The 10 Best Denver Suburbs To Live In For 2022


We analyzed over 35 places around Denver to identify the most in demand places to live.

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Editor’s Note: Data has been updated for 2022. This is our ninth time ranking the best Denver suburbs.

Big city living isn't for everyone--but at the same time, urban areas certainly have their perks.

There's the culture, the food, the arts, the food, the energy, and you know, the food. But there are drawbacks. There's traffic, expensive parking, expensive housing--pretty much, expensive everything, depending on which big city you're looking at.

But that's where the suburbs come in--they have all of the benefits of being near big cities, without actually having to be big cities.

Of course, not all suburbs of Denver are created equally, which is precisely why we set out to find the best ones. So without further ado...

Here are the 10 best suburbs to live around Denver for 2022:

  1. Castle Pines
  2. Castle Pines
  3. Castle Pines
  4. Castle Pines
  5. Superior
  6. Lone Tree
  7. Centennial
  8. Louisville
  9. Parker
  10. Erie

What's the best suburb of Denver? Castle Pines ranks as the best suburb of Denver for 2022 based on the most recent Census and FBI data. If you happen to be a resident of Castle Pines, you're probably not too surprised to find it on the top our list.

We'll tell you what makes each of these 10 Denver 'burbs better than the rest--but first, a bit about our methodology.

Note: This result may differ from our state wide data as we did not include commute times and crime for this analysis to allow for a larger selection of suburbs.

Feel free to check out some more reading about Colorado:

The 10 Best Denver Suburbs To Live For 2022

Castle Pines is always mentioned as one of the best suburbs in the Denver area. We'll tell you the good about "Awesome Castle Pines."

Everyone here is rich; families average $178,036 a year, which is the highest in the Denver region. And only 2.7% are out of work. Homes average more than $652,300 each.

Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 10,977
Rank Last Year: 1 (No Change)
Median Income: $178,036
Unemployment Rate: 2.7%
Poverty Rate: 4.6%
More on Castle Pines: Real Estate | Data | Photos

Castle Pines, CO

Source: Public domain

Castle Pines is the second best 'burb we looked at near Denver for 2022.

It ranks 1st for incomes in the area and only 3.57% of residents lack insurance, good for 5th best.

Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 10,977
Rank Last Year: 2 (Up 1)
Median Income: $178,036
Unemployment Rate: 2.7%
Poverty Rate: 4.6%
More on Castle Pines: Real Estate | Data | Photos

Castle Pines, CO

Source: Public domain

Here in Castle Pines, it's really safe, and residents are just about as rich as you'll see in the Denver metro area.

The bad side? Schools are more crowded, and the cost of living puts a large part of the city out of reach for most families.

But price is based on demand and a lot of people want to live in Castle Pines.

Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 10,977
Rank Last Year: 1 (Down 1)
Median Income: $178,036
Unemployment Rate: 2.7%
Poverty Rate: 4.6%
More on Castle Pines: Real Estate | Data | Photos

Castle Pines, CO

Source: Public domain

Castle Pines ranks as the 4th best suburb of Denver for 2022.

You won't find many better places to raise your kids in the region than in Castle Pines and the schools are some of the best around.

Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 10,977
Rank Last Year: 2 (No Change)
Median Income: $178,036
Unemployment Rate: 2.7%
Poverty Rate: 4.6%
More on Castle Pines: Real Estate | Data | Photos

Castle Pines, CO

Source: Public domain

Coming in as the fifth best is Superior.

Superior gets kudos for having the 6th most expensive homes in the Denver area, where houses sell for an average of $603,600. However, the cost of living here is among the highest in the area.

Overall SnackAbility

7.5
/10

Population: 13,292
Rank Last Year: 4 (Up 1)
Median Income: $126,600
Unemployment Rate: 2.9%
Poverty Rate: 4.0%
More on Superior: Real Estate | Data | Photos

Superior, CO

Lone Tree is proud of its 6th place finish on this list. And here's why.

Most residents have great jobs and the unemployment rate sits at 2.5% which is 2nd best in the area.

According to online reports, Lone Tree is quickly becoming one of the more affluent suburbs in the Denver area, meaning you need to get in soon.

Overall SnackAbility

8.5
/10

Population: 13,381
Rank Last Year: 5 (Up 1)
Median Income: $113,795
Unemployment Rate: 2.5%
Poverty Rate: 3.8%
More on Lone Tree: Real Estate | Data | Photos

Lone Tree, CO

The 7th best suburb on our list goes to Centennial.

Centennial schools are some of the best in the region, and crime is really low. The cost of living makes it a lot more desirable for many families, especially first-time home buyers.

And, it's only 11.8 miles to downtown, which is a good thing.

Overall SnackAbility

7.5
/10

Population: 111,331
Rank Last Year: 3 (Down 2)
Median Income: $109,767
Unemployment Rate: 3.6%
Poverty Rate: 3.0%
More on Centennial: Real Estate | Data | Photos

Centennial, CO

Louisville is growing quickly, and for a good reason. Crime is far below average, and most residents are gainfully employed. Even the cost of living is reasonable.

