Electric Consumer

Editor: Katerine G., Editor & Data Researcher · Research & publishing: Electric Consumer Editorial Team · Data retrieved · Sources named on this page: EIA-861, Census ACS, DOE LEAD, FEMA National Risk Index, OpenFEMA NFIP · How we got these numbers · Report an error

Counties in New Jersey ranked

3.6%of income goes to home energy in Cumberland County, the highest of 21 New Jersey counties

Hudson County is lowest at 1.0%, a gap of 3.5 times. The median New Jersey county sits at 1.8%, against 3.3% for the median U.S. county. Source for New Jersey: DOE LEAD 2022.

New Jersey county map

New Jersey counties, shaded by quintile of the selected measureMorris County: 1.5%Warren County: 2.5%Camden County: 2.1%Gloucester County: 2.4%Hunterdon County: 1.9%Burlington County: 1.8%Bergen County: 1.4%Monmouth County: 1.8%Cumberland County: 3.6%Cape May County: 2.4%Ocean County: 2.5%Atlantic County: 2.9%Passaic County: 1.8%Salem County: 3.3%Union County: 1.4%Essex County: 1.6%Middlesex County: 1.5%Hudson County: 1.0%Mercer County: 1.5%Sussex County: 2.5%Somerset County: 1.3%
  • 1.0% to 1.5%
  • 1.5% to 1.8%
  • 1.8% to 2.4%
  • 2.4% to 2.5%
  • 2.5% to 3.6%

New Jersey counties, darker = higher. Click one for its page.

Highest energy burden in New Jersey

Cumberland County leads New Jersey on burden at 3.6% of income and Salem County follows at 3.3%. For lower-income homes the top is Salem County: 9.2% of income, against 6.9% in the median New Jersey county.

home energy burden, % of income, top 10 New Jersey counties

  • Cumberland County3.6
  • Salem County3.3
  • Atlantic County2.9
  • Warren County2.5
  • Sussex County2.5
  • Ocean County2.5
  • Gloucester County2.4
  • Cape May County2.4
  • Camden County2.1
  • Hunterdon County1.9
  • New Jersey median county1.8
New Jersey counties with the lowest home energy burden
Lowest burden in New JerseyShare of income (NJ)Residents (NJ)
Hudson County1.0%710,478
Somerset County1.3%346,203
Bergen County1.4%954,717
Union County1.4%572,549
Middlesex County1.5%861,535

Storm reports and FEMA risk in New Jersey

NOAA logged 201 damaging-wind, tornado, tropical, ice, winter and heat reports in Warren County from 2015 to 2025, 182 for every 100,000 residents: the most in New Jersey. FEMA scores Bergen County highest at 97.8 (relatively high). In New Jersey these are weather reports and an index, not outage counts.

New Jersey top 5: Storm reports per 100,000 residents
Top 5 in New Jerseyreports 2015-2025 (NJ)Residents (NJ)Rank (NJ)
Warren County182110,2381st
Hunterdon County162129,4482nd
Salem County14664,9733rd
Cape May County14395,2364th
Sussex County143145,1175th
New Jersey top 5: FEMA risk score
Top 5 in New Jerseyscore 0-100 (NJ)Residents (NJ)Rank (NJ)
Bergen County97.8954,7171st
Middlesex County97.8861,5352nd
Essex County97.7854,1303rd
Hudson County97.2710,4784th
Monmouth County96.3643,6155th

Flood claims and flood insurance in New Jersey

Cape May County has the most NFIP flood claims per 1,000 homes in New Jersey: 24.6 from 2015 to 2025, against 3.3 in the median New Jersey county. Cape May County has the highest share of homes with flood insurance (40.1%, median county 1.9%). Claims are a record of insured losses, not outage counts.

New Jersey top 5: Flood claims per 1,000 homes
Top 5 in New Jerseyclaims 2015-2025 (NJ)Residents (NJ)Rank (NJ)
Cape May County24.695,2361st
Union County15.2572,5492nd
Somerset County10.8346,2033rd
Passaic County10.1518,2894th
Hudson County9.9710,4785th
New Jersey top 5: Flood insurance penetration
Top 5 in New Jersey% of homes insured (NJ)Residents (NJ)Rank (NJ)
Cape May County40.1%95,2361st
Ocean County16.6%646,4342nd
Atlantic County14.4%274,7043rd
Monmouth County7.4%643,6154th
Salem County7.0%64,9735th

FEMA OpenFEMA NFIP, as of 8 Sep 2026. Flood claims by county.

Outliers: New Jersey counties far from the state median

10 county-measure pairs sit 3 or more scaled median-absolute-deviation units from the New Jersey median. Most extreme: Cape May County, share of homes with flood insurance 40.1% against a median of 1.9%.

