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The Upper West Side at Lincoln Square is a premier family neighborhood with top-rated public schools, Central and Riverside Parks, and Lincoln Center. Dense retail along Broadway and Columbus Avenue.
The Upper West Side at Lincoln Square is a premier family neighborhood with top-rated public schools, Central and Riverside Parks, and Lincoln Center. Dense retail along Broadway and Columbus Avenue.
Did you know?
Lincoln Center's Revson Fountain was designed to mask the sound of subway trains running beneath the plaza — the water jets are choreographed to the noise schedule.
Who’s your neighbor?
Housing cost
Commute
Weekday mornings · leaving 7:30–9:00
- FromUpper West Side-Lincoln Square
- ToNear Bryant Park
Family scores
Show 5 moreShow fewer
Trade-offs
Stands out
- Family-Friendly Vibe99/100
Many families with children, with homes and schools close by
- Transit90/100
Quick weekday-morning transit to the city's main job centers
- Schools80/100
Strong results at the public and charter schools serving it
To weigh
- Affordability3/100
Higher costs than most
- Air & Child Health13/100
More air pollution, childhood lead or asthma ER visits than most
Each score compares it with NYC's other residential neighborhoods.
What these scores don't measure: how a block feels on foot, what's changing on it, and whether a particular school suits your child. Walk it at school drop-off time, and check the zoned school for the exact address before you sign a lease.
Your family’s read
How does Upper West Side-Lincoln Square fit your family?
An agentic read of this neighborhood — including safety and cost of living — tailored to your priorities, family size, budget, and commute.
Analyze for My FamilySchools & early education
Schools26 schools
Upper West Side-Lincoln Square offers a deep bench of schooling options, with an almost even split between public and private — roughly 15 public schools and 15 private institutions serve the area. Families will find zoned elementary options like P.S. 199 Jesse Isidor Straus on West 70th Street, along with the citywide draw of LaGuardia High School for arts and music. Private options range from the Ethical Culture Fieldston School on Central Park West to Collegiate School near Lincoln Center.
Browse all early-ed in this neighborhoodLiving here
Parks & Playgrounds6 places
The Upper West Side has a thin but solid bench of playgrounds, with Riverside Park South's Little Engine Playground being a standout — the name alone tells you someone put real thought into it. Gertrude Ederle Recreation Center and Matthew P. Sapolin Playground round out the options, and what exists here is genuinely well-maintained and loved by local families. The real luxury is the park itself though: that Riverside waterfront and the tree canopy through this stretch of Manhattan make up for the limited playground count.
6 playgrounds within a 10-min walk
Nearest large park: Central Park · ~9 min walk (0.4 mi)
Transportation60 stops
The Upper West Side sits on a transit sweet spot. You get three major subway hubs — 72 St where the 1, 2, and 3 converge as a true express lifeline, plus 59 St-Columbus Circle and 66 St-Lincoln Center on the 1. Combined with dense bus coverage running along Broadway, Amsterdam, Columbus, and Central Park West, getting around feels almost effortless. This is Manhattan-core transit at its most convenient.
Restaurants86 places
The Upper West Side and Lincoln Square offer a deep bench of dining options, from upscale French spots along Broadway to casual Italian hangouts clustering around Columbus Avenue. Bakeries and cafes line the avenues, and reliable quick-service anchors like Dig and Just Salad keep things convenient. The mix leans polished-casual — not a lot of dives, but not overwhelmingly gourmet either. It's a neighborhood that rewards a walk with options at every price point, though the casual-dining depth is thinner than you'd expect for the area.
Groceries16 places
The Upper West Side and Lincoln Square offer a deep bench of grocery options, from everyday staples to specialty finds. Trader Joe's on Broadway and Whole Foods at Columbus Circle cover the mainstream chains, while a cluster of Morton Williams locations and the H Mart on Amsterdam give you more variety. For produce and local finds, the farmers' markets at Lincoln Square and Tucker Square are seasonal anchors. Walking to groceries is simply part of the neighborhood lifestyle — no car needed.
Coffee Shops41 places
The Upper West Side has a deep bench when it comes to coffee. Third-wave spots like Blue Bottle and Joe Coffee anchor the Columbus Avenue corridor, while Starbucks basically has a branch on every other block. If you need a quick grab-and-go, there's always a Dunkin' within shouting distance, and Le Pain Quotidien covers the sit-down brunch crowd. What's here runs the full spectrum from serious pour-over to the equivalent of liquid breakfast.
Things to Do73 places
The Upper West Side-Lincoln Square delivers a deep bench of things to do, with performing arts leading the charge — dance studios and music schools dominate the list, giving this block a real enrichment feel. The movie theater scene is unusually thick for a residential pocket, with multiple Lincoln Center screens plus the AMC. Athletics are well represented too: there's a solid mix of swimming, martial arts, gymnastics, and soccer options. Community staples like the YMCA and a few dedicated kids' venues round things out nicely for families.
Daycare & informal care8 places
The Upper West Side offers a solid mix of pre-K and full-day daycare — 19 options is a healthy baseline for the neighborhood's smaller family footprint. The pre-K layer leans heavily city-funded, with UPK seats running through spots like Amsterdam, Hudson Guild, and Goddard Riverside at the Lincoln Square Neighborhood Center. Private daycares are fewer but include a few Bright Horizons locations clustered around the west side, which parents often cite for convenience on morning drop-off.
