Some of you might be asking yourself, at this very moment, is Louisiana a good place?
The answer is unequivocally yes… if you know where to locate the best counties to live in Louisiana.
Lucky for you, we’re here to help you identify the best counties to live in the Pelican State based on the most recently available data from the Census. And this isn’t our first rodeo — we’ve been using Saturday Night Science to rank places for years.
The question becomes if you wanted to relocate to the best part of Louisiana, where would you go? To answer that, we looked at crime, cost of living, and demographic data for all 64 counties in the state.
Cameron Parish is the county to be when it comes to living the good life in Louisiana. And you should avoid Madison Parish if you can — at least according to the data.
$75,278 median income · 2.1% unemployment
$91,549 median income · 4.4% unemployment
$81,202 median income · 4.8% unemployment
$77,452 median income · 4.1% unemployment
$86,315 median income · 4.2% unemployment
$65,531 median income · 4.1% unemployment
$87,299 median income · 7.0% unemployment
$80,122 median income · 4.2% unemployment
$80,897 median income · 6.7% unemployment
$73,085 median income · 5.9% unemployment
The receipts
Compare the top ten
Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is Louisiana’s statewide median.
Louisiana statewide median: $60,756
Louisiana statewide median: $211,635
Louisiana statewide median: 6.3%
On the map
Where Louisiana’s best counties are
Saturday Night Science
Methodology: How do you determine which Louisiana county is the best?
To give you the best county in Louisiana, we have to look at a handful of metrics that signal the quality of a place. To do that, we made assumptions about what’s in a “best county” and what isn’t. For reference, we are trying to make the kind of argument you’d make at a bar using facts, Saturday Night Science.
With that in mind, we went to two of the best data sources on the internet. Namely, the American Community Survey data and FBI Crime data for the most recent period.
We paid particular attention to:
- Violent Crime Rates
- Property Crime Rates
- Median Home Values
- Median Income
- Unemployment Rates
- Adult Education Levels
- Health Insurance Coverage
- Poverty Rates
We then ranked each county in Louisiana across each of the criteria from one to 64, with one being the best.
Taking the average rank across all criteria, we created a quality of life score with the county posting the lowest overall score being the “Best County To Live In Louisiana.”
The result is some of the safest, quietest, and best counties to raise a family in the Pelican State.
We updated this article for 2026. This report is our eleventh time ranking the best counties to live in Louisiana.
Read on to see why Cameron Parish is the best county, while Madison Parish is probably in contention for being the worst county in Louisiana.
The full plate
Detailed List Of The Best Counties In Louisiana
Click any column to sort. Search by county name.
| Rank | County | Population | Median Income | Median Home Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cameron Parish | 5,015 | $75,278 | $236,497 |
| 2 | Ascension Parish | 130,314 | $91,549 | $307,283 |
| 3 | St. Tammany Parish | 272,421 | $81,202 | $277,618 |
| 4 | West Feliciana Parish | 15,327 | $77,452 | $377,633 |
| 5 | Plaquemines Parish | 22,803 | $86,315 | $272,232 |
| 6 | St. James Parish | 19,528 | $65,531 | $207,040 |
| 7 | West Baton Rouge Parish | 27,974 | $87,299 | $249,157 |
| 8 | Livingston Parish | 148,115 | $80,122 | $252,603 |
| 9 | St. Charles Parish | 51,396 | $80,897 | $257,774 |
| 10 | East Feliciana Parish | 19,271 | $73,085 | $219,164 |
| 11 | Lafourche Parish | 96,252 | $63,135 | $185,790 |
| 12 | Bossier Parish | 129,789 | $69,617 | $244,224 |
| 13 | Lafayette Parish | 247,997 | $67,451 | $236,053 |
| 14 | St. Martin Parish | 51,353 | $55,960 | $160,510 |
| 15 | LaSalle Parish | 14,789 | $68,497 | $143,894 |
| 16 | Calcasieu Parish | 207,088 | $67,564 | $193,029 |
| 17 | Jefferson Davis Parish | 31,924 | $57,341 | $144,362 |
| 18 | Lincoln Parish | 48,174 | $39,172 | $220,441 |
| 18 | Vernon Parish | 47,117 | $57,270 | $151,159 |
| 20 | St. John the Baptist Parish | 40,743 | $66,630 | $188,858 |
| 21 | Terrebonne Parish | 106,186 | $64,836 | $178,813 |