New Jersey outliers by deviation from the state median
CountyMeasureValueNew Jersey medianDeviations
Cape May CountyFlood insurance penetration40.1%1.9%+26.8
Ocean CountyFlood insurance penetration16.6%1.9%+10.3
Atlantic CountyFlood insurance penetration14.4%1.9%+8.8
Cape May CountyFlood claims per 1,000 homes24.63.3+6.0
Monmouth CountyFlood insurance penetration7.4%1.9%+3.9
Salem CountyFEMA risk score76.593.2-3.7
Salem CountyFlood insurance penetration7.0%1.9%+3.6
Sussex CountyFEMA risk score77.493.2-3.4
Union CountyFlood claims per 1,000 homes15.23.3+3.4
Hunterdon CountyFEMA risk score78.793.2-3.2

Old homes, electric heat and utilities in New Jersey

Union County has the oldest stock: 80% of homes date from before 1980. Electric heat is most common in Hudson County at 27% of homes, and Burlington County lists 3 utilities, the most in New Jersey.

New Jersey top 5: Homes built before 1980
Top 5 in New Jersey% of homes (NJ)Residents (NJ)Rank (NJ)
Union County80%572,5491st
Passaic County78%518,2892nd
Essex County75%854,1303rd
Bergen County75%954,7174th
Salem County73%64,9735th
New Jersey top 5: Homes heated by electricity
Top 5 in New Jersey% of homes (NJ)Residents (NJ)Rank (NJ)
Hudson County27%710,4781st
Cape May County21%95,2362nd
Burlington County19%464,2263rd
Mercer County19%383,2864th
Camden County18%524,0425th

Find your New Jersey county

  • Pick a New Jersey county to see its ranks.

All 21 New Jersey counties, sortable

21 New Jersey counties, all measures
Atlantic County274,7042.9%7.7%5493.054%16%16.514.4%147
Bergen County954,7171.4%4.8%2097.875%15%29.32.2%195
Burlington County464,2261.8%5.7%10993.656%19%32.92.1%507
Camden County524,0422.1%6.2%5193.272%18%21.00.9%266
Cape May County95,2362.4%8.0%14391.050%21%124.640.1%136
Cumberland County152,9153.6%9.2%7182.668%12%21.00.9%109
Essex County854,1301.6%4.9%1397.775%17%28.11.9%115
Gloucester County304,5042.4%7.9%6186.651%10%20.90.9%187
Hudson County710,4781.0%3.6%897.264%27%19.93.5%60
Hunterdon County129,4481.9%8.5%16278.752%10%17.51.5%210
Mercer County383,2861.5%5.3%4295.466%19%22.11.2%160
Middlesex County861,5351.5%4.8%2497.858%15%24.81.2%203
Monmouth County643,6151.8%7.3%5296.357%13%22.67.4%336
Morris County510,3751.5%7.1%4692.963%12%22.91.4%235
Ocean County646,4342.5%7.0%5796.249%15%23.016.6%368
Passaic County518,2891.8%4.4%1595.878%10%310.12.2%80
Salem County64,9733.3%9.2%14676.573%16%23.37.0%95
Somerset County346,2031.3%5.3%6590.947%13%210.81.4%226
Sussex County145,1172.5%8.4%14377.465%15%20.20.3%207
Union County572,5491.4%4.4%2895.580%10%215.22.9%163
Warren County110,2382.5%6.9%18280.860%12%11.91.1%201

Download CSV, 21 rows

New Jersey: click a header to sort. Per-capita storm rates start at 5,000 residents.

Sources

New Jersey sources with periods and retrieval dates
SourcePeriodRetrieved
DOE LEAD (NJ)20222 Oct 2026
FEMA NRI (NJ)Dec 20252 Oct 2026
NOAA Storm Events (NJ)2015 to 20252 Oct 2026
Census ACS (NJ)2019 to 20232 Oct 2026
EIA-861 (NJ)20241 Oct 2026

New Jersey LEAD figures are group estimates, not bills. Methodology.

Keep going

Other states: New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma.

Questions

Which New Jersey county has the highest home energy burden?

Cumberland County: 3.6% of income, against 1.8% for the median New Jersey county (DOE LEAD 2022).

Which New Jersey county has the lowest energy burden?

Hudson County at 1.0% of income.

How does New Jersey compare with the whole country?

The median New Jersey county has a burden of 1.8% and the median U.S. county 3.3%, across 21 New Jersey counties and 3,053 U.S. counties with data.

Where do storms cause the most trouble in New Jersey?

Warren County has the most NOAA storm reports per 100,000 residents: 182 between 2015 and 2025.

Which New Jersey county has the highest FEMA risk score?

Bergen County: 97.8, rated relatively high by FEMA (Dec 2025).

Where are the oldest homes in New Jersey?

Union County: 80% of homes were built before 1980; the median New Jersey county is at 63% (Census ACS 2023).

Which New Jersey county relies most on electric heat?

Hudson County: 27% of homes heat with electricity, against 15% in the median county.

Which New Jersey county has the most flood claims per home?

Cape May County: 24.6 NFIP claims per 1,000 homes from 2015 to 2025; the median New Jersey county has 3.3 (FEMA OpenFEMA).

Are storm reports the same as power outages in New Jersey?

No: in New Jersey they are weather reports, not outage counts.

Where can New Jersey households get help with bills?

See the New Jersey help page. Highest burden: Cumberland County.

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3.6% of income goes to home energy in Cumberland County, the highest of 21 New Jersey counties