Want to know where the richest of the rich congregate in the Bayou State? Read on to see what the wealthiest cities in Louisiana are.
While Louisiana is most famous for New Orleans, you won’t find the Big Easy on this list. Some of its more affluent suburbs like Harahan and Kenner did make the cut, however. And while the capital Baton Rouge didn’t dazzle us with riches, its suburb of Zachary did. 9 out of 10 of the cities on this list are also featured on our list of best places to live in Louisiana. It makes sense that the folks with the most money would want to live in the best places the state has to offer.
So how did Homesnacks determine which cities have the most going for them in terms of dollars and cents? We’ve taken the guesswork out of it by using science and data to determine where you can get gold-plated crawfish in Louisiana. By looking over the Census data from the American Community Survey for 60 Louisiana cities with 5,000, and then looking at each city’s numbers on unemployment, poverty, and median income, we were able to determine the richest spots in the state.
What do you need to earn to live in the richest cities in Louisiana? Luckily, it’s not a discouragingly high number. The top five places on this list have an average median income of around $75,000/year, and you can do well for yourself in the city of Scott on under $50,000/year.
So if you want to know where Louisiana’s elite go to make money for the highest quality Cajun food, private suites for Saints games, and the most extravagant Mardi Gras celebrations, read on.
Here are the 10 richest places in Louisiana for 2023:
You may be asking how Homesnacks arrived at the conclusion that the cities above are the richest in Louisiana. Well, first we narrowed the potential places down to those with a population of at least 5,000. Then we looked at which cities had the lowest rates of poverty and unemployment and the highest median household income.
That left us with 60 cities to score and the data to answer the question: what’s the wealthiest city in the Louisiana? According to the data, Youngsville is the place in Louisiana with the richest of the rich for 2023.
So if you want to live like an aristocrat in one of the country’s great cultural hubs, be sure to check out the list below.
Rich people not your cup of tea? Feel free to check out some more reading about Louisiana:
The 10 Richest Cities In Louisiana For 2023
1. Youngsville
/10
Population: 15,167
Rank Last Year: 2 (Up 1)
Median Income: $101,455
Unemployment Rate: 1.3%
Poverty Rate: 5.9%
More on Youngsville: Real Estate | Photos
2. Central
/10
Population: 29,746
Rank Last Year: 1 (Down 1)
Median Income: $83,947
Unemployment Rate: 2.0%
Poverty Rate: 5.9%
More on Central: Real Estate | Photos
3. Addis
/10
Population: 6,503
Rank Last Year: 5 (Up 2)
Median Income: $81,681
Unemployment Rate: 2.8%
Poverty Rate: 8.3%
More on Addis: Real Estate
4. Mandeville
/10
Population: 12,985
Rank Last Year: 3 (Down 1)
Median Income: $79,149
Unemployment Rate: 2.7%
Poverty Rate: 7.6%
More on Mandeville: Real Estate | Photos
5. Harahan
/10
Population: 9,137
Rank Last Year: 4 (Down 1)
Median Income: $68,846
Unemployment Rate: 3.0%
Poverty Rate: 8.2%
More on Harahan: Real Estate | Photos
6. Denham Springs
/10
Population: 9,389
Rank Last Year: 13 (Up 7)
Median Income: $79,646
Unemployment Rate: 5.9%
Poverty Rate: 5.2%
More on Denham Springs: Real Estate | Photos
7. Zachary
/10
Population: 19,278
Rank Last Year: 6 (Down 1)
Median Income: $85,949
Unemployment Rate: 6.9%
Poverty Rate: 5.9%
More on Zachary: Real Estate | Photos
8. Scott
/10
Population: 8,200
Rank Last Year: 9 (Up 1)
Median Income: $61,958
Unemployment Rate: 4.8%
Poverty Rate: 11.8%
More on Scott: Real Estate | Photos
9. Walker
/10
Population: 6,322
Rank Last Year: 8 (Down 1)
Median Income: $80,521
Unemployment Rate: 5.9%
Poverty Rate: 8.9%
More on Walker: Real Estate
10. Broussard
/10
Population: 12,960
Rank Last Year: 12 (Up 2)
Median Income: $85,055
Unemployment Rate: 5.0%
Poverty Rate: 16.9%
More on Broussard: Real Estate | Photos
Methodology: How We Determined The Richest Places In Louisiana For 2023
The first thing that comes to most people’s minds when they think about determining the richest places is to simply identify personal incomes. After all, rich people have really high salaries.
