Best places to live in the Phoenix metro area

Written by:
July 8, 2025
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Best places to live in the Phoenix metro area

Stacker compiled a list of the best places to live in the Phoenix metro area using data from the Niche. Niche uses 15 weighted factors for its rankings. A majority of the score is based on cost of living, higher education rate, housing, public schools, diversity, and crime. You can read more about Niche's methodology here.

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#25. Florence

- Niche grade: B-
- Public school grade: B-
- Population: 25,961

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#24. Buckeye

- Niche grade: B-
- Public school grade: B-
- Population: 99,844

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#23. New River

- Niche grade: B-
- Public school grade: A-
- Population: 18,365

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#22. Avondale

- Niche grade: B
- Public school grade: B
- Population: 90,644

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#21. San Tan Valley

- Niche grade: B
- Public school grade: B-
- Population: 105,231

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#20. Youngtown

- Niche grade: B
- Public school grade: B+
- Population: 6,985

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#19. Sun Lakes

- Niche grade: B
- Public school grade: A+
- Population: 14,079

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#18. Glendale

- Niche grade: B
- Public school grade: B+
- Population: 250,193

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#17. Citrus Park

- Niche grade: B
- Public school grade: A-
- Population: 5,136

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#16. Cave Creek

- Niche grade: B+
- Public school grade: A-
- Population: 5,033

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#15. Phoenix

- Niche grade: B+
- Public school grade: B
- Population: 1,624,832

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#14. Surprise

- Niche grade: B+
- Public school grade: B+
- Population: 149,519

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#13. Carefree

- Niche grade: B+
- Public school grade: A
- Population: 3,672

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#12. Goodyear

- Niche grade: B+
- Public school grade: B+
- Population: 102,891

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#11. Fountain Hills

- Niche grade: B+
- Public school grade: A-
- Population: 23,768

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#10. Mesa

- Niche grade: B+
- Public school grade: A-
- Population: 507,478

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#9. Anthem

- Niche grade: A-
- Public school grade: A-
- Population: 22,622

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#8. Peoria

- Niche grade: A-
- Public school grade: A-
- Population: 194,338

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#7. Tempe

- Niche grade: A-
- Public school grade: B+
- Population: 186,419

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#6. Queen Creek

- Niche grade: A
- Public school grade: A-
- Population: 66,369

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#5. Litchfield Park

- Niche grade: A
- Public school grade: A-
- Population: 6,871

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#4. Chandler

- Niche grade: A
- Public school grade: A+
- Population: 278,123

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#3. Paradise Valley

- Niche grade: A
- Public school grade: A
- Population: 12,621

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#2. Scottsdale

- Niche grade: A
- Public school grade: A
- Population: 242,169

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#1. Gilbert

- Niche grade: A
- Public school grade: A+
- Population: 271,118

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