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The 10 Best College Towns In Louisiana For 2022 Featured Image

The 10 Best College Towns In Louisiana For 2022


By Nick Johnson & Chris Kolmar | 04/07/2022
Editor's Note: We updated this article for 2022. This is our fifth time ranking the best college towns in Louisiana.
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Believe it or not, America has the best colleges in the world. It's been proven by data (and surveys) that the U.S. educational system is of the highest quality

It's actually not even close and Louisiana is home to a handful of them.

While we could debate which colleges within the are the 'best,' that's not the goal of this post.

Instead, ride along with us as we determine which college towns in Louisiana are the best.

You know, the type of places where there's energy and stimulation, but the type of place you can walk around at night. The happiest, chillest, most downright fun places where you can send your kids off to college where you won't break the bank, or worry about their well being.

Without further ado, here are the best college towns in Louisiana for 2022.

The 10 Best College Towns In Louisiana For 2022

  1. Kenner, LA
  2. Hammond, LA
  3. Lake Charles, LA
  4. Natchitoches, LA
  5. Ruston, LA
  6. Baton Rouge, LA
  7. New Orleans, LA
  8. Monroe, LA
  9. Thibodaux, LA
  10. Grambling, LA

While some of these may not seem like a 'real' college town per se, when you look at the numbers, it's hard to argue against.

And for those who live in Kenner, Hammond and Lake Charles - we tip our hats to you and we'll schedule a tour for next week. You can see where Kenner ranks in terms of the best college town in America.

Read on to find out more or for more on Louisiana check out:

The 10 Best College Towns In Louisiana For 2022

1. Kenner, LA

Kenner, LA
Source: Wikipedia User Infrogmation of New Orlea | CC BY 2.0
Overall SnackAbility
6
/10

Population: 66,759
% Undergrad Pop.: 0.3% (14th best)
Median Rent: $987 (13th best)
Unemployment Rate: 568.3% (4th best)
Crime Rank: best
More on Kenner: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report

Colleges: Herzing University-Kenner, John Jay Beauty College, Healthcare Training Institute

2. Hammond, LA

Hammond, LA
Source: Wikipedia User Richard David Ramsey | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility
6
/10

Population: 20,557
% Undergrad Pop.: 62.8% (2nd best)
Median Rent: $803 (6th best)
Unemployment Rate: 798.1% (10th best)
Crime Rank: 5th best
More on Hammond: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report

Colleges: Southeastern Louisiana University, Compass Career College

3. Lake Charles, LA

Lake Charles, LA
Source: Wikipedia User CTtcg | CC BY-SA 4.0
Overall SnackAbility
5
/10

Population: 77,832
% Undergrad Pop.: 8.6% (10th best)
Median Rent: $830 (8th best)
Unemployment Rate: 613.7% (6th best)
Crime Rank: 2nd best
More on Lake Charles: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report

Colleges: McNeese State University, SOWELA Technical Community College, Delta School of Business and Technology

4. Natchitoches, LA

Natchitoches, LA
Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility
2
/10

Population: 17,711
% Undergrad Pop.: 46.7% (3rd best)
Median Rent: $699 (3rd best)
Unemployment Rate: 1549.4% (14th best)
Crime Rank: 12th best
More on Natchitoches: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report

Colleges: Northwestern State University of Louisiana

5. Ruston, LA

Ruston, LA
Source: Wikipedia User Billy Hathorn | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility
4
/10

Population: 21,987
% Undergrad Pop.: 40.6% (5th best)
Median Rent: $745 (5th best)
Unemployment Rate: 443.9% (2nd best)
Crime Rank: 3rd best
More on Ruston: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report

Colleges: Louisiana Tech University, Pat Goins Ruston Beauty School

6. Baton Rouge, LA

Baton Rouge, LA
Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility
4
/10

Population: 222,191
% Undergrad Pop.: 15.7% (7th best)
Median Rent: $886 (11th best)
Unemployment Rate: 866.4% (12th best)
Crime Rank: 9th best
More on Baton Rouge: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report