| 22 | Grant Parish | 22,095 | $64,016 | $158,362 |
| 22 | Beauregard Parish | 36,676 | $65,944 | $187,205 |
| 24 | Pointe Coupee Parish | 20,217 | $65,961 | $187,783 |
| 25 | De Soto Parish | 27,026 | $48,578 | $183,440 |
| 26 | East Baton Rouge Parish | 452,938 | $63,071 | $231,672 |
| 27 | Jefferson Parish | 430,920 | $65,252 | $265,366 |
| 28 | Orleans Parish | 371,853 | $56,631 | $242,574 |
| 28 | Rapides Parish | 127,527 | $54,967 | $168,556 |
| 30 | Tangipahoa Parish | 136,738 | $56,760 | $222,958 |
| 31 | Vermilion Parish | 57,123 | $55,707 | $160,551 |
| 32 | Ouachita Parish | 158,480 | $54,688 | $175,221 |
| 33 | Natchitoches Parish | 36,693 | $46,292 | $169,885 |
| 34 | West Carroll Parish | 9,464 | $49,134 | $122,237 |
| 35 | Webster Parish | 35,820 | $41,182 | $121,858 |
| 36 | Assumption Parish | 20,484 | $51,423 | $174,124 |
| 37 | Iberia Parish | 68,599 | $56,961 | $140,394 |
| 37 | Sabine Parish | 21,977 | $50,329 | $194,046 |
| 39 | St. Bernard Parish | 44,419 | $58,651 | $197,949 |
| 40 | Caddo Parish | 230,004 | $50,705 | $140,586 |
| 41 | Iberville Parish | 29,815 | $54,000 | $167,232 |
| 42 | Red River Parish | 7,443 | $49,167 | $151,462 |
| 43 | Winn Parish | 13,467 | $48,871 | $105,538 |
| 44 | St. Mary Parish | 47,828 | $52,576 | $135,778 |
| 45 | Union Parish | 20,821 | $42,885 | $153,157 |
| 46 | Richland Parish | 19,822 | $53,544 | $165,479 |
| 47 | Acadia Parish | 56,955 | $45,562 | $154,717 |
| 48 | Jackson Parish | 14,884 | $44,925 | $111,031 |
| 49 | Washington Parish | 45,120 | $45,380 | $131,117 |
| 50 | Claiborne Parish | 13,833 | $32,831 | $83,269 |
| 51 | St. Landry Parish | 81,670 | $44,462 | $139,298 |
| 52 | Morehouse Parish | 24,551 | $39,454 | $93,092 |
| 53 | Caldwell Parish | 9,500 | $47,028 | $131,550 |
| 54 | Catahoula Parish | 8,583 | $50,275 | $117,109 |
| 55 | Allen Parish | 22,477 | $46,469 | $107,941 |
| 56 | Bienville Parish | 12,638 | $35,011 | $104,857 |
| 57 | Franklin Parish | 19,408 | $47,020 | $104,950 |
| 57 | Tensas Parish | 3,935 | $36,615 | $134,172 |
| 59 | St. Helena Parish | 10,858 | $41,934 | $75,563 |
| 59 | Avoyelles Parish | 38,905 | $39,325 | $123,196 |
| 61 | East Carroll Parish | 7,072 | $33,341 | $64,163 |
| 62 | Concordia Parish | 18,174 | $39,943 | $110,271 |
| 63 | Evangeline Parish | 32,060 | $41,915 | $97,740 |
| 64 | Madison Parish | 9,513 | $35,456 | $77,571 |
Source: U.S. Census ACS + FBI crime data via Saturday Night Science. All 64 Louisiana counties.
Summary
Summary: The Best Counties In Louisiana To Call Home For 2026
Living in Louisiana can vary from one part of the state to the next — who woulda thought?
The best counties in Louisiana are Cameron Parish, Ascension Parish, St. Tammany Parish, West Feliciana Parish, Plaquemines Parish, St. James Parish, West Baton Rouge Parish, Livingston Parish, St. Charles Parish, and East Feliciana Parish.
But now you know the outstanding parts and the parts to avoid, and that’s why you came here to learn at the end of the day.
You are welcome. Not sold on Louisiana? Take the two-minute Find Your Place quiz and see which state actually fits you.
Questions and answers
Best Counties In Louisiana FAQs
What is the best county to live in Louisiana?
Cameron Parish is the best county to live in Louisiana for 2026, according to Saturday Night Science. Ascension Parish and St. Tammany Parish are next.
What are the best counties in Louisiana?
The best counties to live in Louisiana are Cameron Parish, Ascension Parish, St. Tammany Parish, West Feliciana Parish, Plaquemines Parish, St. James Parish, West Baton Rouge Parish, Livingston Parish, St. Charles Parish, and East Feliciana Parish. We ranked all 64 Louisiana counties.
How do you rank the best counties?
Counties are scored on crime, home values, income, unemployment, education, insurance coverage, and poverty, using Census American Community Survey and FBI data. The county with the best average across all seven, Cameron Parish, wins.
How expensive is it to live in Cameron Parish?
The median household income in Cameron Parish is $75,278 and the median home costs $236,497. Statewide, the typical Louisiana home runs $211,635.
Which county in Louisiana should you think twice about?
Madison Parish lands at the bottom of the quality-of-life ranking for Louisiana. People make good lives there anyway; the numbers just say it is the toughest of the 64 counties.
