The 10 Best Places To Live In Washington For 2022

The 10 Best Places To Live In Washington For 2022

Big congratulations to Mercer Island for holding onto the title of best place to live in Washington for the second year running. Located smack dab in the middle of Lake Washington between Seattle and Bellevue, Mercer Island has a lot going for it. Like the 5th highest median household income in the state at $150,506/year. And the 3rd lowest rate of violent crime in Washington.

People in Mercer Island didn’t wind up so awesome accidentally. The local public school system scored a 9/10 on GreatSchools, so you know the next generation is well-situated to pick up the mantle of excellence Mercer Island has established. And with over 40% of adults having a master’s degree or higher, this early insistence on the importance of education definitely has an impact later in life. One thing to note about Mercer Island though is that the cost of living here is nearly three times as high as the Washington average, so you might want some savings and/or a lucrative job lined up before starting your island life.

Speaking of island life, an extra thing that makes Mercer Island special is the access to awesome beaches. The one at Luther Burbank Park is the most popular, but the west-coast Groveland Beach is the spot to be if you’re hunting gorgeous sunsets.

Sammamish is no stranger to the Homesnacks spotlight — we’ve already named it the best city for families in Washington for 2022, and a lot of those same factors come into play here. Like having a perfect 10/10 education score on our SnackAbility ratings. And being the place with the 5th lowest crime rate in the state, with the 5th lowest incidence of violent crime. Or having awesome family-friendly activities around like camping and boating at Lake Sammamish.

Word to the wise though, Sammamish is also the richest place in Washington, so we hope you’re comfortable rubbing elbows with the state’s elite. Homes in Sammamish are the 3rd most expensive in the state at $878,000. That’s no biggie for most residents though since Sammamish also has the highest median household income in Washington at $181,464/year. Along with the normal perks of wealth, Sammamish also has the 7th highest rate of health insurance coverage in the state at 98.1%. And it’s not like some people are getting left in the dust here, because Sammamish has a poverty level of just 3.1%, the 7th lowest in the state.

The secret is out on Sammamish and the city’s population has grown by almost 50% since 2010, so be sure to move quickly if you want to get in on the good times.

The first thing to know before moving to Duvall is that people here like to celebrate. Between the June Duvall Days celebration, the weekly SummerStage concerts in McCormick Park every summer, and the annual Sandblast Festival of the Arts, it’s fair to say you’ll never be bored in Duvall during the summer months.

Partying is great and all, but it’s not what lands Duvall in the #3 spot for best places to live in Washington. That would be thanks to having the 6th lowest crime rate, the 2nd lowest poverty level (1.7%), and the 13th lowest high school dropout rate in Washington.

Here’s the really sweet thing about Duvall: it has the 2nd highest median household income in the state at $162,622/year, but only the 22nd priciest homes. That combination of statistics is part of the reason why the cost of living in Duvall is on the lower end of cities listed here.

Snoqualmie is a King County city of 13,550 located about 30 miles east of Seattle. If you’re moving here, expect a lot of random visitors, because Snoqualmie Falls draws more than 1.5 million tourists each year. Those visitors are pretty respectful though because even with all the randoms coming and going, Snoqualmie experienced only 5 violent crimes in 2022, the 8th lowest in the state.

Aside from crime, the economy of Snoqualmie is cause for considerable envy for other Washingtonians. The absurdly teeny poverty level of 0.6% is the lowest in the state. Unemployment is at incredibly low levels and 98.7% of residents have health insurance, the 4th highest rate in Washington. Lastly, Snoqualmie’s median household income of $159,450/year is the 3rd highest statewide.

Located about 15 miles north of Seattle, Brier comes in as the 6th best place to call home in Washington. Brier is one of the safest places in Washington, with a crime rate roughly 80% lower than the statewide average.

Brier residents enjoy the 10th highest median household income in Washington at $124,651/year. And with home prices at a relatively reasonable $619,600, the cost of living in Brier only about 25% higher than the Washington average. Not to mention that, with an unemployment rate at 3.7%, the 26th lowest in the state, you shouldn’t have any trouble locking down a job here.

One thing to note is that, at 46, Brier is the oldest place we’re covering, which can be a positive or a negative depending on your priorities. One definite positive, though, is having easy access to Saint Edward State Park, a popular picnic destination for Seattleites.

We’re sticking around Lake Washington but heading to the north shore to visit the 8th best place in Washington, Lake Forest Park. Here you’ll find the 5th lowest poverty level in the state at 3.0%. Lake Forest Park also has the 59th lowest crime rate in Washington, so safety is hardly an issue.

Just know that to keep up with the Joneses in Lake Forest Park, you’ll want your household to earn at least $138,043/year. Especially with home prices up around $676,400. If you do decide to settle down here, you can get great views from the city’s highest point at Horizon View Park. And if that’s not cutting it, the Space Needle is just 20 minutes down the road.

We’re sticking around King County for our 10th best city in Washington, Redmond. Known as the home to both Microsoft and Nintendo of America, Redmond has a rock-solid economic base to work with. Which helps explain why Redmond residents earn the 7th highest median household income in Washington, $132,770/year. You kind of need to be earning big bucks to get by here, though, because homes go for around $788,500.

Redmond is also the youngest city we’ll be covering, with a median age of 34. These young-uns don’t have to go far to get to work, because at 24 minutes, Redmond also has the shortest commute of cities on this list. And if you’d rather do your part for the environment, Redmond is a highly-bikeable community and has been described as “the bicycle capital of the Northwest.”

Feel free to ride your bike down the Sammamish River Trail and return to a concert at Maymoor Park after you’re done.

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

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

We ranked each place in Washington across a number of criteria from one to 121, 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 Washington”.

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 Washington? That would be Mercer Island.

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 Washington.

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