Salt Lake City 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 Salt Lake City 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 Salt Lake City: incomes, home prices, unemployment, schools, the works. The result is a no-nonsense ranking of where you actually want to live.
Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table
The 10 best suburbs to live around Salt Lake City for 2026:
What’s the best suburb of Salt Lake City? Fruit Heights ranks as the best suburb of Salt Lake City for 2026 based on the most recent Census and FBI data. If you happen to be a resident of Fruit Heights, you’re probably not too surprised to find it on the top our list.
We’ll tell you what makes each of these 10 Salt Lake City ‘burbs better than the rest–but first, a bit about our methodology.
Feel free to check out some more reading about Utah:
The 10 Best Salt Lake City Suburbs To Live For 2026
/10
Population: 6,023
Median Income: $140,679
Unemployment Rate: 0.2%
Poverty Rate: 3.9%
More on Fruit Heights: Data | Cost Of Living | Movers
Fruit Heights is always mentioned as one of the best suburbs in the Salt Lake City area. We’ll tell you the good about “Awesome Fruit Heights.”
Everyone here is rich; families average $140,679 a year, which is the 4th highest in the Salt Lake City region. And only 0.17% are out of work. Homes average more than $758,826 each.

/10
Population: 6,171
Median Income: $157,065
Unemployment Rate: 2.6%
Poverty Rate: 1.7%
More on Midway: Data | Cost Of Living | Movers
Midway is the second best ‘burb we looked at near Salt Lake City for 2026.
It ranks 3rd for incomes in the area and only 2.79% of residents lack insurance, good for 5th best.
/10
Population: 8,115
Median Income: $138,600
Unemployment Rate: 1.3%
Poverty Rate: 2.2%
More on South Weber: Data | Cost Of Living | Movers
Here in South Weber, it’s really safe, and residents are just about as rich as you’ll see in the Salt Lake City 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 South Weber.

/10
Population: 20,119
Median Income: $186,075
Unemployment Rate: 3.9%
Poverty Rate: 1.9%
More on Highland: Data | Cost Of Living | Movers
Highland ranks as the 4th best suburb of Salt Lake City for 2026.
You won’t find many better places to raise your kids in the region than in Highland and the schools are some of the best around.

/10
Population: 82,686
Median Income: $134,047
Unemployment Rate: 2.4%
Poverty Rate: 3.7%
More on South Jordan: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
Coming in as the fifth best is South Jordan.
South Jordan gets kudos for having the 12th most expensive homes in the Salt Lake City area, where houses sell for an average of $665,928. However, the cost of living here is among the highest in the area.

/10
Population: 31,099
Median Income: $117,043
Unemployment Rate: 2.7%
Poverty Rate: 4.1%
More on Holladay: Data | Cost Of Living | Movers
Holladay 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 2.68%.
According to online reports, Holladay is quickly becoming one of the more affluent suburbs in the Salt Lake City area, meaning you need to get in soon.

/10
Population: 35,488
Median Income: $133,443
Unemployment Rate: 1.2%
Poverty Rate: 4.8%
More on Syracuse: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
The 7th best suburb on our list goes to Syracuse.
Syracuse 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 24.8 miles to downtown, which is a good thing.

/10
Population: 33,053
Median Income: $133,026
Unemployment Rate: 2.8%
Poverty Rate: 3.4%
More on Kaysville: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
Kaysville 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 3.42% of people lack insurance, good for 9th in the area.

