Welcome to the land of the 1%. Where you’ll find lawyers, and doctors, and business executives. And while they aren’t made of ticky-tacky, they are definitely made of money.
These are the wealthiest neighborhoods that Raleigh has to offer — where houses go for well over the national median and household incomes follow suit.
But where exactly in Raleigh do the richest of the rich people live? That would be Glenwood, where the median income is a cool $165,486.
$165,486 median income
$148,413 median income
$125,326 median income
$105,066 median income
$96,375 median income
$87,769 median income
$80,005 median income
$78,719 median income
$69,122 median income
$68,103 median income
The receipts
Compare the top ten
Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is North Carolina’s statewide median.
North Carolina statewide median: $72,388
North Carolina statewide median: $336,408
Saturday Night Science
How we determined the wealthiest neighborhoods in Raleigh for 2026
Every city has its best neighborhoods — where everyone wants to live — and the worst neighborhoods — where no one wants to live. And then you have the wealthiest neighborhoods, where no one can afford to live.
And by no one, we mean you because there’s always someone richer than you.
How do you quantify richer than you? We looked at one simple criterion:
- Highest median household income
Using Saturday Night Science, we researched income data from the Census and BLS for every neighborhood in Raleigh.
We ranked every neighborhood in Raleigh by median income from highest to lowest. The neighborhood with the highest median income, Glenwood, was named the wealthiest neighborhood in Raleigh.
We updated this article for 2026. This is our eleventh time ranking the most affluent neighborhoods to live in Raleigh.
The full plate
Richest neighborhoods in Raleigh for 2026 by median income
Click any column to sort. Search by neighborhood name.
| Rank | Neighborhood | Median Household Income |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Glenwood | $165,486 |
| 2 | Five Points | $148,413 |
| 3 | Wade | $125,326 |
| 4 | North Central | $105,066 |
| 5 | Mordecai | $96,375 |
| 6 | Six Forks | $87,769 |
| 7 | North | $80,005 |
| 8 | Northwest | $78,719 |
| 9 | Central | $69,122 |
| 10 | Falls Of Neuse | $68,103 |
| 11 | Hillsborough | $66,214 |
| 12 | East Raleigh | $62,387 |
| 13 | Northeast | $56,500 |
| 14 | West | $49,446 |
| 15 | Southeast | $43,932 |
| 16 | South | $42,477 |
| 17 | Southwest | $38,691 |
| 18 | South Central | $34,998 |
Source: U.S. Census ACS 2020-2024. All 18 Raleigh neighborhoods.
Summary
Summary: The wealthiest pockets of Raleigh
What’s the richest neighborhood to live in Raleigh for 2026? According to the most recent census data, Glenwood looks to be the richest Raleigh neighborhood to live in.
The richest neighborhoods in Raleigh are Glenwood, Five Points, Wade, North Central, Mordecai, Six Forks, North, Northwest, Central, and Falls Of Neuse.
The poorest neighborhood? That would be South Central.
We ranked the neighborhoods from richest to poorest in the chart below. Not sold on North Carolina? Take the two-minute Find Your Place quiz and see which state actually fits you.
Questions and answers
Richest Neighborhoods In Raleigh FAQs
What is the richest neighborhood in Raleigh?
Glenwood is the richest neighborhood in Raleigh for 2026, with a median household income of $165,486. Five Points and Wade are next.
What are the richest neighborhoods in Raleigh?
The richest neighborhoods in Raleigh are Glenwood, Five Points, Wade, North Central, Mordecai, Six Forks, North, Northwest, Central, and Falls Of Neuse. We ranked all 18 neighborhoods by median household income, highest to lowest.
How much do people make in Glenwood?
The median household in Glenwood earns $165,486 a year, and the median home there is worth $665,475. Those two numbers travel together in most cities, and Raleigh is no exception.
How do you rank the richest neighborhoods?
One measure: median household income from Census tract data, ranked highest to lowest. No composite score, no adjustments — just where the money lives.
What is the poorest neighborhood in Raleigh?
South Central posts the lowest median household income of the 18 Raleigh neighborhoods we ranked. It anchors the bottom of the income table above.
