Best PlacesSamish Hill, Bellingham, WA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Samish Hill, Bellingham, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Costs and crime both read low, and the nearest big city is a drive away. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
Samish Hill, Bellingham ranks 1,131st of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on tree cover by a wide margin, and state infrastructure ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in Samish Hill, Bellingham
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.
Samish Hill, Bellingham's strengths and weaknesses
Where Samish Hill, Bellingham ranks high
- Tree shadeBetter than 99% of neighborhoods
- Air qualityBetter than 99% of neighborhoods
- Low vacancyBetter than 97% of neighborhoods
- Short commute18.1 minutes each way, better than 89% of neighborhoods
- Voter turnoutBetter than 88% of neighborhoods
Where Samish Hill, Bellingham ranks low
- State infrastructureBetter than only 7% of neighborhoods
- Internet speedBetter than only 8% of neighborhoods
- WalkabilityBetter than only 12% of neighborhoods
- Big-city accessBetter than only 15% of neighborhoods
- Cheap childcare$1,516 a month, better than only 19% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in Samish Hill, Bellingham
A household needs to earn about $186,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Samish Hill, Bellingham home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $102,407, 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 Samish Hill, Bellingham's effective rate of 0.67%, 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 Samish Hill, Bellingham
Samish Hill, Bellingham runs younger than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Samish Hill, Bellingham.
Who works in Samish Hill, Bellingham, and how
Work in Samish Hill, Bellingham centers on health care & social and hospitality & food. Unemployment runs well above the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 75%
- Work from home 16%
- Transit, walk, or bike 10%
Life in Samish Hill, Bellingham
The coast is about 3 minutes away. Distance to the water changes a lot across Samish Hill, Bellingham, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in Samish Hill, Bellingham, month by month
Samish Hill, Bellingham sees roughly 118 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 76 degrees. January highs sit near 48, with lows near 33. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 48° | 40° | 33° |
| April | 60° | 50° | 40° |
| July | 76° | 65° | 54° |
| October | 61° | 51° | 43° |
Flying in and out of Samish Hill, Bellingham
The nearest airport, Bellingham International, is about 6 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Seattle-Tacoma International, about 88 miles away.
Samish Hill, Bellingham 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 Samish Hill, Bellingham against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Common questions about living in Samish Hill, Bellingham
Is Samish Hill, Bellingham a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Samish Hill, Bellingham ranks 1,131st of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on tree cover, clean air, and few empty homes, and lowest on state infrastructure and internet speeds. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Samish Hill, Bellingham expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $724,559. The overall cost of living runs about 12% above the national average. Set against a $102,407 median income, cost of living beats 64% of neighborhoods.
Is Samish Hill, Bellingham safe?
Yes, Samish Hill, Bellingham is safer than 87% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $350 per resident a year.
Compare Samish Hill, Bellingham with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Samish Hill, Bellingham. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Samish Hill, Bellingham 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.
Samish Hill, Bellingham detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Samish Hill, Bellingham: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Samish Hill, Bellingham: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Samish Hill, Bellingham: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Samish Hill, Bellingham: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Samish Hill, Bellingham 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.