The smartest people in NJ live in these ZIP codes

New Jersey already has a reputation for great schools, overachievers, and parents who treat report cards like life or death. So maybe it shouldn’t be shocking that some of the most educated ZIP codes in the state look exactly like the places you’d expect: high-performing suburbs, pricey real estate, and lots of commuters with impressive resumes.

NorthJersey.com ran an article on new data analysis using U.S. Census educational attainment numbers that ranked ZIP codes largely by the percentage of adults with bachelor’s and advanced degrees. It was done by UnitedStatesZipCodes.org. Towns like Short Hills (07078), parts of Jersey City (07310), and Princeton Junction (08550) landed near the top thanks to extremely high percentages of college-educated residents.

In fact, some of these places are almost intimidatingly educated. In Short Hills, more than 90% of adults have a college degree, and a huge share also hold graduate degrees.

The Top 10

Here are the top 10 most educated zip codes in New Jersey, along with the percentage of residents with a college degree.

1️⃣ Short Hills 07078 93.5%

2️⃣ Jersey City 07310 89.5%

3️⃣ Princeton Junction 08550 87.3%

4️⃣ Montclair 07043 86.6%

5️⃣ Princeton 08540 86.5%

6️⃣ Mountain Lakes 07046 86.5%

7️⃣ Chatham 07928 85.6%

8️⃣ Ridgewood 07450 85.2%

9️⃣ Plainsboro 08536 85.2%

🔟 Fairhaven 07704 85%

Read More: Why New Jersey Ranks Low In Stress Despite Its Fast Pace

Now here’s the thing.

These are the ZIPs with the most degrees. But does it really mean these are the ZIPs with the smartest people? I’ve met people with master's degrees and beyond who were not very bright. So does this mean you’re not smart if you don’t live there? No.

Innate intelligence and being educated are two different things. So perhaps the headline was misleading.

What these ZIP codes really show is something less surprising: education tends to center around higher incomes and expensive housing markets. Areas with the highest education levels often also rank among the wealthiest parts of the state.

So yes, maybe the “smartest” ZIP codes have the most diplomas on the wall.

But Jersey smart also means knowing how to hustle, how to survive property taxes, how to navigate every pitfall and scam Jersey can throw at you.

And if that were part of the study, the entire state would have tied for first.