New York/Compare
Chelsea vs West Village
Chelsea and West Village are two official neighborhoods in New York. West Village is the calmer Part I map (24 vs 19). West Village wins the errand count. Chelsea has the lower ACS median ($2,659).
Data vintage. ACS 2024 5-year · NYPD Oct 2025 – Jun 2026 · OSM Sep 2026 · updated Sep 2026
Scores
Fit axes among official New York neighborhoods.
| Axis | Chelsea | West Village |
|---|---|---|
| Safety | 19 | 24 |
| Schools | 47 | 67 |
| Walk | 30 | 68 |
| Cost fit | 94 | 82 |
| Vibe | 44 | 100 |
| Median rent | $2,659 | $3,044 |
| Median home | $983,541 | $1,411,889 |
| Population | 52,113 | 55,185 |
| Commute to Midtown | 11 min | 15 min |
| Commute to FiDi | 20 min | 15 min |
| Commute to Downtown Brooklyn | 26 min | 25 min |
Living numbers
Who rents, how old, how much crime, how many shops — beside the scores.
| Fact | Chelsea | West Village |
|---|---|---|
| Renters | 69% | 66% |
| Median age | 41.9 | 36.7 |
| Median income | $128K | $178K |
| Part I per 1k | 27.9 | 25.2 |
| Groceries / 800m | 44 | 62 |
| Transit stops / 800m | 138 | 199 |
| Parks / 800m | 120 | 120 |
| 311 last 14 days | 995 | 996 |
Rent
Rent since 2014
ACS 5-year median gross rent for New York city. Up 48% since 2014. Chelsea is 46% above the 2024 city median. W Vill is 67% above the 2024 city median.
Overlapping 5-year ACS windows (B25064), not asking rent. Census does not publish a rent series for each official neighborhood, so the line is the city place. Dashed marks are each area’s ACS 2024 median.
Which to pick
The same numbers as the table, in sentences. Nobody wins the city.
Pick Chelsea if the rent gap is the point. ACS median rent is $2,659 vs $3,044. Read both pages before you decide.
Pick West Village if you want the cafes and the night and you want the errands on foot. Vibe is 100 vs 44. Walk is 68 vs 30. Schools score 67 vs 47. Read both pages before you decide.
Chelsea
Galleries, the High Line, and a waterfront that turned into towers. The gayborhood label stuck; the warehouses did not.
$2,659 median rent · safety 19 · walk 30
West Village
West 4th, brownstone streets that ignore the grid, and rents that assume you already live here. The postcard is the product.
$3,044 median rent · safety 24 · walk 68
Common questions
Same pair, said in questions. The numbers are in the tables.
Which is cheaper, Chelsea or West Village?
Chelsea is the lower ACS median: $2,659 vs $3,044. About 69% rent in Chelsea vs 66% in West Village. Survey medians, not a listing you can message tonight.
Is Chelsea more walkable than West Village?
West Village wins the errand count (walk 30 vs 68). Groceries inside 800 meters: 44 vs 62. Not a Walk Score license.
Which is safer on this map, Chelsea or West Village?
West Village is the calmer Part I read (24 vs 19). Combined rate 25.2 vs 27.9 per 1,000. Visitors count in those numbers.
Which scores higher for families, Chelsea or West Village?
West Village leads the school axis (67 vs 47). Nearby rating is 7.8 / 10 vs 7.2 / 10. Median age 36.7 vs 41.9. Chelsea has more of the night. Neither number is a school assignment.
Which has the shorter commute to Midtown?
11 minutes from Chelsea to Midtown, 15 from West Village. Chelsea is the shorter weekday. Not this hour's traffic.
If you drop both
Closest official neighborhood that is not Chelsea or West Village: Hell's Kitchen. Ninth Avenue restaurants, Port Authority in earshot, and Hudson Yards glass at the south edge. Nightlife that still has walk-ups.
Scores are relative among official New York neighborhoods with the same editorial weights. Read the method.