Leawood
#1 Best City 65
Leawood
Kansas, USA
SafetyA+
CostC-
Growth76
Avg. Rent$1,750
Median Income$165,000
Cost of Living125/100
Ranking Category
Best Cities for Families
Cities scoring highest for family-friendly livability, schools access, and quality of life.
Raising a family means viewing a city through a multi-generational lens — parents need peace of mind, top-tier developmental resources, safe neighborhoods, and accessible green spaces. Our family-centric ranking aggregates school-district ratings, child-care accessibility, local park acreage, community events, and neighborhood safety indices to surface communities built for families to grow and thrive.
Newton
#2 Best City 60
Newton
Massachusetts, USA
SafetyA
CostF
Growth76
Avg. Rent$2,850
Median Income$160,411
Cost of Living158/100
Edina
#3 Best City 63
Edina
Minnesota, USA
SafetyA
CostC-
Growth75
Avg. Rent$1,750
Median Income$128,500
Cost of Living125/100
Naperville
#4 Best City 63
Naperville
Illinois, USA
SafetyA
CostC-
Growth76
Avg. Rent$1,950
Median Income$145,000
Cost of Living122/100
Urbandale
#5 Best City 75
Urbandale
Iowa, USA
SafetyA
CostB
Growth70
Avg. Rent$1,021
Median Income$112,795
Cost of Living90/100
Kirkland
#6 Best City 57
Kirkland
Washington, USA
SafetyA-
CostF
Growth76
Avg. Rent$2,250
Median Income$128,500
Cost of Living145/100
Fairfield
#7 Best City 59
Fairfield
Connecticut, USA
SafetyA
CostF
Growth73
Avg. Rent$2,400
Median Income$165,000
Cost of Living138/100
West Hartford
#8 Best City 62
West Hartford
Connecticut, USA
SafetyA
CostC-
Growth75
Avg. Rent$1,950
Median Income$115,000
Cost of Living122/100
Arlington
#9 Best City 62
Arlington
Virginia, USA
SafetyA
CostF
Growth82
Avg. Rent$2,350
Median Income$137,452
Cost of Living148/100
Johns Creek
#10 Best City 67
Johns Creek
Georgia, USA
SafetyA+
CostC-
Growth76
Avg. Rent$2,100
Median Income$145,000
Cost of Living118/100
Sharon Phelan Evans (CC BY-SA 3.0) via Wikimedia Commons #11 Best City 69 Vestavia Hills
Alabama, USA
SafetyA+
CostC-
Growth78
Avg. Rent$1,975
Median Income$134,369
Cost of Living124/100
Boulder
#12 Best City 55
Boulder
Colorado, USA
SafetyB+
CostD
Growth74
Avg. Rent$2,395
Median Income$87,493
Cost of Living128/100
Kailua
#13 Best City 54
Kailua
Hawaii, USA
SafetyA-
CostF
Growth65
Avg. Rent$3,790
Median Income$148,582
Cost of Living175/100
Fishers
#14 Best City 71
Fishers
Indiana, USA
SafetyA
CostC+
Growth84
Avg. Rent$1,650
Median Income$115,000
Cost of Living108/100
Cambridge
#15 Best City 57
Cambridge
Massachusetts, USA
SafetyA-
CostF
Growth81
Avg. Rent$3,100
Median Income$118,500
Cost of Living165/100
Irvine
#16 Best City 62
Irvine
California, USA
SafetyA+
CostF
Growth79
Avg. Rent$3,066
Median Income$136,719
Cost of Living168/100
Alpharetta
#17 Best City 68
Alpharetta
Georgia, USA
SafetyA
CostC-
Growth82
Avg. Rent$1,850
Median Income$135,000
Cost of Living118/100
Moscow
#18 Best City 53
Moscow
Idaho, USA
SafetyA
CostC
Growth60
Avg. Rent$1,338
Median Income$57,022
Cost of Living111/100
M.O. Stevens (Public domain) via Wikimedia Commons #19 Best City 52 Tigard
Oregon, USA
SafetyC-
CostC-
Growth70
Avg. Rent$1,800
Median Income$108,823
Cost of Living121/100
Gillfoto (CC BY-SA 4.0) via Wikimedia Commons #20 Best City 56 Sitka
Alaska, USA
SafetyA
CostD
Growth60
Avg. Rent$1,498
Median Income$101,727
Cost of Living130/100
Arlington Heights
#21 Best City 65
Arlington Heights
Illinois, USA
SafetyA
CostC
Growth74
Avg. Rent$1,850
Median Income$105,845
Cost of Living112/100
Lenexa
#22 Best City 61
Lenexa
Kansas, USA
SafetyB+
CostC
Growth70
Avg. Rent$1,890
Median Income$103,239
Cost of Living111/100
Ann Arbor
#23 Best City 63
Ann Arbor
Michigan, USA
SafetyA-
CostC+
Growth76
Avg. Rent$2,000
Median Income$82,212