A solid 2.19% of people lack insurance, good for 1st in the area.

Overall SnackAbility

7.5
/10

Population: 19,342
Rank Last Year: 8 (Up 2)
Median Income: $116,073
Unemployment Rate: 3.5%
Poverty Rate: 5.4%
More on Louisville: Real Estate | Data | Photos

Louisville, CO

Source: Public domain

Is 'Everything Better In Parker?'

Almost.

It placed 9th on our list thanks to the fact that it's really expensive to live here, but the schools are great, so you get what you pay for in that regard.

Overall SnackAbility

9.5
/10

Population: 55,460
Rank Last Year: 6 (Down 1)
Median Income: $114,802
Unemployment Rate: 3.5%
Poverty Rate: 3.5%
More on Parker: Real Estate | Data | Photos

Parker, CO

And rounding out the top ten for 2022 is Erie.

This city is far above average in every category, and the best part? It's far more affordable than the other cities listed above. So, you get a big bang for your buck here.

Overall SnackAbility

7
/10

Population: 27,157
Rank Last Year: 9 (Up 1)
Median Income: $124,480
Unemployment Rate: 5.0%
Poverty Rate: 4.7%
More on Erie: Real Estate | Data | Photos

Erie, CO

Methodology: How We Determined The Best Suburbs Around Denver for 2022

Figuring out the best suburbs around Denver was pretty simple; we just needed to list several things that people like, and then find out which cities have the most of those things.

We threw a lot of criteria at this one in order to get the best, most complete results possible:

  • Low unemployment rate
  • High Median household incomes
  • Population density (lots of things to do)
  • High home values
  • A lot of college educated people
  • Low poverty
  • High rate of insured families

Then we used the newest American Community Survey data for 2016-2020 to research each suburb.

FYI: We defined a suburb as being within 30 miles of Denver.

Additionally, we limited the analysis to places that have over 2,000 people. This left us with a grand total of 37 suburbs to evaluate around Denver.

We ranked each place with scores from 1 to 37 in each category, where 1 was the "best.

Next, we averaged the rankings for each place to create a quality of life index.

And finally, we crowned the city with the best quality of life index the "Best Suburb near Denver." We're lookin' at you, Castle Pines. You can download the data here.

Read on below to learn more about what it's like to live in the best of the best. Or skip to the end to see the list of all the suburbs ranked from best to worst.

Summary: Welcome to the Best Denver 'Burbs of 2022

We said it once and we'll say it again--life in the big city isn't for everyone. At least not all the time.

So if you're hankering for some of the amenities of a larger city like Denver, but don't want to deal with the drawbacks, one of these suburbs might just be for you.

For more Colorado reading, check out:

Detailed List Of The Best Denver Suburbs

Rank City Population Median Income
1 Castle Pines, CO 10,977 $178,036
2 Castle Pines, CO 10,977 $178,036
3 Castle Pines, CO 10,977 $178,036
4 Castle Pines, CO 10,977 $178,036
5 Superior, CO 13,292 $126,600
6 Lone Tree, CO 13,381 $113,795
7 Centennial, CO 111,331 $109,767
8 Louisville, CO 19,342 $116,073
9 Parker, CO 55,460 $114,802
10 Erie, CO 27,157 $124,480
11 Frederick, CO 10,414 $107,443
12 Broomfield, CO 69,444 $101,206
13 Lafayette, CO 27,952 $85,909
14 Castle Rock, CO 65,176 $113,585
15 Littleton, CO 46,208 $76,375
16 Arvada, CO 120,229 $92,669
17 Firestone, CO 13,165 $97,862
18 Boulder, CO 108,777 $72,279
19 Northglenn, CO 39,201 $71,104
20 Golden, CO 20,391 $80,338
21 Westminster, CO 114,832 $76,378
22 Lakewood, CO 155,733 $71,233
23 Edgewater, CO 5,410 $59,375
24 Englewood, CO 34,840 $66,399
25 Thornton, CO 144,186 $80,732
26 Wheat Ridge, CO 31,889 $63,333
27 Glendale, CO 5,186 $60,573
28 Brighton, CO 38,355 $74,813
29 Dacono, CO 6,167 $73,050
30 Lochbuie, CO 6,795 $68,493
31 Bennett, CO 2,603 $64,107
32 Federal Heights, CO 13,537 $49,291
33 Aurora, CO 379,434 $67,723
34 Sheridan, CO 6,072 $46,202
35 Fort Lupton, CO 8,600 $66,056
36 Hudson, CO 2,691 $52,290
37 Commerce, CO 7,008 $45,034

How Is Your Town In ?

About Chris Kolmar

Chris Kolmar has been in the real estate business for almost ten years now. He originally worked for Movoto Real Estate as the director of marketing before founding HomeSnacks.

He believes the key to finding the right place to live comes down to looking at the data, reading about things to do, and, most importantly, checking it out yourself before you move.

If you've been looking for a place to live in the past several years, you've probably stumbled upon his writing already.

You can find out more about him on LinkedIn or his website.