However, we don’t believe that one statistic wholly encompasses what it means to be one of the “richest places”. So we looked at this set of criteria from the newly released 2017-2021 American Community Survey:
- Poverty Level
- Median Household Income
- Unemployment Rate
Median household income is the most digestible way to understand how rich a place really is. The unemployment rate tries to capture the prospects for more people to become rich. If more people are employed, the richer the future looks.
After we collected the data for all 60 places with more than 5,000 people in Louisiana, we ranked each place from 1 to 60 for each of the criteria, with 1 being the richest.
We then averaged all the rankings for a place into a “Rich Score” with the place having the lowest overall Rich Score, Youngsville, crowned the “Richest City In Louisiana For 2023”. You can download the data here.
You can learn more about the top ten below or skip to the end to see the rankings for all 60 places.
Summary: The Wealthiest Places In Louisiana For 2023
Like we said earlier, when we set out to identify the richest places in Louisiana, we weren’t sure what we’d encounter, but it ended up being some of the best places to live in Louisiana.
When you look at the data, the cities and places mentioned above meet the criteria for being at the very top of the income ladder for everyone that lives there.
If you’re curious enough, here are the poorest cities in Louisiana, according to data:
Poorest: Donaldsonville
2nd Poorest: Ville Platte
3rd Poorest: Bastrop
For more Louisiana reading, check out:
- Most Dangerous Places In Louisiana
- Best Places To Raise A Family In Louisiana
- Cheapest Places To Live In Louisiana
Detailed List Of The Richest Cities In Louisiana
Rank | City | RichScore |
---|---|---|
1 | Youngsville | 1.33 |
2 | Central | 3.33 |
3 | Addis | 5.67 |
4 | Mandeville | 5.67 |
5 | Harahan | 7.67 |
6 | Denham Springs | 10.0 |
7 | Zachary | 12.0 |
8 | Scott | 12.33 |
9 | Walker | 12.33 |
10 | Broussard | 12.33 |
11 | Covington | 13.0 |
12 | Slidell | 15.0 |
13 | Sulphur | 16.0 |
14 | Kenner | 16.33 |
15 | Gonzales | 16.33 |
16 | Carencro | 17.67 |
17 | Pineville | 18.0 |
18 | Thibodaux | 19.33 |
19 | Lafayette | 20.0 |
20 | St. Gabriel | 20.0 |
21 | Baker | 23.0 |
22 | Lake Charles | 23.0 |
23 | Houma | 23.67 |
24 | Patterson | 24.0 |
25 | Ponchatoula | 25.33 |
26 | Jennings | 26.33 |
27 | Bossier City | 26.67 |
28 | Plaquemine | 28.67 |
29 | Gretna | 30.0 |
30 | Deridder | 30.67 |
31 | New Orleans | 32.33 |
32 | Baton Rouge | 34.33 |
33 | Ruston | 34.67 |
34 | Shreveport | 36.33 |
35 | Morgan City | 36.33 |
36 | Minden | 36.67 |
37 | Alexandria | 37.0 |
38 | Franklin | 37.33 |
39 | West Monroe | 37.67 |
40 | Westwego | 37.67 |
41 | Abbeville | 37.67 |
42 | Oakdale | 38.0 |
43 | Breaux Bridge | 38.0 |
44 | Hammond | 38.33 |
45 | New Iberia | 41.33 |
46 | Grambling | 41.67 |
47 | Rayne | 42.33 |
48 | Monroe | 45.33 |
49 | St. Martinville | 47.33 |
50 | Leesville | 47.67 |
51 | Eunice | 48.67 |
52 | Opelousas | 49.33 |
53 | Bogalusa | 49.33 |
54 | Marksville | 50.33 |
55 | Tallulah | 53.67 |
56 | Crowley | 55.67 |
57 | Natchitoches | 56.0 |
58 | Bastrop | 56.67 |
59 | Ville Platte | 58.0 |
60 | Donaldsonville | 58.67 |