Cost of Living101/100
State College
#24 Best City 46
State College
Pennsylvania, USA
SafetyB
CostC-
Growth70
Avg. Rent$1,850
Median Income$45,424
Cost of Living119/100
Redmond
#25 Best City 62
Redmond
Washington, USA
SafetyA-
CostF
Growth80
Avg. Rent$2,450
Median Income$145,000
Cost of Living152/100
Chesterfield
#26 Best City 66
Chesterfield
Missouri, USA
SafetyA
CostC
Growth78
Avg. Rent$1,650
Median Income$115,000
Cost of Living115/100
Gilbert
#27 Best City 71
Gilbert
Arizona, USA
SafetyA
CostC+
Growth80
Avg. Rent$2,400
Median Income$122,551
Cost of Living104/100
Bentonville
#28 Best City 76
Bentonville
Arkansas, USA
SafetyA-
CostC+
Growth88
Avg. Rent$2,000
Median Income$112,792
Cost of Living102/100
Broomfield
#29 Best City 70
Broomfield
Colorado, USA
SafetyB
Cost—
Growth70
Median Income$123,874
Castle Rock
#30 Best City 70
Castle Rock
Colorado, USA
SafetyA
CostC
Growth80
Avg. Rent$1,772
Median Income$145,197
Cost of Living115/100
East Honolulu
#31 Best City 55
East Honolulu
Hawaii, USA
SafetyA
CostF
Growth60
Avg. Rent$2,650
Median Income$118,500
Cost of Living185/100
Coeur d’Alene
#32 Best City 59
Coeur d’Alene
Idaho, USA
SafetyA-
CostC
Growth80
Avg. Rent$1,750
Median Income$72,338
Cost of Living112/100
Orland Park
#33 Best City 66
Orland Park
Illinois, USA
SafetyA
CostC
Growth74
Avg. Rent$1,950
Median Income$105,000
Cost of Living112/100
Overland Park
#34 Best City 70
Overland Park
Kansas, USA
SafetyA
CostC+
Growth78
Avg. Rent$1,450
Median Income$95,450
Cost of Living102/100
Prairie Village
#35 Best City 63
Prairie Village
Kansas, USA
SafetyA
CostC-
Growth74
Avg. Rent$1,800
Median Income$113,530
Cost of Living125/100
Mount Pleasant
#36 Best City 64
Mount Pleasant
South Carolina, USA
SafetyA-
CostC-
Growth74
Avg. Rent$2,200
Median Income$124,755
Cost of Living122/100
New Berlin
#37 Best City 68
New Berlin
Wisconsin, USA
SafetyA
CostC+
Growth74
Avg. Rent$1,650
Median Income$95,400
Cost of Living104/100
San Diego
#38 Best City 49
San Diego
California, USA
SafetyB
CostF
Growth75
Avg. Rent$3,046
Median Income$108,077
Cost of Living138/100
Lake Oswego
#39 Best City 70
Lake Oswego
Oregon, USA
SafetyB+
Cost—
Growth72
Avg. Rent$1,866
Median Income$141,549
West Linn
#40 Best City 58
West Linn
Oregon, USA
SafetyA+
CostD
Growth60
Avg. Rent$2,300
Median Income$146,507
Cost of Living135/100
Roswell
#41 Best City 66
Roswell
Georgia, USA
SafetyA-
CostC
Growth75
Avg. Rent$1,750
Median Income$105,432
Cost of Living112/100
Evanston
#42 Best City 55
Evanston
Illinois, USA
SafetyB+
CostC-
Growth72
Avg. Rent$2,591
Median Income$96,434
Cost of Living122/100
Palatine
#43 Best City 62
Palatine
Illinois, USA
SafetyA-
CostC
Growth72
Avg. Rent$1,750
Median Income$89,500
Cost of Living112/100
Ankeny
#44 Best City 77
Ankeny
Iowa, USA
SafetyA
CostB-
Growth88
Avg. Rent$1,450
Median Income$98,500
Cost of Living96/100
West Des Moines
#45 Best City 72
West Des Moines
Iowa, USA
SafetyA-
CostB-
Growth79
Avg. Rent$1,450
Median Income$88,500
Cost of Living98/100
Leesburg
#46 Best City 63
Leesburg
Virginia, USA
SafetyA
CostD
Growth75
Avg. Rent$2,800
Median Income$145,205
Cost of Living128/100
Seattle
#47 Best City 52
Seattle
Washington, USA
SafetyB-
CostF
Growth81
Avg. Rent$2,250
Median Income$115,000
Cost of Living152/100
Exeter
#48 Best City 62
Exeter
New Hampshire, USA
SafetyA
CostC-
Growth76
Avg. Rent$1,950
Median Income$95,400
Cost of Living118/100
Middlebury
#49 Best City 66
Middlebury
Vermont, USA
SafetyA
CostC+
Growth70
Avg. Rent$1,650
Median Income$82,450
Cost of Living108/100
Dunwoody
#50 Best City 64
Dunwoody
Georgia, USA
SafetyA-
CostC-
Growth76
Avg. Rent$1,750
Median Income$98,500
Cost of Living118/100
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