Best PlacesLake Nona, Orlando, FL Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Lake Nona, Orlando, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Local pay runs high here, and housing takes the biggest bite out of it. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
Lake Nona, Orlando ranks 175th of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on a strong job market by a wide margin, and an overheated housing market is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in Lake Nona, Orlando
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
Lake Nona, Orlando's strengths and weaknesses
Where Lake Nona, Orlando ranks high
- Local economyBetter than 99% of neighborhoods
- Crime safetyBetter than 99% of neighborhoods
- State infrastructureBetter than 96% of neighborhoods
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 95% of neighborhoods
- School gradeA, better than 95% of neighborhoods
Where Lake Nona, Orlando ranks low
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 8% of neighborhoods
- WalkabilityBetter than only 14% of neighborhoods
- TransitBetter than only 15% of neighborhoods
- Tree shadeBetter than only 18% of neighborhoods
- Heat safetyBetter than only 20% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in Lake Nona, Orlando
A household needs to earn about $188,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Lake Nona, Orlando home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $136,403, so buying stretches a typical household.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses Lake Nona, Orlando's effective rate of 1.07%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices and rents, renting stays cheaper than buying across the first 10 years here, so the case for buying rests on staying much longer or on prices rising faster than assumed. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Lake Nona, Orlando
Lake Nona, Orlando runs younger than the country, and households here run larger than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Lake Nona, Orlando.
Who works in Lake Nona, Orlando, and how
Work in Lake Nona, Orlando centers on health care & social and professional & technical. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 72%
- Work from home 26%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in Lake Nona, Orlando
Lake Nona, Orlando has more restaurants and bars per resident than 68% of neighborhoods and more late-night spots per resident than 74% of neighborhoods. The coast is about 43 minutes away. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of Lake Nona, Orlando and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in Lake Nona, Orlando, month by month
Lake Nona, Orlando sees roughly 140 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 94 degrees. January highs sit near 74, with lows near 50. The comfortable stretch runs November through April.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 74° | 61° | 50° |
| April | 86° | 73° | 62° |
| July | 94° | 82° | 74° |
| October | 87° | 76° | 68° |
Flying in and out of Lake Nona, Orlando
Orlando International sits about 4 miles away. It is a large hub and boarded 28.1 million passengers in 2025, with 223 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around Lake Nona, Orlando
Schools across Lake Nona, Orlando average an A, better than 95% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- Laureate Park ElementaryA+ · 75% proficient
- Eagle Creek ElementaryA · 70% proficient
- Northlake Park Community ElementaryA · 68% proficient
Top middle schools
- Lake Nona MiddleA · 67% proficient
- Judson B Walker MiddleC · 32% proficient
Top high schools
- Lake Nona HighA− · 62% proficient
- Oak Ridge HighC · 33% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Lake Nona, Orlando school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Lake Nona, Orlando measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare Lake Nona, Orlando against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Common questions about living in Lake Nona, Orlando
Is Lake Nona, Orlando a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Lake Nona, Orlando ranks 175th of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on a strong job market, low crime, and state infrastructure, and lowest on an overheated housing market and walkability. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Lake Nona, Orlando expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $691,668. The overall cost of living runs about 4% below the national average. Set against a $136,403 median income, cost of living beats 94% of neighborhoods.
Is Lake Nona, Orlando safe?
Yes, Lake Nona, Orlando is safer than 100% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $78 per resident a year.
Compare Lake Nona, Orlando with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Lake Nona, Orlando. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Lake Nona, Orlando represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
Lake Nona, Orlando detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Lake Nona, Orlando: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Lake Nona, Orlando: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Lake Nona, Orlando: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Lake Nona, Orlando: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Lake Nona, Orlando detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.