Living in Jamaica: rent, commute and grades

Queens · Updated October 2026

Jamaica Avenue at 165th Street, Jamaica, Queens.

Shops at Jamaica Avenue and 160th Street, Jamaica.

The street clock on Jamaica Avenue, Jamaica.

The old Jamaica Savings Bank building on Jamaica Avenue.

Jamaica Avenue and 165th Street, Jamaica.

Photo credits

Photo: Tdorante10, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Photo: Jim.henderson, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
Photo: DanTD, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Photo: DanTD, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Photo: Tdorante10, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Rent in Jamaica

$1,668 a month

Type of homeA room in a 2-bedroom, shared by two

Jamaica is cheaper with roommates

Find people looking in Jamaica

C+Overall

Jamaica graded

Grades compare NYC neighborhoods with each other. How the grades work.

Everyday life

B+Walkability
The average home has 4.8 of 5 everyday needs within a 10-minute walk (grocery store, restaurant, cafe, subway station, park) and about 282 places to eat or shop.
A-Food and shopping
Within a 10-minute walk of the average home: about 67 places to eat, 21 kinds of cuisine, 5 large grocery stores and 175 open storefronts.
City data alone would give B+; what residents say in 3 Reddit threads moves it to A-.
DParks and green space
97% of residents live within a 10-minute walk of a park of an acre or more, with about 20 acres of parkland within 1 km and about 374 street trees within 300 m of the average home.

People

B-Community
24% of households moved in since 2018, 4% are roommates sharing a home, 19% of residents are 22 to 34, and there are about 17 cafes and bars within a 10-minute walk of the average home.
BNightlife
About 13 bars, clubs and restaurants licensed to serve alcohol on site within a 10-minute walk of the average home.
Residents: Going out meant heading to Manhattan or Brooklyn and piecing together the LIRR, Uber, subway or bus to get home. Grew up in Jamaica, now lives in Brooklyn, Oct 2026

Home and safety

FSafety
16 murders, robberies, felony assaults and burglaries were reported per 1,000 residents in 2025 (908 in all).
City data and 4 resident threads on Reddit agree on this grade.
C+Quiet
37 noise complaints to 311 per 1,000 residents in 2025, not counting helicopter complaints, and counting each address at most 12 days a year. That measures how often people complain, not how loud it is.
CBuilding upkeep
24.3 serious housing code violations (class B or C) were issued in 2025 per 100 rented homes, and there were 9.8 heat or hot water complaints per 100 rented homes.

Who lives there

Families with kids

What residents say

Residents don’t like

NightlifeGoing out meant heading to Manhattan or Brooklyn and piecing together the LIRR, Uber, subway or bus to get home. Grew up in Jamaica, now lives in Brooklyn, Oct 2026

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Safety

Living by Guy R. Brewer Blvd or 88th Ave near Jamaica Center is fine if you pay attention and mind your business.
Not a resident, Jun 2026
Around Guy R. Brewer Blvd and 88th Ave, being out after dark is unwise unless you grew up somewhere similar.
Not a resident, Jun 2026
The blocks near Jamaica station are not pretty and can feel a little sketchy at night.
Not a resident, Sep 2025

Food and shopping

There are some good food options around the Jamaica hub, but not much else to see.
Not a resident, Sep 2025
Jamaica has a lot of food, though none of it is aimed at tourists.
Not a resident, May 2025
Great Caribbean food is easy to find around the Jamaica AirTrain station.
Not a resident, May 2025

Parks and green space

The area around the Jamaica hub has little in the way of parks.
Not a resident, Sep 2025
Rufus King Park, about 10 minutes on foot from the AirTrain station, is a nice place to sit with coffee and a book.
Not a resident, May 2025

Building upkeep

Housing around the Jamaica hub is generally not great in quality.
Not a resident, Sep 2025

Getting around from Jamaica

By subway or bus, arriving by 9:00 on a weekday:Under 30 min30 to 45 min45 to 60 minOver an hourJamaica

169 St F
Jamaica Center-Parsons/Archer EJZ
Jamaica-179 St F
Parsons Blvd F
Sutphin Blvd F
Sutphin Blvd-Archer Av-JFK Airport EJZ

What to know about Jamaica

Downtown Jamaica is one of Queens' three regional business districts. A 2019 city study counted three performing arts centers, dozens of landmarked buildings, an 11-acre park, two colleges and hundreds of independent businesses there. Source
Downtown Jamaica is a major transit hub that 560,000 people pass through daily, served by four subway lines, 48 bus lines, the Long Island Rail Road and the AirTrain to JFK Airport. Source
Jamaica's name comes from the Lenape word "yamecah", meaning beaver. Jamaica Avenue follows an ancient Native American trading trail, and in 1683 Jamaica became the county seat of the newly created Queens County. Source
Downtown Jamaica grew in the early 1900s after elevated train lines and the Long Island Rail Road's Jamaica station arrived. Between 1920 and 1940 its shopping district expanded with department stores such as Gertz, Macy's and May's and the Loew's Valencia Theatre. Source
Jamaica Avenue mixes national chains and local shops. Hillside Avenue has auto businesses and restaurants serving a large Bangladeshi community, and the 165th Street Mall is a pedestrian street of small businesses and the Jamaica Colosseum Mall. Source
The Jamaica Colosseum Mall has long been a hip-hop shopping stop where stars bought their outfits. LL Cool J used it as the location for his "Hush" video. Source
King Manor, the home of Rufus King, a framer and signer of the U.S. Constitution and an antislavery advocate, is now a historic house museum about his legacy and early American life in Jamaica. Source
The city's Jamaica Neighborhood Plan, approved by the City Council in October 2025, rezones nearly 230 blocks to allow nearly 12,000 new homes, about 4,000 of them permanently affordable. Source