% above
Arts, recreation and fitness per 10k8County figure10.4154% above
Doctors' offices and clinics per 10k8County figure17.215% below
Child care centers per 10k8County figure3.135% above
Parks per 10k90.0below (median 10.2)
Playgrounds per 10k90.0below (median 9.4)
Grocery stores per 10k90.0below (median 2.1)
Restaurants, cafes and bars per 10k99.118% below
Libraries per 10k90.0below (median 0.9)
Named paths and bike trails90.0below (median 2.0)
Transit stops per sq mi90.0below (median 0.2)
National Register listings10County figure207above (median 13)
06

Safety, weather and risk

July average high is 81°F, 6% below the median place.

No crime figure yet. Either the city police department did not report to the FBI for the latest year, or our monthly fetch has not reached Ruby. Larger places are fetched first.

July average high12
81°F
6% below the median place
January average low12
16°F
38% below the median place
Average temperature12
48°F
13% below the median place
All 9 weather and risk measures
MeasureRubyAmong 6,645 placesVs median
July average high12County figure81°F6% below
January average low12County figure16°F38% below
Average temperature12County figure48°F13% below
Annual precipitation12County figure50.8 in16% above
Natural hazard risk13County figure87.75% below
Hurricane risk13County figure86.923% above
Tornado risk13County figure87.68% above
Wildfire risk13County figure52.914% below
Heat wave risk13County figure66.326% below
08

Ruby in 2030: where the trends point

If recent trends hold, the median rent will take about 15% of the median income in 2030, down from 15% now.

Citytistics projections to 2030: each figure's own trend, blended with the typical trend across the places we rate, eased toward long-run US growth and carried forward from the latest release. The range is where 80% of places landed when we tested the same method on past releases.

MeasureLatest2030 projectionLikely rangeAvg. per year
Median rent$1,352/mo (2024)$1,660/mo$1,360 to $2,020/mo+3.5%
Median household income$104,831 (2024)$136,500$115,000 to $161,500+4.5%
Median home value$347,100 (2024)$494,000$359,000 to $680,000+6.1%

The median home would be worth 3.6 years of the median income in 2030, against 3.3 now.

A projection of recent trends, not a prediction of the economy or advice to buy or sell. How we project.

09

Places like Ruby

The closest matches on income, rent, home value, education and age, and the places nearby.

PlaceRentIncome
Briar, TX$1,234$104,238Compare
Cottonwood, CA$1,391$95,577Compare
North Branch, MN$1,308$90,456Compare
North Lakes, AK$1,441$101,679Compare
North Lakes, AKNorth Branch, MNCottonwood, CABriar, TXRuby, NYRubyBriarCottonwoodNorth BranchNorth LakesRubyBriarCottonwoodNorth BranchNorth Lakes

Common questions

Is Ruby a good place to live?

It depends on what you need, so here is what the numbers say. Between the 2020 and 2024 surveys, household income rose 13.7% a year while rent rose -1.5%, so pay gained on rent more than in 99% of the 2,476 places under 10,000 people we track. It is the lowest of 340 New York places. The median rent takes only 15.5% of the median household's income, a smaller share than in 80% of places its size. See how it ranks with your own weights.

Is Ruby expensive to live in?

The median rent takes 15.5% of the median household income, against 20.4% in the typical place we track. Housing is a lighter load here than usual. The median home is valued at $347,100.

What salary do you need to live in Ruby?

To rent the median home without spending more than 30% of income on rent, a household needs about $54,080 a year. Work it out from your current city.

What places are similar to Ruby?

On income, rent, home value, education and age, the closest matches are Briar, TX, Cottonwood, CA, North Branch, MN and North Lakes, AK.

Sources and methods

The small numbers beside each measure point here. Every dataset is public; links go to the publisher.

  1. American Community Survey 5-year estimates · US Census Bureau · 2020 to 2024 estimatesTables B01002, B01003, B05002, B07003, B08013, B08301, B15003, B17001, B19013, B19301, B23025, B25002, B25003, B25010, B25035, B25064, B25070, B25077, B25088, B25103, B28002, S2701
  2. Regional Price Parities · US Bureau of Economic Analysis · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14
  3. Fair Market Rents · US Department of Housing and Urban Development · Fiscal year 2027
  4. Income Limits · US Department of Housing and Urban Development · Fiscal year 2026
  5. House Price Index · Federal Housing Finance Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14
  6. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages · US Bureau of Labor Statistics · 2025 annual averages
  7. SOI Tax Stats, county-to-county migration · Internal Revenue Service · Tax years 2022 to 2023Counts tax returns and the people on them; flows under 20 returns are suppressed.
  8. County Business Patterns · US Census Bureau · 2023 data
  9. OpenStreetMap · © OpenStreetMap contributors, available under the Open Database License (ODbL) · Map data as of 2026-11
  10. National Register of Historic Places · National Park Service · Listings through 2026-05-22
  11. Common Core of Data · National Center for Education Statistics · 2024 release
  12. 1991-2020 climate normals · NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information · Series updated 2026-11-05Averages for 1991 to 2020 computed from NOAA's county climate series (nClimDiv).nClimDiv county series
  13. National Risk Index · Federal Emergency Management Agency · Latest release, retrieved 2026-11-14NRI data and maps

Derived by Citytistics from the tables above: rent to income (B25064, B19013); property tax rate (B25103, B25077); home price to income (B25077, B19013).

What stands out compares Ruby with places of a similar size, using only figures measured for Ruby itself; county and metro figures never count. Survey figures are estimates with margins of error. Formulas and definitions: methodology. API: /api/v1/places/ruby-new-york

Citytistics. “Ruby, New York.” Data as of 2026-11-14. https://www.citytistics.com/city/ruby-new-york/

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.