The districts of Zaanstad
Zaanstad has 162,825 residents (2026), spread across 19 districts and 79 neighbourhoods.
Everything close by, little space
Zaanstad comes out at 5.8 as a municipality — better than 43% of Dutch neighbourhoods. Amenities lift that grade with 8.2; quiet and nature hold it back at 4.7. The highest neighbourhood grades sit in Waterrijk West (9.9), the lowest in Wormerveer West (2.5). That is 7.4 points of difference inside one municipality.
Key figures for Zaanstad
- residents
- 162,825
- districts
- 19
- neighbourhoods
- 79
- km² of land
- 73.7
How Zaanstad scores
Do some of these matter more to you than others?
The figures ⌄Safety
Registered crimes per 1,000 people present per year: residents plus business activity. Figures for small neighbourhoods are smoothed.
In 2025, 7,383 crimes were recorded here. The figures above are per 1,000 people present (residents + businesses).
Tick = Dutch median
The safest neighbourhoods in Zaanstad →The most dangerous neighbourhoods in Zaanstad →
The figures ⌄Amenities
Average distance to everyday amenities, compared with the Dutch median.
Tick = Dutch median
The figures ⌄Wealth & income
What the homes are worth, what residents earn and how many homes stand empty. It describes the area, not the people living in it.
Not counted
Part of this score's subject, but not part of the grade.
Tick = Dutch median
The figures ⌄Quiet & nature
How tightly the addresses sit together, how much noise there is, and how much green, trees and water surround it.
Not counted
Part of this score's subject, but not part of the grade.
Not part of the grade: air quality varies mostly between regions, barely between neighbourhoods within one municipality. WHO guideline: 5 µg/m³. Calculated annual mean, RIVM 2024.
Tick = Dutch median
The figures ⌄Families
How practical this area is with children: distance to school and childcare, and how many children already live here.
Tick = Dutch median
Who lives here
The age profile of Zaanstad looks much like that of the average Dutch neighbourhood.
Age profile
- 0–1516%
NL median 14%
- 15–2511%
NL median 11%
- 25–4527%
NL median 22%
- 45–6527%
NL median 28%
- 65+19%
NL median 22%
Share of residents per age group (CBS, 2025). All five bars share one scale, so their lengths can be compared with each other.
Average household size
2.2 — around the average
NL median 2.3
Single-person households
38% — more than average
NL median 31%
Households with children
36% — around the average
NL median 35%
Residents per km²
6,865 — far more densely populated than average
NL median 2,364
Tick = Dutch median. Households with children counts towards Families, population density towards Quiet & nature; the other figures here get no grade. Average of the neighbourhoods in Zaanstad, weighted by population.
Strongest neighbourhoods
The best neighbourhoods in Zaanstad →Waterrijk West
Zaanstad
Parkrijk Zuid
Zaanstad
Waterrijk
Zaanstad
Kreekrijk
Zaanstad
Willis
Zaanstad
Parkrijk Noord
Zaanstad
Weakest neighbourhoods
The most dangerous neighbourhoods in Zaanstad →Other rankings
All districts of Zaanstad
Sorted by total grade
- 1Assendelft-Noord9.2
- 2Krommenie West8.7
- 3Assendelft-Zuid8.3
- 4Westzaan7.7
- 5Krommenie Oost6.4
- 6Nieuw West6.2
- 7Rooswijk6.1
- 8Westerkoog5.9
- 9Zaandam West5.6
- 10Pelders- en Hoornseveld5.2
- 11Oude Haven5.1
- 12Zaandam Noord5.0
- 13Oud Koog a/d Zaan4.9
- 14Poelenburg4.8
- 15Zaandam Zuid4.2
- 16Oud Zaandijk3.7
- 17Wormerveer3.3
- 18Kogerveldwijk3.3
- 19Rosmolenwijk2.6