Best PlacesWashington County, UT 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. This page is for people who live here or already know they want to. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
Washington County ranks 649th of 3,144 U.S. counties on the BestNeighborhood index. It does not top any single list, but it lands above the national middle on a strong job market and the weather. The weaker spots are an overheated housing market, disaster risk, and tree cover.
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.
St. George
Local pay stretches further, incomes run higher, and more adults hold degrees.
Santa Clara
Disaster risk is lower and biking is better.
Washington
More households have young kids, though prices have run up more.
Ivins & Enterprise
It is quieter, though more homes sit empty.
Hurricane & La Verkin
Homes cost less, though commutes are longer.
Scores across Washington County run from about the 18th to the 94th percentile nationally. The map is where that becomes a choice of area.
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. A strong job market is the standout, in the top 2% of counties. The weather and cell coverage follow.
The one real hole is an overheated housing market, near the bottom of the country. Disaster risk and tree cover 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
- Local economyBetter than 98% of counties
- Nice weatherabout 169 pleasant days a year, better than 96% of counties
- Cell coverageBetter than 95% of counties
- Health outlookBetter than 92% of counties
- Crime safetyBetter than 92% of counties
Where Washington County ranks low
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 2% of counties
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 3% of counties
- Tree shadeBetter than only 10% of counties
- Air qualityBetter than only 13% of counties
- QuietBetter than only 21% of counties
What it costs to buy a home in Washington County
A household needs to earn about $130,000 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 $86,292, 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 0.41%, 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, 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 Washington County.
Who works in Washington County, and how
Work in Washington County centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 81%
- Work from home 15%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in Washington County
Washington County has more late-night spots per resident than 89% 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 38% over the last decade. The largest inbound stream comes from Provo, UT.
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 169 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 104 degrees. January highs sit near 54, with lows near 30. The comfortable stretch runs April, May, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 54° | 41° | 30° |
| April | 79° | 63° | 47° |
| July | 104° | 90° | 74° |
| October | 81° | 64° | 50° |
Flying in and out of Washington County
The nearest airport, St George Regional, is about 6 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Harry Reid International, about 116 miles away.
The best schools in and around Washington County
Schools across Washington County average a B−, better than 66% of counties.
Top elementary schools
- Crimson View SchoolA · 71% proficient
- George Washington AcademyA · 63% proficient
- Horizon SchoolA− · 60% proficient
Top middle schools
- Washington Fields IntermediateA · 60% proficient
- Sunrise Ridge IntermediateA− · 57% proficient
- Cedar MiddleB+ · 48% proficient
Top high schools
- Success DsuA− · 60% proficient
- Crimson Cliffs HighB+ · 54% proficient
- Valley HighB+ · 52% 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
Internet is fast and widely advertised and 15% already work from home.
Retirees
The weather beats 96% of counties and health care access beats 65%.
Common questions about living in Washington County
Is Washington County a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Washington County ranks 649th of 3,144 counties. It scores highest on a strong job market, the weather, and cell coverage, and lowest on an overheated housing market and disaster risk. 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 $524,376. The overall cost of living runs about 2% below the national average. Set against a $86,292 median income, cost of living beats 68% of counties.
Is Washington County safe?
Yes, Washington County is safer than 92% of counties. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $270 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in Washington County?
July highs average about 104 degrees, and January highs near 54 with lows near 30. That works out to about 169 pleasant days a year, more than 96% of counties.
What are the best neighborhoods in Washington County?
Using the default rankings, the highest-scoring areas are St. George, Santa Clara, and Washington. 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 66% of counties, crime safety beats 92%, and childcare runs $929 a month.
Is Washington County good for remote workers?
Cost of living against local pay beats 68% of counties, and the fastest advertised internet here beats 66% of counties. About 15% 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.