/10
Population: 16,679
Median Income: $123,130
Unemployment Rate: 2.3%
Poverty Rate: 3.1%
More on Centerville: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
Is ‘Everything Better In Centerville?’
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: 10,392
Median Income: $168,929
Unemployment Rate: 2.0%
Poverty Rate: 7.4%
More on Alpine: Data | Cost Of Living | Movers
And rounding out the top ten for 2026 is Alpine.
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 Salt Lake City for 2026
Figuring out the best suburbs around Salt Lake City 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 Salt Lake City.
Additionally, we limited the analysis to places that have over 4,000 people. This left us with a grand total of 43 suburbs to evaluate around Salt Lake City.
We ranked each place with scores from 1 to 43 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 Salt Lake City.” We’re lookin’ at you, Fruit Heights.
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 Salt Lake City suburbs. Skip to the end to see the list of all the suburbs ranked from best to worst.
Summary: Welcome to the Best Salt Lake City ‘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 Salt Lake City are .
So if you’re craving the amenities of a larger city like Salt Lake City but don’t want to deal with the drawbacks, one of these suburbs might be for you.
For more Utah reading, check out:
Table: Best Salt Lake City Suburbs
| Rank | City | Population | Median Income | Average Home Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fruit Heights, UT | 6,023 | $140,679 | $758,826 |
| 2 | Midway, UT | 6,171 | $157,065 | $934,920 |
| 3 | South Weber, UT | 8,115 | $138,600 | $603,379 |
| 4 | Highland, UT | 20,119 | $186,075 | $971,049 |
| 5 | South Jordan, UT | 82,686 | $134,047 | $665,928 |
| 6 | Holladay, UT | 31,099 | $117,043 | $832,129 |
| 7 | Syracuse, UT | 35,488 | $133,443 | $584,933 |
| 8 | Kaysville, UT | 33,053 | $133,026 | $682,325 |
| 9 | Centerville, UT | 16,679 | $123,130 | $588,128 |
| 10 | Alpine, UT | 10,392 | $168,929 | $1,172,441 |
| 11 | West Point, UT | 11,929 | $120,687 | $554,465 |
| 12 | Farmington, UT | 25,389 | $127,338 | $692,138 |
| 13 | Cedar Hills, UT | 9,950 | $139,008 | $665,410 |
| 14 | Bluffdale, UT | 18,797 | $129,531 | $612,682 |
| 15 | Morgan, UT | 4,409 | $115,735 | $742,712 |
| 16 | West Bountiful, UT | 5,915 | $135,179 | $602,324 |
| 17 | Sandy, UT | 94,291 | $112,176 | $665,522 |
| 18 | Riverton, UT | 45,457 | $126,910 | $625,363 |
| 19 | Draper, UT | 50,278 | $128,910 | $806,898 |
| 20 | Cottonwood Heights, UT | 32,828 | $119,422 | $777,467 |
| 21 | Saratoga Springs, UT | 48,425 | $128,802 | $560,223 |
| 22 | Bountiful, UT | 45,023 | $104,785 | $578,283 |
| 23 | Herriman, UT | 59,346 | $122,650 | $607,545 |
| 24 | Woods Cross, UT | 11,531 | $120,543 | $531,312 |
| 25 | Lehi, UT | 85,173 | $131,299 | $568,596 |
| 26 | Pleasant Grove, UT | 37,852 | $101,073 | $555,047 |
| 27 | Roy, UT | 38,993 | $91,282 | $436,793 |
| 28 | Lindon, UT | 11,765 | $120,956 | $726,560 |
| 29 | Washington Terrace, UT | 9,182 | $80,119 | $396,701 |
| 30 | Layton, UT | 83,286 | $102,480 | $527,622 |
| 31 | Clinton, UT | 23,612 | $116,194 | $497,696 |
| 32 | West Jordan, UT | 116,692 | $108,153 | $561,836 |
| 33 | Murray, UT | 50,188 | $90,746 | $551,623 |
| 34 | South Ogden, UT | 17,650 | $80,130 | $431,143 |
| 35 | American Fork, UT | 37,109 | $98,878 | $525,230 |
| 36 | North Salt Lake, UT | 23,474 | $101,447 | $575,885 |
| 37 | Midvale, UT | 35,989 | $75,084 | $492,782 |
| 38 | Clearfield, UT | 33,523 | $75,495 | $424,500 |
| 39 | Taylorsville, UT | 58,678 | $86,413 | $497,265 |
| 40 | Tooele, UT | 38,405 | $96,221 | $432,504 |
| 41 | Riverdale, UT | 9,279 | $67,323 | $461,455 |
| 42 | Sunset, UT | 5,587 | $76,364 | $377,637 |
| 43 | South Salt Lake, UT | 26,352 | $72,152 | $440,874 |
