Best PlacesWest Laurel, Laurel, MD Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around West Laurel, Laurel, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Local pay runs high here, and housing takes the biggest bite out of it. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
West Laurel, Laurel ranks 2,609th of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on a stable housing market by a wide margin, and walkability ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in West Laurel, Laurel
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 Laurel, Laurel's strengths and weaknesses
Where West Laurel, Laurel ranks high
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 97% of neighborhoods
- Tree shadeBetter than 95% of neighborhoods
- Heat safetyBetter than 90% of neighborhoods
- Household income$139,307 median, better than 88% of neighborhoods
- Local economyBetter than 87% of neighborhoods
Where West Laurel, Laurel ranks low
- WalkabilityBetter than only 1% of neighborhoods
- State infrastructureBetter than only 3% of neighborhoods
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 5% of neighborhoods
- Cell coverageBetter than only 5% of neighborhoods
- TransitBetter than only 5% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in West Laurel, Laurel
A household needs to earn about $149,000 a year to comfortably buy the median West Laurel, Laurel home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is only a little above the area's median income of $139,307; 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 Laurel, Laurel's effective rate of 0.94%, 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 10 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 Laurel, Laurel
West Laurel, Laurel'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 West Laurel, Laurel.
Who works in West Laurel, Laurel, and how
Work in West Laurel, Laurel centers on health care & social and professional & technical. Unemployment is low, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 74%
- Work from home 23%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in West Laurel, Laurel
West Laurel, Laurel has more parkland per resident than 96% of neighborhoods. The coast is about 28 minutes away. That concentrates in some parts of West Laurel, Laurel and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in West Laurel, Laurel, month by month
West Laurel, Laurel sees roughly 74 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 87 degrees. January highs sit near 43, with lows near 27. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, and August through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 43° | 34° | 27° |
| April | 67° | 54° | 43° |
| July | 87° | 76° | 67° |
| October | 68° | 56° | 47° |
Flying in and out of West Laurel, Laurel
Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall sits about 14 miles away. It is a large hub and boarded 12.3 million passengers in 2025, with 114 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around West Laurel, Laurel
Schools across West Laurel, Laurel average a C−, better than 27% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- Fulton ElementaryA− · 56% proficient
- Burtonsville ElementaryC− · 30% proficient
- Bond Mill ElementaryC− · 26% proficient
Top middle schools
- Lime Kiln MiddleB+ · 51% proficient
- Benjamin Banneker MiddleD+ · 25% proficient
- Martin Luther King Jr. MiddleD · 20% proficient
Top high schools
- Reservoir HighA− · 66% proficient
- Paint Branch HighB · 47% proficient
- Laurel HighC− · 28% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every West Laurel, Laurel school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
West Laurel, Laurel 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 Laurel, Laurel against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Common questions about living in West Laurel, Laurel
Is West Laurel, Laurel a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, West Laurel, Laurel ranks 2,609th of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on a stable housing market, tree cover, and heat safety, and lowest on walkability and state infrastructure. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is West Laurel, Laurel expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $561,034. The overall cost of living runs about 17% above the national average. Set against a $139,307 median income, cost of living beats 86% of neighborhoods.
Is West Laurel, Laurel safe?
West Laurel, Laurel is safer than 45% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $484 per resident a year.
Compare West Laurel, Laurel with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to West Laurel, Laurel. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in West Laurel, Laurel 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 Laurel, Laurel detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for West Laurel, Laurel: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in West Laurel, Laurel: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of West Laurel, Laurel: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in West Laurel, Laurel: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
West Laurel, Laurel 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.