Best PlacesLarimer County, CO Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in Larimer County, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. The averages hide a wide spread here, so the area matters as much as the address. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
Larimer County ranks 299th of 3,144 U.S. counties on the BestNeighborhood index. Paychecks stretch further here than almost anywhere else: the median household brings in $99,163, wages outrun the cost of living, and an educated workforce ranks near the top of the country. The main drawbacks are air quality, childcare costs, and state finances.
The best neighborhoods in Larimer County
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.
The best areas in Larimer County
The parts of Larimer County, ranked by the BestNeighborhood standard score across every neighborhood, highest scoring first. Each note says how that part differs from the rest of the county.
Fort Collins
Local pay stretches further, incomes run higher, and more adults hold degrees.
Wellington
More households have young kids and schools score higher.
Loveland & Berthoud
Streets are more walkable.
Estes Park
It is quieter, though biking is worse.
Laporte
Commutes are longer and more homes sit empty.
Johnstown
Transit reaches fewer jobs.
Larimer County shows why a single number is not enough. Some neighborhoods score in the bottom 7% of the country and others in the top 1%. Pick the area first, then the home.
Larimer County's strengths and weaknesses
Larimer County ranks where it does because the parts of life that are hardest to change mostly work here. Fast internet is the standout, in the top 1% of counties. Biking and population health follow.
The one real hole is air quality, near the bottom of the country. Childcare costs and state finances also cost it ground. The measures below break that down, and the map shows how much of it holds street by street.
Where Larimer County ranks high
- Internet speedBetter than 99% of counties
- BikingBetter than 99% of counties
- Health outlookBetter than 98% of counties
- Educational attainmentBetter than 98% of counties
- Household income$99,163 median, better than 92% of counties
Where Larimer County ranks low
- Air qualityBetter than only 1% of counties
- Cheap childcare$1,660 a month, better than only 1% of counties
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 6% of counties
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 20% of counties
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 24% of counties
What it costs to buy a home in Larimer County
A household needs to earn about $145,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Larimer County home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $99,163, 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 Larimer County's effective rate of 0.52%, 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 Larimer County
Larimer County's age mix sits close to the national median, and households here run smaller than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Larimer County.
Who works in Larimer County, and how
Work in Larimer County centers on health care & social and education. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 71%
- Work from home 22%
- Transit, walk, or bike 8%
Life in Larimer County
Larimer County has more late-night spots per resident than 81% of counties. That concentrates in some parts of Larimer County and thins out in others, which the map shows.
Is Larimer County growing, and who is moving in?
Larimer County has grown about 16% over the last decade. The largest inbound stream comes from Denver, CO.
Where new residents come from
Where people leaving Larimer County go
Move counts are the latest county-to-county migration flows, each county grouped into its metro.
What the weather is like in Larimer County, month by month
Larimer County sees roughly 141 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 93 degrees. January highs sit near 44, with lows near 15. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 44° | 28° | 15° |
| April | 66° | 48° | 32° |
| July | 93° | 74° | 56° |
| October | 69° | 50° | 35° |
Flying in and out of Larimer County
The nearest airport, Cheyenne Regional/Jerry Olson Field, is about 47 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Denver International, about 50 miles away.
The best schools in and around Larimer County
Schools across Larimer County average a B, better than 78% of counties.
Top elementary schools
- Zach Elementary SchoolA+ · 80% proficient
- Traut Core Elementary SchoolA · 70% proficient
- Werner Elementary SchoolA · 68% proficient
Top middle schools
- Kinard Core Knowledge Middle SchoolA · 64% proficient
- Preston Middle SchoolB+ · 49% proficient
- Webber Middle SchoolB · 45% proficient
Top high schools
- Fossil Ridge High SchoolA− · 66% proficient
- Colorado Early Colleges Fort CollinsB+ · 56% proficient
- Estes Park High SchoolB+ · 52% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Larimer County school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Larimer County 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 Larimer County against the other 3,143 counties.
Who Larimer County suits
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 86% of counties, internet is fast and widely advertised, and 22% already work from home.
Common questions about living in Larimer County
Is Larimer County a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Larimer County ranks 299th of 3,144 counties. It scores highest on fast internet, biking, and population health, and lowest on air quality and childcare costs. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Larimer County expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $576,645. The overall cost of living runs about 2% above the national average. Set against a $99,163 median income, cost of living beats 86% of counties.
Is Larimer County safe?
Larimer County is safer than 41% of counties. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $544 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in Larimer County?
July highs average about 93 degrees, and January highs near 44 with lows near 15. That works out to about 141 pleasant days a year, more than 89% of counties.
What are the best neighborhoods in Larimer County?
Using the default rankings, the highest-scoring areas are Fort Collins, Wellington, and Loveland & Berthoud. The ranked list and the re-weightable map above let you re-sort them for your own priorities.
Is Larimer County good for families?
Schools beat 78% of counties, crime safety beats 41%, and childcare runs $1,660 a month.
Is Larimer County good for remote workers?
Cost of living against local pay beats 86% of counties, and the fastest advertised internet here beats 99% of counties. About 22% of workers already work from home.
Compare Larimer County with other counties
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Larimer County. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Larimer County 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.
Larimer County detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Larimer County: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Larimer County: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Larimer County: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Larimer County: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Larimer County 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.
- U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program: population growth and net migration behind the population-change section.
- 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.