The 10 Best Places To Live In Florida For 2022

The 10 Best Places To Live In Florida For 2022

Let’s take a step back from the hyper-wealthy communities and look at a place where your average Joe can make a good life for himself, North Palm Beach. North Palm Beach’s median home cost of $345,300 is substantially lower than elsewhere in the top ten and combined with a median income of $71,830, this village is one of the most overall affordable places you’ll see on this list.

We think North Palm Beach residents dig the fact that you can spend 25% as much on a home as in Palm Beach and still have access to awesome beaches like MacArthur Beach. And the unemployment rate in North Palm Beach is a measly 1.7%, so nobody gets left out here. One more plus is that there’s no need to fear for your safety here, because North Palm Beach has the 12th lowest crime rate in Florida.

We’re going to take a short drive up the coast to arrive at Palm Beach, the 2nd best place to call home in Florida. Money troubles shouldn’t haunt you in Palm Beach, because the economy here is rock-solid. Palm Beach has the 27th lowest rate of unemployment and 4th lowest levels of poverty in Florida, so everyone can enjoy the island vibes here. It also has the highest median household income in the state, with residents pulling in $169,003/year. That high pay is kind of necessary in a place where the homes are the 2nd priciest in the state. But with sub-20 minute commute times, at least your transportation costs will be a little lower here.

One thing to consider before you make the move to Palm Beach: with a median age of 69, this may not be the most high-paced, action-packed place to call home. Sure, it’s got the 12th highest rates of residents with health insurance statewide, but that’s mostly due to the fact that greater percentages of old people tend to be insured compared to young people.

So if a ritzy, comfortable little city with shopping galore and plenty of natural beauty around sounds like just the ticket, consider Palm Beach your top choice.

An island-city just a half hour outside of Cape Coral, Sanibel is our first representative of Florida’s western coast. Sanibel is a wildly popular destination for tourists, thanks to over half the the island being made up of wildlife refuges like Ding Darling and epic beaches like Bowman’s Beach. There’s seriously an endless amount to do in Sanibel, so you’ll be just as excited to live here after ten years as you are on day one.

Sanibel’s population is super smart, with about 30% of residents having a master’s degree or higher. Big degrees lead to big paychecks, as Sanibel’s median household income is $92,875. And since smart people don’t usually resort to crime, Sanibel has the 5th lowest rate of violent crime in Florida.

Key Biscayne, an island town located just south of Miami. In opposition to the image of Florida as a retiree-state, Key Biscayne’s median age is a low 41, so it’s fair to say that this is one of the hippest places you’ll see on this list. Living in Key Biscayne, you also get access to all the best that Miami has to offer, without the high crime. That’s because Key Biscayne has the 53rd lowest crime rate in Florida, about 70% lower than the national average. Another perk of Key Biscayne over Miami is the weather; being an island, Key Biscayne has cooler summers and lower precipitation than The Magic City.

Word to the wise: you may want to have a lucrative job lined up before making the move to Key Biscayne, because the median home price here is $1,430,100, the most expensive in Florida. The good news is that the median household income in Key Biscayne is $166,667/year, the 2nd highest in the state, so residents don’t have too much trouble making mortgage payments. You also may want to start reading more books if you want to fit in here, because around 35% of Key Biscayne’s population has a master’s degree or higher.

If you decide to settle down here, you’ll probably spend a good amount of time at Bill Baggs Florida State Park on the south end or Crandon Park in the north. That way, you’ll never get bored of going to the same beach every day. Key Biscayne bills itself as an “Island Paradise” and, looking at the data, we’re inclined to agree!

A city of 21,750 people, Naples is the 103rd biggest city to make the cut for best places to live in Florida. Because of its proximity to the Everglades, Naples is a popular destination for ecotourists. Those looking for a tamer experience will prefer Naples’ world-class Botanical Gardens or hanging out at the pier.

If you decide to settle down in Naples, homes here are the 3rd most expensive in the state, but you’ll also get the 8th highest income statewide ($118,141/year). As for actually getting to and from work, Naples has one of the lowest commute times on this list of just 23 minutes. On top of that, GreatSchools gave Naples’ public schools a 9/10 rating, so you can be confident that you’re giving your children a top-notch educational experience.

We’ll wrap up our list of best places to live in Florida with Longboat Key, an island town an hour south of St. Petersburg. Longboat Key has the oldest populous on this list, with a median age of over 70. These septuagenarian residents really know their stuff though, because over 30% of the population have at least a master’s degree.

