Raleigh 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 Raleigh 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 Raleigh: incomes, home prices, unemployment, schools, the works. The result is a no-nonsense ranking of where you actually want to live.
$144,135 median income · $599,085 median home price
Located in
Wake County, North Carolina
Apex is always mentioned as one of the best suburbs in the Raleigh area. We’ll tell you the good about “Awesome Apex.”
Everyone here is rich; families average $144,135 a year, which is the 2nd highest in the Raleigh region. And only 3.8% are out of work. Homes average more than $599,085 each.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$125,396 median income · $480,926 median home price
Located in
Wake County, North Carolina
Morrisville is the second best ‘burb we looked at near Raleigh for 2026.
It ranks 5th for incomes in the area and only 3.3% of residents lack insurance, good for best.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$134,905 median income · $626,396 median home price
Located in
Wake County, North Carolina
Here in Cary, it’s really safe, and residents are just about as rich as you’ll see in the Raleigh 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 Cary.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers | Compare
$135,578 median income · $579,090 median home price
Located in
Wake County, North Carolina
Holly Springs ranks as the 4th best suburb of Raleigh for 2026.
You won’t find many better places to raise your kids in the region than in Holly Springs and the schools are some of the best around.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$123,802 median income · $512,161 median home price
Located in
Wake County, North Carolina
Coming in as the fifth best is Wake Forest.
Wake Forest gets kudos for having the 6th most expensive homes in the Raleigh area, where houses sell for an average of $512,161. However, the cost of living here is among the highest in the area.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$115,497 median income · $525,746 median home price
Located in
Wake County, North Carolina
Fuquay-Varina 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 3.6%.
According to online reports, Fuquay-Varina is quickly becoming one of the more affluent suburbs in the Raleigh area, meaning you need to get in soon.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$149,565 median income · $497,996 median home price
Located in
Wake County, North Carolina
The 7th best suburb on our list goes to Rolesville.
Rolesville 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 12.0 miles to downtown, which is a good thing.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$103,220 median income · $370,204 median home price
Located in
Wake County, North Carolina
Knightdale 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 5.0% of people lack insurance, good for 7th in the area.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$85,989 median income · $631,167 median home price
Located in
Orange County, North Carolina
Is ‘Everything Better In Chapel Hill?’
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 | Compare
$85,743 median income · $429,675 median home price
Located in
Orange County, North Carolina
And rounding out the top ten for 2026 is Carrboro.
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.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
The receipts
Compare the top ten
Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is North Carolina’s statewide median.
North Carolina statewide median: $72,388
North Carolina statewide median: $336,408
North Carolina statewide median: 4.7%
North Carolina statewide median: 13.0%
On the map
Where the best Raleigh suburbs are
Saturday Night Science
Methodology: How we determined the best suburbs around Raleigh for 2026
Figuring out the best suburbs around Raleigh 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 Raleigh.
Additionally, we limited the analysis to places that have over 2,000 people. This left us with a grand total of 26 suburbs to evaluate around Raleigh.
We ranked each place with scores from 1 to 26 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 Raleigh.” We’re lookin’ at you, Apex.
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 Raleigh suburbs. Skip to the end to see the list of all the suburbs ranked from best to worst.
The full plate
Table: Best Raleigh Suburbs
Click any column to sort. Search by city name.
| Rank | City | Suburb Score | Population | Median Income | Median Home Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Apex | 4.00 | 70,630 | $144,135 | $599,085 |
| 2 | Morrisville | 4.86 | 31,422 | $125,396 | $480,926 |
| 3 | Cary | 5.14 | 179,306 | $134,905 | $626,396 |
| 4 | Holly Springs | 6.14 | 45,248 | $135,578 | $579,090 |
| 5 | Wake Forest | 7.00 | 52,844 | $123,802 | $512,161 |
| 6 | Fuquay-Varina | 7.21 | 40,485 | $115,497 | $525,746 |
| 7 | Rolesville | 7.50 | 10,766 | $149,565 | $497,996 |
| 8 | Knightdale | 8.43 | 20,214 | $103,220 | $370,204 |
| 9 | Chapel Hill | 10.14 | 61,607 | $85,989 | $631,167 |
| 10 | Carrboro | 10.29 | 21,204 | $85,743 | $429,675 |
| 11 | Youngsville | 10.57 | 3,011 | $86,528 | $410,704 |
| 12 | Wendell | 11.07 | 13,064 | $95,787 | $369,603 |
| 13 | Clayton | 12.29 | 29,320 | $78,822 | $364,742 |
| 14 | Durham | 13.43 | 291,467 | $81,619 | $396,395 |
| 15 | Garner | 14.00 | 34,473 | $78,756 | $384,100 |
| 16 | Archer Lodge | 14.43 | 5,186 | $91,188 | $377,862 |
| 17 | Angier | 16.86 | 6,241 | $52,214 | $333,903 |
| 18 | Creedmoor | 18.50 | 4,997 | $82,961 | $342,137 |
| 19 | Franklinton | 18.71 | 2,645 | $59,464 | $361,642 |
| 20 | Zebulon | 19.36 | 8,711 | $79,112 | $341,721 |
| 21 | Four Oaks | 20.14 | 2,459 | $72,826 | $311,925 |
| 22 | Selma | 21.00 | 6,817 | $41,368 | $275,820 |
| 23 | Butner | 21.79 | 8,065 | $74,739 | $273,631 |
| 24 | Smithfield | 22.00 | 12,116 | $43,270 | $293,391 |
| 25 | Louisburg | 22.57 | 3,263 | $38,036 | $310,828 |
| 26 | Wilson’s Mills | 23.57 | 2,753 | $62,813 | $281,562 |
Source: U.S. Census ACS 2020-2024. 26 suburbs within 30 miles of Raleigh.
Summary
Summary: Welcome to the Best Raleigh ‘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 Raleigh are Apex, Morrisville, Cary, Holly Springs, Wake Forest, Fuquay-Varina, Rolesville, Knightdale, Chapel Hill, and Carrboro.
So if you’re craving the amenities of a larger city like Raleigh but don’t want to deal with the drawbacks, one of these suburbs might be for you. Not sold on North Carolina? Take the two-minute Find Your Place quiz and see which state actually fits you.
Questions and answers
Best Suburbs Of Raleigh FAQs
What is the best suburb of Raleigh?
Apex is the best suburb of Raleigh for 2026, according to Saturday Night Science. Morrisville and Cary are next.
What are the best suburbs of Raleigh?
The best suburbs of Raleigh are Apex, Morrisville, Cary, Holly Springs, Wake Forest, Fuquay-Varina, Rolesville, Knightdale, Chapel Hill, and Carrboro. We ranked all 26 places within commuting range.
How expensive is Apex?
The median household income in Apex is $144,135 and the median home costs $599,085. Top suburbs rarely come cheap; that is part of how they got there.
What counts as a suburb of Raleigh?
Any place within 30 miles of Raleigh qualifies. 26 towns fit that circle, and every one of them got scored.
How do you rank Raleigh 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, Apex, takes the crown.