Family Resources5 places
The Upper West Side punches above its weight for civic anchors, anchored by a pair of excellent libraries. Riverside Library on Amsterdam Avenue is a workhorse branch with solid kids' programming, while the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts on Lincoln Center Plaza is a gem for families curious about music, theater, and dance — the only dedicated performing arts library in the city. Throw in the seasonal Tucker Square Greenmarket and a few well-maintained playgrounds, and you've got a neighborhood that doesn't lean solely on private resources to serve families.
Healthcare47 places
Mount Sinai West anchors the neighborhood's healthcare landscape, complemented by several specialty and surgical centers along the western corridor. Pediatric care is well-covered with nearly a dozen practices, particularly dense around the 70th Street and Broadway stretch. Urgent care options are limited — just a couple of spots near Lincoln Center — which matters if you're trying to avoid an ER wait on a Saturday. The dental scene runs deep, with nearly twenty practices offering everything from family care to dedicated pediatric specialists.
Compare with nearby neighborhoods
Best schools in Upper West Side-Lincoln Square
Schools in Upper West Side-Lincoln Square
26
- ABRAHAM JOSHUA HESCHEL SCHOOL
- BLESSED SACRAMENT SCHOOL
- COLLEGIATE SCHOOL
- ETHICAL CULTURE FIELDSTON SCHOOL
- Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts
- FUSION ACADEMY LINCOLN CENTER
- GATEWAY SCHOOL OF NY
- High School for Law, Advocacy and Community Justice
- High School of Arts and Technology
- Manhattan / Hunter Science High School
- MANHATTAN STAR ACADEMY
- P.S. 199 Jesse Isidor Straus
- P.S. 452
- PARKSIDE SCHOOL
- PROFESSIONAL CHILDRENS SCHOOL
- ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON SCHOOL
- Special Music School
- SPEYER LEGACY SCHOOL
- STAR PROGRAM
- The Maxine Greene HS for Imaginative Inquiry
- The Riverside School for Makers and Artists
- UCP OF NYC - MANHATTAN CHILD PROGRAM
- Urban Assembly School for Media Studies, The
- WEST END DAY SCHOOL
- West End Secondary School
- YORK PREP SCHOOL
Early education in Upper West Side-Lincoln Square
22
- ABRAHAM JOSHUA HESCHEL SCHOOL
- AMSTERDAM
- BLESSED SACRAMENT SCHOOL
- BRIGHT HORIZONS AT COLUMBUS CIRCLE
- BRIGHT HORIZONS AT WEST 63RD
- BRIGHT HORIZONS AT WEST 72ND ST.
- COLLEGIATE SCHOOL
- ETHICAL CULTURE FIELDSTON SCHOOL
- GATEWAY SCHOOL OF NY
- GODDARD RIVERSIDE EARLY CHILDHOOD CENTER AT LINCOLN SQUARE NEIGHBORHOOD CENTER
- HUDSON GUILD
- MANHATTAN STAR ACADEMY
- NY KIDS CLUB & NY PRESCHOOL
- P.S. 452
- PARKSIDE SCHOOL
- SPEYER LEGACY SCHOOL
- STAR PROGRAM
- The Maxine Greene HS for Imaginative Inquiry
- THE RIVERSIDE SCHOOL FOR MAKERS AND ARTISTS
- Ucp of NYC Manhattan UPK
- WEST END DAY SCHOOL
- West Side YMCA
Frequently Asked Questions
- Is Upper West Side-Lincoln Square a good neighborhood for families?
- Upper West Side-Lincoln Square scores 60/100 for families on Motley — ahead of most NYC neighborhoods. The Family Fit score blends six parts: how many families live there, schools, affordability, weekday-morning transit time to job centers, safety, and air quality and child health.
- What are the pros and cons of Upper West Side-Lincoln Square for families?
- For families, Upper West Side-Lincoln Square stands out for many families with children, with homes and schools close by; quick weekday-morning transit to the city's main job centers; and strong results at the public and charter schools serving it. What to weigh: higher costs than most, and more air pollution, childhood lead or asthma ER visits than most. Each score compares it with NYC's other residential neighborhoods. They don't measure how a block feels on foot or whether a particular school suits your child, so walk it before you decide.
- Is Upper West Side-Lincoln Square safe?
- Upper West Side-Lincoln Square scores 68/100 on safety — ahead of most NYC neighborhoods. We build the score from NYPD crime complaints, pedestrian and cyclist injuries, and serious (Class C) housing violations, each counted per 1,000 residents.
- How are the schools in Upper West Side-Lincoln Square?
- Upper West Side-Lincoln Square has 26 schools mapped inside its boundary and scores 80/100 for schools — ahead of most NYC neighborhoods.
- How do middle and high school admissions work from Upper West Side-Lincoln Square?
- Middle school: families in Upper West Side-Lincoln Square apply in 5th grade through the citywide middle school application. District 3's 26 middle school programs admit by method: 17 screened, 4 charter lottery, 3 unscreened and 2 zoned. High school: one citywide application in 8th grade lets a family rank programs anywhere in the city, and the eight specialized high schools admit on the SHSAT alone.
- Is Upper West Side-Lincoln Square affordable?
- Upper West Side-Lincoln Square scores 3/100 for affordability on Motley — among the pricier parts of the city.
- Which borough is Upper West Side-Lincoln Square in?
- Upper West Side-Lincoln Square is a neighborhood in Manhattan, New York City.
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