That older population helps explain why Longboat Key has the highest rate of insured residents in Florida. And since old folks don’t often go in for violence, Longboat Key’s title as the 2nd least violent place in Florida also makes sense.

Both unemployment and poverty rates in Longboat Key are among the top ten lowest statewide, so Longboat Key’s economy is about as good as it gets. You can reward yourself for choosing such an awesome place to live by visiting one of many beaches Longboat Key has to offer.

Parkland had a spotlight shone on it after the tragic events at Stonemason Douglas High School, but the community responded to the shooting in a way that displayed resilience and compassion. That’s just the sort of thing you’d expect from the 7th best place to live in Florida.

In normal circumstances, Parkland is incredibly safe, with the 7th lowest overall crime rate in Florida.

We named Parkland as one of the best places to raise a family in Florida: 52.01% of households have kids, and with the 2nd lowest high school dropout rate statewide, and a GreatSchools average rating of 8.5, parents can rest assured that their kids are getting off to the best start.

Parkland also has the 2nd lowest poverty rate in Florida, and the median household income of $159,692 ranks as the 4th highest statewide. Homes in Parkland have a median price tag of $631,000.

While Miami and Fort Lauderdale are just a short drive away, there’s plenty to keep you occupied within Parkland itself. Like taking an airboat tour of the Everglades. Or get your own boat and go nuts with water sports at nearby Quiet Waters Park.

Coral Gables is a well to do suburb of Miami that is no stranger to lists like this. The schools in Coral Gables are some of the most well regarded in the region and crime is an afterthought. Bake in the proximity to downtown Miami and it’s easy to see from afar why it’s a great place to live.

Looking deeper into life in The City Beautiful, it is home to The University of Miami, Bacardi, and Del Monte Fresh. There’s the Fairchild Tropical Botanical Garden and Old Cutler Trail to take the kids for an afternoon. And, there’s the Shops at Merrick Park or walk around the Village of Merrick Park if you want to spend an afternoon shopping.

On the stats side of things, home prices in Coral Gables go for $856,600 per the last Census, good for the 5th in the Sunshine State. And if you think of home prices as being a sign of demand, there’s a ton of demand to live in this awesome Miami suburb.

It turns out that if you want a tour of Florida’s best places, all you have to is start in Miami and just keep driving north. Tequesta owes its #9 ranking to its safe streets, relatively low cost of living, top-notch schools, and excellent markets for both jobs and housing. As one of Florida’s safest cities, you’ll never have to worry about someone snagging your Amazon package from your porch in Tequesta.

Tequesta also has the lowest median household income on this list at $76,556, which, along with the cheaper median home price of $417,800, could be considered a good thing since the barrier of entry is slightly easier to cross here. And you better believe that Tequesta’s population of 6,102 knows the importance of education, because this village has the 25th lowest rate of high school dropouts in Florida.

Tequesta is also home to Blowing Rocks Preserve, one of the best places to get a gander at sea turtles in Florida.

Lake Mary is a northern, outer suburb of Orlando, approximately 20 miles to downtown. And, for 2022, it is our number 10 best place to live in the Sunshine State. And people in Florida realize the awesomeness, as it continues to be one the faster growing places in central Florida. The quality of life around affordability, crime, and things to do offers residents a great place to live.

Like many small cities in Florida, Lake Mary offers abundance of outdoor activities including the Timacuan Golf Club, paddleboarding, and the local Lake Mary Farmer’s Market. There’s also plenty of shopping and small cafes to spend a nice evening outdoors.

The city had 54.0 best home values in the state and the 5th lowest rate of poverty in Florida. The schools are also high quality for the area including the highly acclaimed Seminole Science Charter School.

Methodology: How We Calculated The Best Cities To Live In Florida

Now that we had our set of cities, it was time to rank them.

We ranked each place in Florida across a number of criteria from one to 209, with one being the best.

We then took the average rank across all criteria, with the city posting the lowest overall score being crowned the winner of the title “Best Place To Live In Florida”.

The criteria we looked at were:

• Median Home Values
• Median Income
• Population Density (Higher better)
• Unemployment Rate
• Commute Time
• Crime
• Education Levels
• Health Insurance Coverage
• Poverty rates

Sources of criteria include the New Census Data and FBI Crime Data. You can download the data here.

After the dust settled, what was the best place to live in Florida? That would be North Palm Beach.

If your city or town isn’t among the top 10, jump down to the bottom of the post to see a detailed chart of the best places in Florida.

Otherwise, buckle up for a ride down good living lane with North Palm Beach at the end of the cul-de-sac.