Best PlacesWashoe County, NV Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in Washoe 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.
Washoe County ranks 585th of 3,144 U.S. counties on the BestNeighborhood index. Paychecks stretch further here than almost anywhere else: the median household brings in $98,738, everyday costs sit below the national average, and a strong job market ranks near the top of the country. The main drawbacks are disaster risk, car insurance costs, and childcare costs.
The best neighborhoods in Washoe 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 Washoe County
The parts of Washoe 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.
Incline Village
More adults hold degrees, incomes run higher, and local pay stretches further.
Spanish Springs
More residents vote, though biking is worse.
Verdi
Fewer homes sit empty, though fewer households have young kids.
Reno
Streets are more walkable, though crime runs higher.
Sparks
Scores close to Reno, except that disaster risk is lower here.
Lemmon Valley
Homes cost less, though health care is harder to reach.
Sun Valley
It is quieter, though schools score lower.
Washoe County shows why a single number is not enough. Some neighborhoods score in the bottom 2% of the country and others in the top 1%. Pick the area first, then the home.
Washoe County's strengths and weaknesses
Washoe County ranks where it does because the parts of life that are hardest to change mostly work here. State infrastructure is the standout, in the top 2% of counties. The weather and biking follow.
The drawbacks are real but narrow. Disaster risk, car insurance costs, and childcare costs hold the score down. The measures below break that down, and the map shows how much of it holds street by street.
Where Washoe County ranks high
- State infrastructureBetter than 98% of counties
- Nice weatherabout 166 pleasant days a year, better than 96% of counties
- BikingBetter than 94% of counties
- TransitBetter than 93% of counties
- Household income$98,738 median, better than 92% of counties
Where Washoe County ranks low
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 6% of counties
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than only 9% of counties
- Cheap childcare$1,122 a month, better than only 10% of counties
- QuietBetter than only 12% of counties
- Air qualityBetter than only 17% of counties
What it costs to buy a home in Washoe County
A household needs to earn about $137,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Washoe County home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $98,738, 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 Washoe County's effective rate of 0.42%, 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 Washoe County
Washoe 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 Washoe County.
Who works in Washoe County, and how
Work in Washoe County centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 80%
- Work from home 13%
- Transit, walk, or bike 7%
Life in Washoe County
Washoe County has more late-night spots per resident than 70% of counties. That concentrates in some parts of Washoe County and thins out in others, which the map shows.
Is Washoe County growing, and who is moving in?
Washoe County has grown about 16% over the last decade. The largest inbound stream comes from Las Vegas, NV.
Where new residents come from
Where people leaving Washoe County go
Move counts are the latest county-to-county migration flows, each county grouped into its metro.
What the weather is like in Washoe County, month by month
Washoe County sees roughly 166 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 97 degrees. January highs sit near 51, with lows near 25. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 51° | 37° | 25° |
| April | 69° | 53° | 38° |
| July | 97° | 80° | 61° |
| October | 74° | 55° | 39° |
Flying in and out of Washoe County
The nearest airport, Reno/Tahoe International, is about 3 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Sacramento International, about 112 miles away.
The best schools in and around Washoe County
Schools across Washoe County average a C, better than 34% of counties.
Top elementary schools
- Ted Hunsberger ElementaryA+ · 74% proficient
- Caughlin Ranch ElementaryA+ · 73% proficient
- Roy Gomm ElementaryA+ · 72% proficient
Top middle schools
- Marce Herz Middle SchoolA− · 56% proficient
- Darrel Swope Middle SchoolB+ · 51% proficient
- Coral Academy Middle SchoolB+ · 51% proficient
Top high schools
- Davidson AcademyA+ · 95% proficient
- Tmcc Magnet SchoolA+ · 80% proficient
- Nevada State High School Ii MeadowwoodA · 78% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Washoe County school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Washoe 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 Washoe County against the other 3,143 counties.
Who Washoe County suits
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 89% of counties, internet is fast and widely advertised, and 13% already work from home.
Common questions about living in Washoe County
Is Washoe County a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Washoe County ranks 585th of 3,144 counties. It scores highest on state infrastructure, the weather, and biking, and lowest on disaster risk and car insurance costs. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Washoe County expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $554,094. The overall cost of living runs about 2% below the national average. Set against a $98,738 median income, cost of living beats 89% of counties.
Is Washoe County safe?
Washoe County is safer than 31% of counties. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $529 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in Washoe County?
July highs average about 97 degrees, and January highs near 51 with lows near 25. That works out to about 166 pleasant days a year, more than 96% of counties.
What are the best neighborhoods in Washoe County?
Using the default rankings, the highest-scoring areas are Incline Village, Spanish Springs, and Verdi. The ranked list and the re-weightable map above let you re-sort them for your own priorities.
Is Washoe County good for families?
Schools beat 34% of counties, crime safety beats 31%, and childcare runs $1,122 a month.
Is Washoe County good for remote workers?
Cost of living against local pay beats 89% of counties, and the fastest advertised internet here beats 75% of counties. About 13% of workers already work from home.
Compare Washoe County with other counties
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Washoe County. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Washoe 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.
Washoe County detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Washoe County: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Washoe County: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Washoe County: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Washoe County: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Washoe 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.