Best PlacesWest Bloomington, Bloomington, MN Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around West Bloomington, Bloomington, 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.
West Bloomington, Bloomington ranks 874th of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on a stable housing market by a wide margin, and childcare costs are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in West Bloomington, Bloomington
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.
West Bloomington, Bloomington's strengths and weaknesses
Where West Bloomington, Bloomington ranks high
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 95% of neighborhoods
- Voter turnoutBetter than 95% of neighborhoods
- Healthcare accessBetter than 93% of neighborhoods
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 88% of neighborhoods
- State infrastructureBetter than 86% of neighborhoods
Where West Bloomington, Bloomington ranks low
- Cheap childcare$1,682 a month, better than only 14% of neighborhoods
- Cell coverageBetter than only 18% of neighborhoods
- WalkabilityBetter than only 23% of neighborhoods
- TransitBetter than only 28% of neighborhoods
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 33% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in West Bloomington, Bloomington
A household needs to earn about $108,000 a year to comfortably buy the median West Bloomington, Bloomington home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is only a little above the area's median income of $103,947; the gap is small, which keeps homes within reach of local pay.
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 West Bloomington, Bloomington's effective rate of 1.05%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 8 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in West Bloomington, Bloomington
West Bloomington, Bloomington runs older than the country, 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 West Bloomington, Bloomington.
Who works in West Bloomington, Bloomington, and how
Work in West Bloomington, Bloomington centers on health care & social and manufacturing. Unemployment is low, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 72%
- Work from home 22%
- Transit, walk, or bike 5%
Life in West Bloomington, Bloomington
West Bloomington, Bloomington has more parkland per resident than 95% of neighborhoods. That concentrates in some parts of West Bloomington, Bloomington and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in West Bloomington, Bloomington, month by month
West Bloomington, Bloomington sees roughly 115 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 85 degrees. January highs sit near 26, with lows near 11. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 26° | 18° | 11° |
| April | 57° | 46° | 37° |
| July | 85° | 75° | 65° |
| October | 60° | 50° | 43° |
Flying in and out of West Bloomington, Bloomington
Minneapolis-St Paul International/Wold-Chamberlain sits about 7 miles away. It is a large hub and boarded 17.5 million passengers in 2025, with 195 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around West Bloomington, Bloomington
Schools across West Bloomington, Bloomington average a B, better than 72% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- Normandale ElementaryA+ · 78% proficient
- Eagle Heights Spanish ImmersionA · 64% proficient
- Red Oak ElementaryB · 49% proficient
Top middle schools
- Valley View MiddleA · 65% proficient
- Central Middle SchoolA− · 58% proficient
- Olson MiddleB+ · 51% proficient
Top high schools
- Edina Senior HighA · 75% proficient
- Eden Prairie Senior HighA− · 65% proficient
- Jefferson Senior HighB+ · 57% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every West Bloomington, Bloomington school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
West Bloomington, Bloomington 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 West Bloomington, Bloomington against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Who West Bloomington, Bloomington suits
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 88% of neighborhoods and 22% already work from home.
Retirees
The weather beats 60% of neighborhoods and health care access beats 93%.
Common questions about living in West Bloomington, Bloomington
Is West Bloomington, Bloomington a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, West Bloomington, Bloomington ranks 874th of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on a stable housing market, civic engagement, and health care access, and lowest on childcare costs and cell coverage. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is West Bloomington, Bloomington expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $400,902. The overall cost of living runs about 13% below the national average. Set against a $103,947 median income, cost of living beats 88% of neighborhoods.
Is West Bloomington, Bloomington safe?
Yes, West Bloomington, Bloomington is safer than 80% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $312 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in West Bloomington, Bloomington?
July highs average about 85 degrees, and January highs near 26 with lows near 11. That works out to about 115 pleasant days a year, more than 60% of neighborhoods.
Is West Bloomington, Bloomington good for families?
Schools beat 72% of neighborhoods, crime safety beats 80%, and childcare runs $1,682 a month.
Compare West Bloomington, Bloomington with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to West Bloomington, Bloomington. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in West Bloomington, Bloomington 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.
West Bloomington, Bloomington detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for West Bloomington, Bloomington: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in West Bloomington, Bloomington: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of West Bloomington, Bloomington: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in West Bloomington, Bloomington: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
West Bloomington, Bloomington 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.