Fort Collins has plenty to offer, but the price of admission usually comes with traffic, sky-high rent, and a calendar that fills itself.
If you want the upside of Fort Collins without the daily grind, the answer is almost always a good suburb. The catch: not every suburb is worth the move.
So we ranked them. Using Saturday Night Science, we pulled the numbers on every place within commuting distance of Fort Collins: incomes, home prices, unemployment, schools, the works. The result is a no-nonsense ranking of where you actually want to live.
$178,257 median income · $675,535 median home price
Timnath is always mentioned as one of the best suburbs in the Fort Collins area. We’ll tell you the good about “Awesome Timnath.”
Everyone here is rich; families average $178,257 a year, which is the highest in the Fort Collins region. And only 0.6% are out of work. Homes average more than $675,535 each.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$119,385 median income · $606,280 median home price
Located in
Weld County, Colorado
Berthoud is the second best ‘burb we looked at near Fort Collins for 2026.
It ranks 6th for incomes in the area and only 4.8% of residents lack insurance, good for 7th best.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$125,357 median income · $556,278 median home price
Here in Mead, it’s really safe, and residents are just about as rich as you’ll see in the Fort Collins 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 Mead.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$124,572 median income · $495,599 median home price
Severance ranks as the 4th best suburb of Fort Collins for 2026.
You won’t find many better places to raise your kids in the region than in Severance and the schools are some of the best around.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$127,028 median income · $577,243 median home price
Located in
Weld County, Colorado
Coming in as the fifth best is Windsor.
Windsor gets kudos for having the 4th most expensive homes in the Fort Collins area, where houses sell for an average of $577,243. However, the cost of living here is among the highest in the area.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$120,150 median income · $570,742 median home price
Located in
Weld County, Colorado
Firestone 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 4.2%.
According to online reports, Firestone is quickly becoming one of the more affluent suburbs in the Fort Collins area, meaning you need to get in soon.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$107,500 median income · $450,807 median home price
Located in
Weld County, Colorado
The 7th best suburb on our list goes to Milliken.
Milliken 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 19.7 miles to downtown, which is a good thing.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$85,956 median income · $684,046 median home price
Located in
Larimer County, Colorado
Estes Park 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 7.8% of people lack insurance, good for 14th in the area.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers | Compare
$107,017 median income · $470,775 median home price
Located in
Larimer County, Colorado
Is ‘Everything Better In Wellington?’
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.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$95,833 median income · $438,352 median home price
And rounding out the top ten for 2026 is La Salle.
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.
The receipts
Compare the top ten
Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is Colorado’s statewide median.
Colorado statewide median: $95,470
Colorado statewide median: $541,842
Colorado statewide median: 4.6%
Colorado statewide median: 9.4%
On the map
Where the best Fort Collins suburbs are
Saturday Night Science
Methodology: How we determined the best suburbs around Fort Collins for 2026
Figuring out the best suburbs around Fort Collins was simple. We used Saturday Night Science to find things people like about living in the suburbs and then locate the suburbs with those things.
We analyzed the newest American Community Survey data for 2020-2024 to research each suburb. We decided upon the following criteria:
- 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
We defined a suburb as being within 30 miles of Fort Collins.
Additionally, we limited the analysis to places that have over 2,000 people. This left us with a grand total of 18 suburbs to evaluate around Fort Collins.
We ranked each place with scores from 1 to 18 in each category, where 1 was the best.
Next, we averaged the rankings for each place to create a quality-of-life index.
Finally, we crowned the city with the best quality of life index, the “Best Suburb near Fort Collins.” We’re lookin’ at you, Timnath.
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 more extensive selection of suburbs.
We updated the data for 2026. This report is our eleventh time ranking the best Fort Collins suburbs. Skip to the end to see the list of all the suburbs ranked from best to worst.
The full plate
Table: Best Fort Collins Suburbs
Click any column to sort. Search by city name.
| Rank | City | Suburb Score | Population | Median Income | Median Home Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Timnath | 4.43 | 8,941 | $178,257 | $675,535 |
| 2 | Berthoud | 6.71 | 12,411 | $119,385 | $606,280 |
| 3 | Mead | 6.79 | 5,919 | $125,357 | $556,278 |
| 4 | Severance | 7.00 | 10,130 | $124,572 | $495,599 |
| 5 | Windsor | 7.29 | 37,914 | $127,028 | $577,243 |
| 6 | Firestone | 7.43 | 18,049 | $120,150 | $570,742 |
| 7 | Milliken | 7.71 | 8,871 | $107,500 | $450,807 |
| 8 | Estes Park | 7.86 | 5,844 | $85,956 | $684,046 |
| 9 | Wellington | 9.43 | 11,798 | $107,017 | $470,775 |
| 10 | La Salle | 9.57 | 3,061 | $95,833 | $438,352 |
| 11 | Longmont | 9.64 | 99,406 | $90,671 | $556,720 |
| 12 | Loveland | 10.14 | 78,410 | $84,604 | $500,792 |
| 13 | Eaton | 10.29 | 5,867 | $106,294 | $466,373 |
| 14 | Ault | 11.00 | 2,425 | $95,049 | $437,167 |
| 15 | Johnstown | 11.14 | 8,111 | $63,763 | $192,659 |
| 16 | Greeley | 14.43 | 110,806 | $69,881 | $420,464 |
| 17 | Platteville | 14.71 | 2,928 | $74,500 | $519,062 |
| 18 | Evans | 15.43 | 22,396 | $75,563 | $394,719 |
Source: U.S. Census ACS 2020-2024. 18 suburbs within 30 miles of Fort Collins.
Summary
Summary: Welcome to the Best Fort Collins ‘Burbs of 2026
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.
The best suburbs of Fort Collins are Timnath, Berthoud, Mead, Severance, Windsor, Firestone, Milliken, Estes Park, Wellington, and La Salle.
So if you’re craving the amenities of a larger city like Fort Collins but don’t want to deal with the drawbacks, one of these suburbs might be for you. Not sold on Colorado? Take the two-minute Find Your Place quiz and see which state actually fits you.
Questions and answers
Best Suburbs Of Fort Collins FAQs
What is the best suburb of Fort Collins?
Timnath is the best suburb of Fort Collins for 2026, according to Saturday Night Science. Berthoud and Mead are next.
What are the best suburbs of Fort Collins?
The best suburbs of Fort Collins are Timnath, Berthoud, Mead, Severance, Windsor, Firestone, Milliken, Estes Park, Wellington, and La Salle. We ranked all 18 places within commuting range.
How expensive is Timnath?
The median household income in Timnath is $178,257 and the median home costs $675,535. Top suburbs rarely come cheap; that is part of how they got there.
What counts as a suburb of Fort Collins?
Any place within 30 miles of Fort Collins qualifies. 18 towns fit that circle, and every one of them got scored.
How do you rank Fort Collins suburbs?
Each suburb is scored on income, home values, density, unemployment, education, insurance coverage, and poverty, using Census American Community Survey data. The best combined score, Timnath, takes the crown.
