While big cities like Salem offer culture, cuisine, and charisma, they also deliver terrible traffic, towering expenses, and a taxing quality of life.
With that in mind, we wanted to uncover the best suburbs around Salem. These burbs have all of the benefits of being near Salem without actually having to be in the city.
Of course, not all suburbs of Salem are created equally, which is precisely why we set out to find the best ones. Using Saturday Night Science, we delve into the factors that matter most, from commutes and housing costs to community vibes, to help you uncover the perfect suburban spots in the Greater Salem area.
Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table
The 10 best suburbs to live around Salem for 2025:
What’s the best suburb of Salem? Sublimity ranks as the best suburb of Salem for 2025 based on the most recent Census and FBI data. If you happen to be a resident of Sublimity, you’re probably not too surprised to find it on the top our list.
We’ll tell you what makes each of these 10 Salem ‘burbs better than the rest–but first, a bit about our methodology.
Feel free to check out some more reading about Oregon:
The 10 Best Salem Suburbs To Live For 2025
/10
Population: 2,951
Median Income: $78,007
Unemployment Rate: 1.3%
Poverty Rate: 9.2%
More on Sublimity: Data
Sublimity is always mentioned as one of the best suburbs in the Salem area. We’ll tell you the good about “Awesome Sublimity.”
Everyone here is rich; families average $78,007 a year, which is the 17th highest in the Salem region. And only 1.26% are out of work. Homes average more than $462,800 each.
/10
Population: 3,096
Median Income: $124,101
Unemployment Rate: 2.8%
Poverty Rate: 7.2%
More on Millersburg: Data
Millersburg is the second best ‘burb we looked at near Salem for 2025.
It ranks 1st for incomes in the area and only 6.5% of residents lack insurance, good for 17th best.
/10
Population: 18,103
Median Income: $100,268
Unemployment Rate: 3.6%
Poverty Rate: 6.8%
More on Canby: Data
Here in Canby, it’s really safe, and residents are just about as rich as you’ll see in the Salem 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 Canby.
/10
Population: 4,428
Median Income: $96,419
Unemployment Rate: 4.2%
Poverty Rate: 5.8%
More on Lafayette: Data
Lafayette ranks as the 4th best suburb of Salem for 2025.
You won’t find many better places to raise your kids in the region than in Lafayette and the schools are some of the best around.
Crime is normal, schools are pretty good! I love this town now, although I did not use to. The community here is amazing. It takes a village to raise a family and I have that here.
The community is amazing! But have a security system because there is a few town hoodlums who like to cause trouble.
/10
Population: 25,622
Median Income: $91,389
Unemployment Rate: 3.5%
Poverty Rate: 9.0%
More on Newberg: Data
Coming in as the fifth best is Newberg.
Newberg gets kudos for having the 9th most expensive homes in the Salem area, where houses sell for an average of $453,700. However, the cost of living here is among the highest in the area.
/10
Population: 10,168
Median Income: $83,996
Unemployment Rate: 4.6%
Poverty Rate: 7.1%
More on Molalla: Data
Molalla 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 4.55%.
According to online reports, Molalla is quickly becoming one of the more affluent suburbs in the Salem area, meaning you need to get in soon.
/10
Population: 3,215
Median Income: $100,208
Unemployment Rate: 5.1%
Poverty Rate: 4.4%
More on Dundee: Data
The 7th best suburb on our list goes to Dundee.
Dundee 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 24.3 miles to downtown, which is a good thing.
/10
Population: 3,107
Median Income: $99,545
Unemployment Rate: 7.7%
Poverty Rate: 3.7%
More on Turner: Data
Turner 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 4.51% of people lack insurance, good for 8th in the area.
/10
Population: 39,013
Median Income: $81,217
Unemployment Rate: 4.6%
Poverty Rate: 8.4%
More on Keizer: Data
Is ‘Everything Better In Keizer?’
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.
/10
Population: 4,220
Median Income: $89,651
Unemployment Rate: 2.5%
Poverty Rate: 12.2%
More on Aumsville: Data
And rounding out the top ten for 2025 is Aumsville.
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.
Methodology: How We Determined The Best Suburbs Around Salem for 2025
Figuring out the best suburbs around Salem 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 2019-2023 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 Salem.
Additionally, we limited the analysis to places that have over 2,000 people. This left us with a grand total of 29 suburbs to evaluate around Salem.
We ranked each place with scores from 1 to 29 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 Salem.” We’re lookin’ at you, Sublimity.
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 2025. This report is our tenth time ranking the best Salem suburbs. Skip to the end to see the list of all the suburbs ranked from best to worst.
Summary: Welcome to the Best Salem ‘Burbs of 2025
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 Salem are .
So if you’re craving the amenities of a larger city like Salem but don’t want to deal with the drawbacks, one of these suburbs might be for you.
For more Oregon reading, check out:
Table: Best Salem Suburbs
| Rank | City | Population | Median Income | Average Home Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sublimity, OR | 2,951 | $78,007 | $462,800 |
| 2 | Millersburg, OR | 3,096 | $124,101 | $498,700 |
| 3 | Canby, OR | 18,103 | $100,268 | $479,500 |
| 4 | Lafayette, OR | 4,428 | $96,419 | $383,000 |
| 5 | Newberg, OR | 25,622 | $91,389 | $453,700 |
| 6 | Molalla, OR | 10,168 | $83,996 | $416,900 |
| 7 | Dundee, OR | 3,215 | $100,208 | $482,300 |
| 8 | Turner, OR | 3,107 | $99,545 | $473,800 |
| 9 | Keizer, OR | 39,013 | $81,217 | $396,700 |
| 10 | Aumsville, OR | 4,220 | $89,651 | $307,400 |
| 11 | Wilsonville, OR | 26,183 | $87,371 | $584,700 |
| 12 | Hubbard, OR | 3,421 | $98,750 | $399,100 |
| 13 | Silverton, OR | 10,445 | $74,286 | $461,800 |
| 14 | Stayton, OR | 8,223 | $72,557 | $395,400 |
| 15 | Monmouth, OR | 11,176 | $66,858 | $380,500 |
| 16 | Independence, OR | 10,088 | $79,158 | $345,200 |
| 17 | Corvallis, OR | 60,424 | $63,807 | $480,600 |
| 18 | Carlton, OR | 2,378 | $94,227 | $400,600 |
| 19 | Jefferson, OR | 3,316 | $90,391 | $333,000 |
| 20 | Gervais, OR | 2,588 | $86,250 | $330,400 |
| 21 | Dallas, OR | 17,214 | $65,647 | $355,700 |
| 22 | Albany, OR | 56,773 | $73,809 | $352,900 |
| 23 | Mcminnville, OR | 34,493 | $70,060 | $391,100 |
| 24 | Sheridan, OR | 6,462 | $69,375 | $281,800 |
| 25 | Dayton, OR | 2,668 | $79,556 | $372,900 |
| 26 | Woodburn, OR | 26,845 | $67,469 | $308,400 |
| 27 | Willamina, OR | 2,216 | $56,211 | $265,300 |
| 28 | Mount Angel, OR | 3,405 | $62,500 | $403,000 |
| 29 | Lebanon, OR | 18,978 | $56,740 | $295,900 |