Tacoma 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 Tacoma 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 Tacoma: 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 Tacoma for 2026:
What’s the best suburb of Tacoma? Mercer Island ranks as the best suburb of Tacoma for 2026 based on the most recent Census and FBI data. If you happen to be a resident of Mercer Island, you’re probably not too surprised to find it on the top our list.
We’ll tell you what makes each of these 10 Tacoma ‘burbs better than the rest–but first, a bit about our methodology.
Feel free to check out some more reading about Washington:
The 10 Best Tacoma Suburbs To Live For 2026
/10
Population: 25,307
Median Income: $219,069
Unemployment Rate: 3.0%
Poverty Rate: 3.8%
More on Mercer Island: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
Mercer Island is always mentioned as one of the best suburbs in the Tacoma area. We’ll tell you the good about “Awesome Mercer Island.”
Everyone here is rich; families average $219,069 a year, which is the 3rd highest in the Tacoma region. And only 3.03% are out of work. Homes average more than $2,326,984 each.
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Clyde Hill is the second best ‘burb we looked at near Tacoma for 2026.
It ranks 1st for incomes in the area and only 0.26% of residents lack insurance, good for best.
3. Medina, WA
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Population: 2,928
Median Income: $250,001
Unemployment Rate: 2.8%
Poverty Rate: 4.7%
More on Medina: Crime | Movers
Here in Medina, it’s really safe, and residents are just about as rich as you’ll see in the Tacoma 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 Medina.
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Population: 39,591
Median Income: $154,669
Unemployment Rate: 3.3%
Poverty Rate: 5.2%
More on Issaquah: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
Issaquah ranks as the 4th best suburb of Tacoma for 2026.
You won’t find many better places to raise your kids in the region than in Issaquah and the schools are some of the best around.
/10
Population: 28,287
Median Income: $152,885
Unemployment Rate: 4.8%
Poverty Rate: 4.8%
More on Maple Valley: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
Coming in as the fifth best is Maple Valley.
Maple Valley gets kudos for having the 11th most expensive homes in the Tacoma area, where houses sell for an average of $799,653. However, the cost of living here is among the highest in the area.
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Population: 6,659
Median Income: $162,476
Unemployment Rate: 2.3%
Poverty Rate: 4.9%
More on Normandy Park: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
Normandy Park 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 2.28%.
According to online reports, Normandy Park is quickly becoming one of the more affluent suburbs in the Tacoma area, meaning you need to get in soon.
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Population: 24,631
Median Income: $172,188
Unemployment Rate: 2.8%
Poverty Rate: 3.5%
More on Bainbridge Island: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
The 7th best suburb on our list goes to Bainbridge Island.
Bainbridge Island 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 27.0 miles to downtown, which is a good thing.
Just moved to Bainbridge Island last year and we think it’s fabulous! Weak reasons for BI to appear on this list! And I’ll take 35 minute ferry ride any day instead of sitting in my car in traffic!
That 35 minutes; read the paper, check emails, and a fabulous Happy Hour on the ride home! Are you kidding me!!! Who made up this list- BTW, there’s plenty to do on the island! Hiking, kayaking, horseback riding, shopping, boating, golf, tennis, should I go on-
/10
Black Diamond 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 2.52% of people lack insurance, good for 9th in the area.
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Population: 151,847
Median Income: $165,576
Unemployment Rate: 4.2%
Poverty Rate: 7.2%
More on Bellevue: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
Is ‘Everything Better In Bellevue?’
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.
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Population: 12,989
Median Income: $160,278
Unemployment Rate: 5.6%
Poverty Rate: 5.9%
More on Newcastle: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Movers
And rounding out the top ten for 2026 is Newcastle.
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 Tacoma for 2026
Figuring out the best suburbs around Tacoma 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 Tacoma.
Additionally, we limited the analysis to places that have over 2,000 people. This left us with a grand total of 45 suburbs to evaluate around Tacoma.
We ranked each place with scores from 1 to 45 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 Tacoma.” We’re lookin’ at you, Mercer Island.
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 Tacoma suburbs. Skip to the end to see the list of all the suburbs ranked from best to worst.
