You’ve probably heard it a million times. New York City is the "second Jerusalem." Honestly, it’s a cliché because it’s true. But if you’re trying to pin down exactly how many Jewish people live in NYC right now, in 2026, the answer is a moving target.
It’s about 960,000.
That’s the core number for the five boroughs, according to the landmark UJA-Federation of New York studies that have been the gold standard for tracking these shifts. If you zoom out to the whole "eight-county" area—including Westchester and Long Island—you’re looking at a massive 1.37 million people. That is a lot of Matzah.
Why the Numbers Feel Weird
Population counting is messy. People move. They get married. They stop identifying with a specific branch of Judaism. In the last few years, we’ve seen some wild swings. During the 2020 pandemic, everyone said NYC was "over." They were wrong. While there was a slight dip, recent data from the NYC Department of Planning shows the city actually grew by nearly 90,000 people recently. The Jewish community didn't just stay; in some neighborhoods, it basically exploded.
How Many Jewish People Live in NYC by Borough?
If you want to find the heart of the community, look at Brooklyn. It’s not even a contest.
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Brooklyn is home to roughly 462,000 Jewish residents. To put that in perspective, that’s more than the entire population of many mid-sized American cities. If Brooklyn were its own city, it would still have more Jews than Tel Aviv. You’ve got the massive Hasidic hubs in Borough Park and Williamsburg, where the birth rates are famously high. We're talking an average of 6 to 8 children per family in some of these enclaves.
The Manhattan Surge
Manhattan is the surprise. While Brooklyn is about tradition and large families, Manhattan has seen a roughly 27% increase in Jewish households over the last decade. There are now about 277,000 Jewish people living between the Battery and Inwood.
Why? It’s the "Moderately Engaged" crowd. These are young professionals, often living alone or in couples, who might not go to shul every Saturday but feel a deep cultural connection. The Upper West Side remains the classic hub, but you see growth in places like Chelsea and the Lower East Side again.
Queens, The Bronx, and Staten Island
- Queens: About 150,000 people. It’s incredibly diverse. You’ve got the Bukharian community in Forest Hills and Rego Park—basically the largest Bukharian population outside of Israel and Uzbekistan.
- Staten Island: Roughly 38,000. It’s a smaller, tight-knit community, often concentrated around the North Shore.
- The Bronx: Around 33,000. While the numbers here are the lowest in the city, the Riverdale neighborhood remains a powerhouse of Modern Orthodoxy.
The Great Denominational Shift
Here is what most people get wrong: they think "Jewish NYC" is just one big group. It’s actually a collection of very different worlds that sometimes barely touch.
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The biggest trend is the rise of the Orthodox. While they make up about 20% of households, they account for a much higher percentage of children. According to research from Yale’s Edieal Pinker, the Orthodox population is expected to nearly double in its share of the total US Jewish population over the next few decades. In NYC, this is already happening.
Meanwhile, the "Just Jewish" or non-denominational group is the largest growing segment in Manhattan and parts of Brooklyn like Park Slope. These folks might celebrate Hanukkah and hit up a Seder, but they aren't checking the Reform or Conservative boxes on a survey.
Poverty in the Midst of Plenty
We often associate NYC’s Jewish community with wealth—think Upper East Side penthouses. But the reality is grittier. Nearly 1 in 5 Jewish households in the city is considered "poor or near-poor."
This is especially true in the Haredi communities in Brooklyn and the Bronx. Large families and a focus on religious study over secular career paths mean that many families rely on government benefits. It’s a complex social issue that the UJA-Federation spends millions trying to address.
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Politics and the "Jewish Vote"
The 2025 mayoral race really showed the divide. You had Hasidic neighborhoods in Borough Park going nearly 90% for established candidates like Andrew Cuomo, while progressive Jewish voters in Prospect Heights and Morningside Heights swung heavily for more radical voices. There isn't a "Jewish Vote" anymore; there are several.
Actionable Insights for 2026
If you’re looking to engage with this community or just want to understand the city better, keep these points in mind:
- Geography is destiny: If you’re looking for the largest concentration of residents, start in Brooklyn Community District 12 (Borough Park).
- The "Under 30" Crowd is different: Younger Jewish New Yorkers are the most likely to want more Jewish friends but the least likely to belong to a formal synagogue.
- Language matters: In parts of Brooklyn, Yiddish isn't just a heritage language; it's the primary language of the home for over 50% of residents.
- Check the sources: For the most up-to-date micro-data, always look for the UJA-Federation’s "Jewish Community Study." They update the deep dives every decade with follow-ups every few years.
New York City’s Jewish population isn't just a statistic; it's the engine behind a huge chunk of the city's culture, food, and politics. Whether it’s 960,000 or 1.1 million, the impact is impossible to miss.
To get a deeper look at specific neighborhood demographics, you can visit the interactive data portals provided by the Berman Jewish DataBank or the UJA-Federation’s own study site. They allow you to filter by ZIP code, which is incredibly helpful if you're doing local research or business planning.