Watertown, NY
Jefferson County · New York · United States
Home to 13,973 people across 5.537 square miles.
At a glance
13603 by the numbers
Every figure below comes from the 2019–2023 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, the Census Gazetteer, or is computed from those. Margins of error are shown where they matter.
Location
Where 13603 is
| Coordinates | 44.029919, -75.803567 |
|---|---|
| Time zone | America/New_York |
| County | Jefferson County |
| State | New York (NY) |
| Land area | 5.537 mi² |
| Coordinate source | Census ZCTA internal point |
Local time
America/New_York
Current weather
Live from the National Weather Service
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Distance to major cities
Straight-line, computed from coordinates
| New York, NY | 246.9 mi |
|---|---|
| Boston, MA | 265.3 mi |
| Philadelphia, PA | 283.6 mi |
| Chicago, IL | 615.6 mi |
People
Who lives in 13603
13,973 residents in 5,106 households, averaging 2.74 people per household. The largest age group is under 18 at 34.5% of residents, and 84.9% of households are families.
Age distribution
Share of residents by age band
Households
Composition and size
| Total households | 5,106 |
|---|---|
| Average household size | 2.74 |
| Family households | 84.9% |
| Living alone | 14.6% |
| Median age | 24.4 years |
| Households with internet | 94.5% |
Race & ethnicity
Census race categories. Hispanic or Latino origin is asked separately and overlaps these groups.
Income & work
What people earn in 13603
The median household here earns $64,028 a year, below the US median of $70,109, which puts 13603 ahead of 40% of American ZIP codes. 8.1% of residents live below the poverty line.
Compared to the US
This ZIP against the national median
| Median household income | $64,028 ±$13,018 |
|---|---|
| Per capita income | $26,183 |
| Poverty rate | 8.1% |
| Unemployment rate | 6.7% |
| Labor force participation | 78.2% |
Household income distribution
Share of households in each bracket
Educational attainment among residents 25 and older: 39.2% hold a bachelor's degree or higher, 97.6% finished high school.
Housing
Homes and rent in 13603
median rent runs $1,567 a month. This is a renter-majority area — 96.7% of occupied homes are rented, and the typical building went up in 2003.
Costs
Typical values
| Median home value | — |
|---|---|
| Median gross rent | $1,567/mo |
| Median year built | 2003 |
| Housing units | 5,329 |
| Vacancy rate | 4.2% |
Own vs. rent
Of 5,106 occupied units
| Owner households | 166 |
|---|---|
| Renter households | 4,940 |
Building types
Units by structure size
Getting to work
How 13603 commutes
81.6% of workers drove alone, and the average one-way trip takes 14.4 minutes.
Mode of transport
Workers 16 and older
Travel time
Mean commute 14.4 minutes
Overview
Understanding ZIP code 13603
ZIP code 13603 is assigned to Watertown, NY, and falls within Jefferson County. Like every US postal code, it began as a mail-routing device rather than a geographic boundary — the US Postal Service groups delivery routes under a single code so carriers and sorting equipment can process mail efficiently. Today it also serves as a practical shorthand for the area itself: roughly 13,973 people live inside it.
At 2,524 residents per square mile spread over 5.537 square miles, 13603 reads as a suburban area. It is a mid-sized postal code by population, and density shapes almost everything else on this page — how people get to work, whether they own or rent, and what housing costs.
Household earnings track close to the national picture. The median of $64,028 puts 13603 near the middle of the pack, ahead of 40% of them. The US median for comparison is $70,109. Bear in mind that median income describes the midpoint household, not the average — it is not pulled upward by a handful of very high earners the way a mean would be.
Living here
What life in Watertown looks like
The building stock is dominated by detached single-family houses, which account for 53.4% of housing units here. The median construction year is 2003, making the housing here relatively modern. At 4.2%, vacancy is low — housing here is tightly held.
The population skews notably young, with a median age of 24.4 against 42 nationally. The average household holds 2.74 people, and 84.9% are family households.
Getting to work takes 14.4 minutes on average one way. The dominant mode is drove alone at 81.6% of workers.
Where to stay
Where to stay in Watertown, NY
Watertown is largely suburban in character. Accommodation here skews toward mid-range chain hotels and extended-stay properties positioned near highway junctions and business parks, which suits anyone driving in or visiting for work rather than sightseeing.
Median rent in 13603 is $1,567 a month, which sits in the middle of the national range; accommodation pricing locally tends to be similarly mid-market. For reference, New York, NY is about 246.9 miles away in a straight line, which is worth factoring in if you are comparing a stay here against one closer to the city centre.
Availability and pricing change constantly, so the live search below will give you a more accurate picture than any figure we could publish here. It opens results for this area on Booking.com.
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Practical uses
What ZIP code 13603 is used for
Beyond addressing mail, 13603 does a lot of quiet administrative work. Retailers use it to calculate shipping and sales tax at checkout. Insurers use it to set premiums, since risk profiles vary geographically. Employers and marketers use it to define service areas. Government agencies use it to route benefits and organise reporting. If you have ever been asked for a postal code by a form that clearly does not intend to send you anything, this is why.
For anyone weighing a move, 13603 offers a compact profile of Watertown: 13,973 residents, a median household income of $64,028, 39.2% of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher, and an unemployment rate of 6.7%. A handful of figures like these answer more relocation questions than most neighbourhood guides do.
One caution worth repeating: a postal code is not a neighbourhood. 13603 may cover parts of several distinct areas, and a single neighbourhood in Watertown may be split across more than one code. Boundaries also shift as USPS adjusts delivery routes. Treat the figures here as describing a delivery area, which is what they actually measure.
Nearby
ZIP codes near 13603
The eight closest postal codes by centroid distance, each with its own full profile. You can also browse every New York ZIP code or use the ZIP Express Lookup to search by city, county or time zone.
Other ZIP codes in Watertown
Watertown is served by 2 postal codes.
More in Jefferson County
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Questions
Common questions about 13603
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Methodology
Where this data comes from
- Postal geography — GeoNames open postal code database (CC BY 4.0), cross-checked against the US Census Gazetteer.
- Demographics, income, housing, commute — US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2019–2023 5-Year Estimates, ZIP Code Tabulation Area 13603. Tables B01001, B01002, B01003, B02001, B03003, B08301, B08303, B11001, B15003, B17001, B19001, B19013, B19301, B23025, B25002, B25003, B25024, B25035, B25064, B25077, B28002.
- Land and water area — US Census Bureau 2023 Gazetteer Files.
- Weather — NOAA National Weather Service, fetched live in your browser.
- Map — OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).