Town guide · Mercer County
Living in East Windsor, NJ
East Windsor is a township of about 16 square miles at Exit 8 of the New Jersey Turnpike, and it wraps completely around the small borough of Hightstown. It is home to Twin Rivers, the first planned unit development in New Jersey. Around it are neighborhoods off Route 130 and Route 33 and a network of paved township pathways.
- County
- Mercer
- Population
- About 30,000 (2020 census)
- Size
- About 16 square miles
- Setting
- Suburban neighborhoods, a large planned community and commercial corridors along Route 130
- Main roads
- New Jersey Turnpike (Exit 8), U.S. Route 130, Route 33, Route 133 (the Hightstown Bypass) and County Routes 535, 539 and 571
First things first
East Windsor and Hightstown are two different towns
East Windsor Township completely surrounds Hightstown Borough. Hightstown was carved out of East Windsor in 1853 and became fully independent around 1894. Today they are separate municipalities with separate governments and separate property tax rates.
The mailing address can blur the line. East Windsor homes use the 08520 ZIP code, which they share with Hightstown, or the 08512 ZIP code, which they share with Cranbury. So a Hightstown or Cranbury address does not always mean the home is in Hightstown or Cranbury. We look up the block and lot on every East Windsor property, because the municipality decides the tax rate and town services.
Neighborhoods
Twin Rivers, Etra and the rest of the township
East Windsor and West Windsor were both formed in 1797, when the old Windsor Township was split in two. Much of East Windsor is suburban development along and between Route 130, Route 33 and the Turnpike. Older place names still mark its crossroads and sections.
- Twin Rivers: A planned community on both sides of Route 33 near Turnpike Exit 8. Building began in 1969, and it opened in 1970 as the first planned unit development in New Jersey. It is laid out in four sections called quads, linked by greenways, with townhouses, condominiums, apartments and single family homes.
- Etra: A historic place name in the eastern part of the township, home to Etra Lake and Etra Lake Park.
- Hickory Corner: A crossroads name in the western part of the township, near Anker Park, Dreyfus Park and the Bear Brook Pathway.
- Other named places: Older names still on the map include Allens Station, Eilers Corner, Locust Corner, Millstone and Washington Oak.
Homes
What you will find
- Townhouses and condominiums: Concentrated in the Twin Rivers quads, with other attached home communities elsewhere in the township.
- Single family homes: In suburban neighborhoods built on former farmland, plus the single family sections inside Twin Rivers.
- Garden apartments: Several apartment communities, including one linked by the Rocky Brook Pathway to the municipal building and Route 130.
- Continuing care: Meadow Lakes, a continuing care retirement community, sits on a 100 acre site that straddles the East Windsor and Hightstown line.
Worth knowing: Many East Windsor homes belong to an association. In Twin Rivers, the common property and facilities are owned by the Twin Rivers Community Trust, with the homeowners association serving as trustee. Its rules were tested all the way to the New Jersey Supreme Court in 2007. If you are buying here, read the association documents and fee schedule before you commit. When we list a Twin Rivers home, we gather those documents first.
Property taxes
What taxes look like in East Windsor
- 2.341%2025 effective tax rate, as a share of market value
- $9,4252025 average residential tax bill
A home worth $400,000 on today's market would pay roughly $9,364 a year at East Windsor's 2025 effective rate. Your actual bill depends on your assessment, so we pull the real tax record for any home you are considering.
Source: New Jersey Division of Taxation, 2025 general and effective tax rates. Rates are set each year.
Getting around
Roads and commuting
Exit 8 of the New Jersey Turnpike is the only Turnpike exit in East Windsor and connects to Route 33 and Route 133. Route 133, the Hightstown Bypass, runs around Hightstown from Route 33 on the east side to County Route 571 on the west. U.S. Route 130 runs north and south through the western part of the township, and most daily shopping lines Route 130 and Route 33. There is no train station in East Windsor. The nearest rail is Princeton Junction on NJ Transit's Northeast Corridor Line, with a rush hour shuttle bus to the station. Suburban Transit commuter buses run to the Port Authority Bus Terminal and to Wall Street in Manhattan.
Places worth knowing
Parks, landmarks and open space
- Etra Lake Park: A township park on Disbrow Hill Road in the eastern part of East Windsor, next to the Disbrow Hill athletic fields and their paved loop trail.
- Etra Lake Pathway: A paved path of about 0.9 mile along Etra Lake that links Twin Rivers to Etra Lake Park.
- Bear Brook Pathway: A paved path of about a mile in the western part of the township, connecting Anker Park and Wiltshire Park.
- Downtown Hightstown: The neighboring borough's Main Street, Memorial Park and Stockton Street Historic District sit right in the middle of East Windsor.
Common questions
Questions people ask us about East Windsor
What are property taxes in East Windsor, NJ?
East Windsor Township's 2025 effective tax rate is 2.341 percent of market value, and the average residential tax bill is $9,425, according to the New Jersey Division of Taxation. Actual bills depend on each home's assessment.
Is East Windsor the same as Hightstown?
No. East Windsor Township surrounds Hightstown Borough on every side, but each has its own government and tax rate. Many East Windsor homes share Hightstown's 08520 ZIP code, so the mailing address alone does not tell you which town a home is in.
Is Twin Rivers its own town?
No. Twin Rivers is a planned community and census designated place inside East Windsor Township. Homes there pay East Windsor property taxes, plus fees to the community association.
What Turnpike exit is East Windsor?
East Windsor is home to Exit 8 of the New Jersey Turnpike, the only Turnpike exit in the township. It connects to Route 33 and to Route 133, the Hightstown Bypass.
Is there a train station in East Windsor?
No. The closest rail station is Princeton Junction on NJ Transit's Northeast Corridor Line, served by a rush hour shuttle bus. Suburban Transit commuter buses also run to the Port Authority Bus Terminal and to Wall Street in Manhattan.
Nearby towns
Towns that border East Windsor
Buying or selling in East Windsor?
Twin Rivers, Exit 8 and everything in between
In East Windsor we start with three questions: which municipality, which association and, in Twin Rivers, which quad. Then we give you a straight answer on value and the ways you could sell.
Call or text either of us directly.