Colleges: Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College, Southern University and A & M College, Our Lady of the Lake College

7. New Orleans, LA

New Orleans, LA
Source: Flickr User szeke | CC BY-SA 2.0
Overall SnackAbility
4
/10

Population: 391,249
% Undergrad Pop.: 8.7% (9th best)
Median Rent: $1,025 (14th best)
Unemployment Rate: 854.4% (11th best)
Crime Rank: 10th best
More on New Orleans: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report

Colleges: Delgado Community College, University of New Orleans, Tulane University of Louisiana

8. Monroe, LA

Monroe, LA
Source: Wikipedia User Caleb Long | CC BY-SA 2.5-2.0-1.0
Overall SnackAbility
3
/10

Population: 47,906
% Undergrad Pop.: 16.8% (6th best)
Median Rent: $711 (4th best)
Unemployment Rate: 786.9% (8th best)
Crime Rank: 14th best
More on Monroe: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report

Colleges: University of Louisiana at Monroe, McCann School of Business & Technology, Cloyd's Beauty School 3 Inc

9. Thibodaux, LA

Thibodaux, LA
Source: Wikipedia User ian munroe from Steinwend | CC BY 2.0
Overall SnackAbility
3
/10

Population: 14,565
% Undergrad Pop.: 45.0% (4th best)
Median Rent: $832 (9th best)
Unemployment Rate: 906.1% (13th best)
Crime Rank: 4th best
More on Thibodaux: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report

Colleges: Nicholls State University

10. Grambling, LA

Grambling, LA
Source: Wikipedia User Billy Hathorn | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility
6
/10

Population: 5,168
% Undergrad Pop.: 83.0% (best)
Median Rent: $698 (2nd best)
Unemployment Rate: 352.9% (best)
Crime Rank: 5th best
More on Grambling: Real Estate | Cost Of Living

Colleges: Grambling State University

How'd we figure out the best college towns in Louisiana?

To crunch our data on Louisiana's best college towns, we had to first decide which qualities (or rankings) make sense to use in the data, and then crunch the numbers for our rankings.

First off, we firmly decided that only cities with a 4 year college should make the cut -- so there has to be at least one college granting bachelors degrees in town.

You might be surprised to hear that there are only 14 places in Louisiana with an institution of higher learning with that criteria.

Source of data include OpenStreetMaps, the College Scorecard, the U.S. Census, and FBI reporting data to include the following factors:

  • Students Make Up Large % of the Population
  • College-specific Factors
    • Graduation rate
    • Tuition Cost
    • Student Body Diversity
  • Town Characteristics
    • Safety
    • Affordability
    • Income and Employment Opportunities
  • Things to Do
    • Bars
    • Museums & Libraries
    • Population Density

We ranked each city across each of the criteria, with one being the best.

We rolled up the individual scores into the category and ranked them again based on the category.

Finally, we took the average rank across each category, with the city posting the lowest overall score being crowned the winner of the title "Best College Town In Louisiana For 2022".

And it looks like Kenner placed Summa Cum Laude.

There You Have It -- The Best College Towns In The

If you're looking for the best college towns in Louisiana, you came to the right place.

These places all have great college sports programs, tons of stuff to do, and are great places to raise a family.

For more reading, check out:

14 Best College Towns In Louisiana

Rank City Population
1 Kenner, LA 66759
2 Hammond, LA 20557
3 Lake Charles, LA 77832
4 Natchitoches, LA 17711
5 Ruston, LA 21987
6 Baton Rouge, LA 222191
7 New Orleans, LA 391249
8 Monroe, LA 47906
9 Thibodaux, LA 14565
10 Grambling, LA 5168
11 Lafayette, LA 126674
12 Shreveport, LA 189890
13 Alexandria, LA 46545
14 Pineville, LA 14179

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