Summary: Welcome to the Best Tacoma ‘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 Tacoma are .
So if you’re craving the amenities of a larger city like Tacoma but don’t want to deal with the drawbacks, one of these suburbs might be for you.
For more Washington reading, check out:
Table: Best Tacoma Suburbs
| Rank | City | Population | Median Income | Average Home Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mercer Island, WA | 25,307 | $219,069 | $2,326,984 |
| 2 | Clyde Hill, WA | 3,119 | $250,001 | $4,133,450 |
| 3 | Medina, WA | 2,928 | $250,001 | $4,512,513 |
| 4 | Issaquah, WA | 39,591 | $154,669 | $1,158,594 |
| 5 | Maple Valley, WA | 28,287 | $152,885 | $799,653 |
| 6 | Normandy Park, WA | 6,659 | $162,476 | $1,050,868 |
| 7 | Bainbridge Island, WA | 24,631 | $172,188 | $1,173,702 |
| 8 | Black Diamond, WA | 5,961 | $141,383 | $776,133 |
| 9 | Bellevue, WA | 151,847 | $165,576 | $1,516,153 |
| 10 | Newcastle, WA | 12,989 | $160,278 | $1,424,187 |
| 11 | Bonney Lake, WA | 22,090 | $136,845 | $676,347 |
| 12 | Seattle, WA | 754,195 | $123,860 | $868,680 |
| 13 | Orting, WA | 8,978 | $132,877 | $560,310 |
| 14 | Covington, WA | 21,233 | $134,502 | $678,607 |
| 15 | Gig Harbor, WA | 12,424 | $118,395 | $820,740 |
| 16 | Eatonville, WA | 2,850 | $114,688 | $595,998 |
| 17 | Enumclaw, WA | 12,798 | $121,250 | $680,130 |
| 18 | University Place, WA | 34,911 | $99,031 | $661,409 |
| 19 | Edgewood, WA | 13,032 | $116,132 | $737,911 |
| 20 | Fircrest, WA | 7,069 | $113,926 | $623,545 |
| 21 | Dupont, WA | 9,931 | $120,781 | $621,241 |
| 22 | Renton, WA | 105,317 | $100,432 | $764,374 |
| 23 | Buckley, WA | 5,371 | $124,583 | $657,837 |
| 24 | Steilacoom, WA | 6,686 | $100,851 | $640,510 |
| 25 | Puyallup, WA | 42,746 | $97,826 | $570,441 |
| 26 | Tumwater, WA | 26,956 | $95,212 | $526,057 |
| 27 | Sumner, WA | 10,733 | $98,191 | $593,647 |
| 28 | Port Orchard, WA | 17,149 | $89,795 | $556,427 |
| 29 | Yelm, WA | 11,102 | $90,750 | $489,021 |
| 30 | Milton, WA | 8,894 | $96,540 | $572,123 |
| 31 | Auburn, WA | 85,676 | $97,884 | $614,182 |
| 32 | Des Moines, WA | 32,823 | $92,483 | $612,731 |
| 33 | Lacey, WA | 57,737 | $90,625 | $516,096 |
| 34 | Pacific, WA | 7,066 | $115,625 | $561,715 |
| 35 | Federal Way, WA | 99,493 | $86,909 | $601,744 |
| 36 | Kent, WA | 135,603 | $92,302 | $656,313 |
| 37 | Burien, WA | 51,513 | $91,318 | $650,468 |
| 38 | Rainier, WA | 2,455 | $106,019 | $519,678 |
| 39 | Olympia, WA | 55,951 | $81,302 | $533,713 |
| 40 | Fife, WA | 10,949 | $90,532 | $557,638 |
| 41 | Lakewood, WA | 62,937 | $74,720 | $521,148 |
| 42 | Seatac, WA | 32,414 | $81,104 | $553,220 |
| 43 | Bremerton, WA | 44,830 | $74,940 | $483,131 |
| 44 | Algona, WA | 3,247 | $85,332 | $537,999 |
| 45 | Tukwila, WA | 21,451 | $78,381 | $575,995 |
