Best PlacesWashington County, OR Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in Washington 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.
Washington County ranks 57th of 3,144 U.S. counties on the BestNeighborhood index. Paychecks stretch further here than almost anywhere else: the median household brings in $118,809, wages outrun the cost of living, and an educated workforce ranks near the top of the country. The main drawbacks are childcare costs, noise, and disaster risk.
The best neighborhoods in Washington 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 Washington County
The parts of Washington 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.
Cedar Mill
More adults hold degrees, local pay stretches further, and incomes run higher.
Beaverton, Sherwood & Bull Mountain
It is quieter, though transit reaches fewer jobs.
Bethany
Schools score higher and crime runs lower.
Portland
Streets are more walkable, though fewer households have young kids.
Tigard & Tualatin
Tree cover is thicker, though prices have run up more.
Aloha
Fewer residents vote.
Hillsboro & Forest Grove
Scores close to Aloha, except that fewer homes sit empty here.
Gaston
Health care is easier to reach, though biking is worse.
Cornelius
Homes cost less, though health outcomes score lower.
Washington County shows why a single number is not enough. Some neighborhoods score in the bottom 14% of the country and others in the top 1%. Pick the area first, then the home.
Washington County's strengths and weaknesses
Washington County ranks where it does because the parts of life that are hardest to change mostly work here. Biking is the standout, in the top 1% of counties. Few empty homes and transit follow.
The one real hole is childcare costs, near the bottom of the country. Noise and disaster risk also cost it ground. The measures below break that down, and the map shows how much of it holds street by street.
Where Washington County ranks high
- BikingBetter than 99% of counties
- Low vacancyBetter than 99% of counties
- TransitBetter than 98% of counties
- Health outlookBetter than 97% of counties
- Household income$118,809 median, better than 97% of counties
Where Washington County ranks low
- Cheap childcare$1,642 a month, better than only 1% of counties
- QuietBetter than only 9% of counties
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 25% of counties
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 29% of counties
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 34% of counties
What it costs to buy a home in Washington County
A household needs to earn about $155,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Washington County home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $118,809, 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 Washington County's effective rate of 0.86%, 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 Washington County
Washington County's age mix sits close to the national median.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Washington County.
Who works in Washington County, and how
Work in Washington County centers on manufacturing and health care & social. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 68%
- Work from home 24%
- Transit, walk, or bike 8%
Life in Washington County
Washington County has more late-night spots per resident than 90% of counties. That concentrates in some parts of Washington County and thins out in others, which the map shows.
Is Washington County growing, and who is moving in?
Washington County has grown about 9% over the last decade. The largest inbound stream comes from the rest of the Portland, OR metro.
Where new residents come from
Where people leaving Washington County go
Move counts are the latest county-to-county migration flows, each county grouped into its metro.
What the weather is like in Washington County, month by month
Washington County sees roughly 100 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 86 degrees. January highs sit near 49, with lows near 33. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 49° | 41° | 33° |
| April | 64° | 51° | 38° |
| July | 86° | 69° | 52° |
| October | 67° | 53° | 41° |
Flying in and out of Washington County
Portland International sits about 15 miles away. It is a medium hub and boarded 9.1 million passengers in 2025, with 117 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around Washington County
Schools across Washington County average a B+, better than 86% of counties.
Top elementary schools
- Findley ElementaryA+ · 83% proficient
- Bethany Elementary SchoolA+ · 78% proficient
- Bonny Slope Elementary SchoolA+ · 75% proficient
Top middle schools
- Stoller Middle SchoolA+ · 82% proficient
- Whitford Middle SchoolA+ · 73% proficient
- Meadow Park Middle SchoolA+ · 72% proficient
Top high schools
- Forest Grove High SchoolA+ · 98% proficient
- International School Of BeavertonA+ · 87% proficient
- Sherwood High SchoolA+ · 83% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Washington County school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Washington 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 Washington County against the other 3,143 counties.
Who Washington County suits
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 94% of counties, internet is fast and widely advertised, and 24% already work from home.
Common questions about living in Washington County
Is Washington County a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Washington County ranks 57th of 3,144 counties. It scores highest on biking, few empty homes, and transit, and lowest on childcare costs and noise. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Washington County expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $587,262. The overall cost of living runs about 7% above the national average. Set against a $118,809 median income, cost of living beats 94% of counties.
Is Washington County safe?
Washington County is safer than 54% of counties. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $440 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in Washington County?
July highs average about 86 degrees, and January highs near 49 with lows near 33. That works out to about 100 pleasant days a year, more than 60% of counties.
What are the best neighborhoods in Washington County?
Using the default rankings, the highest-scoring areas are Cedar Mill, Beaverton, Sherwood & Bull Mountain, and Bethany. The ranked list and the re-weightable map above let you re-sort them for your own priorities.
Is Washington County good for families?
Schools beat 86% of counties, crime safety beats 54%, and childcare runs $1,642 a month.
Is Washington County good for remote workers?
Cost of living against local pay beats 94% of counties, and the fastest advertised internet here beats 95% of counties. About 24% of workers already work from home.
Compare Washington County with other counties
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Washington County. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Washington 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.
Washington County detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Washington County: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Washington County: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Washington County: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Washington County: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Washington 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.