The 10 Best Neighborhoods In Portland, OR For 2024


The best Portland neighborhoods are Pearl District and Alameda for 2024 based on Saturday Night Science.

Best Neighborhoods In Portland
Source: Wikipedia User Visitor7 | CC BY-SA 3.0

Whether it’s celebrating Chinese New Year every year at Portland’s Lan Su Chinese Garden or catching a film festival with the neighborhood meet up in the Alberta Arts District there’s a great Portland neighborhood dripping in tradition and diversity just steps away from all things Portland. And if it’s more than a few steps, Portland’s TriMet connects everyone. You know what else connects everyone? If you guessed HomeSnacks list of the best neighborhoods in Portland for 2024, you guessed right.

But before we let you in on ten of Portland’s best kept secrets, here’s a little bit about how we uncovered Stumptown’s best of the best. Real estate trends say that higher median incomes usually translate to more expensive homes; and, generally speaking, better schools and less crime, so we looked at the latest census data for the median income and median home prices in each one of 63 Portland’s neighborhoods. And because jobs, safety, affordability, and amenities are important factors, too, we added those to the mix as well.

We are happy to report that Portland’s crime rate is way above the national average and this is because of neighborhood crime watch programs in places like Homestead. This is also because many of the people in these neighborhoods have good jobs. Places like Irvington and Richmond are filled with professionals who work for major Portland companies like Nike and Columbia.

And, if you want to know what place is Portland’s poster neighborhood for the rest of the state as well as the country, you’re going to have to keep reading.


Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table


The Best Neighborhoods In Portland For 2024

  1. Pearl District
  2. Alameda
  3. Southwest Hills
  4. Bridlemile
  5. Eastmoreland
  6. Homestead
  7. Forest Park
  8. Irvington
  9. Hillsdale
  10. Mount Tabor

The experts say that Portland’s residents are some of the some of the healthiest in the country. The life expectancy rate is close to 90 in some of PDX’s neighborhoods. All the more reason to take a look at our list below to ensure that you make the most informed decision; because if you buy a home in one of Portland’s best neighborhoods, you’re going to be there a while.

So, what is Portland’s best neighborhood? According to the latest data, that would be Pearl District.

This is actually or tenth time ranking the best neighborhoods in Portland and each year the competition does not disappoint. So, to see the other neighborhoods that made the list, hit that down arrow.

For more Oregon reading, check out:

The 10 Best Neighborhoods To Live In Portland

Population: 9,159
Median Home Value: $630,200 (Ninth best)
Median Income: $102,361 (11th best)
More on Pearl District: Data | Real Estate

Alameda Portland, OR

Source: Wikipedia User | CC BY-SA 2.5

Population: 5,173
Median Home Value: $711,033 (Third best)
Median Income: $165,672 (Second best)
More on Alameda: Data | Real Estate

Population: 5,516
Median Home Value: $831,817 (best)
Median Income: $172,903 (best)
More on Southwest Hills: Data | Real Estate

Population: 4,543
Median Home Value: $631,700 (Eighth best)
Median Income: $117,312 (Seventh best)
More on Bridlemile: Data | Real Estate

Eastmoreland Portland, OR

Source: Flickr User Photos by Mavis | CC BY-ND 2.0

Population: 4,897
Median Home Value: $729,150 (Second best)
Median Income: $157,265 (Third best)
More on Eastmoreland: Data | Real Estate

Population: 2,497
Median Home Value: $661,400 (Fifth best)
Median Income: $103,449 (Tenth best)
More on Homestead: Data | Real Estate

Forest Park Portland, OR

Source: Wikipedia User | CC BY-SA 3.0

Population: 10,184
Median Home Value: $664,927 (Fourth best)
Median Income: $138,185 (Fourth best)
More on Forest Park: Data | Real Estate

Irvington Portland, OR

Source: Wikipedia User | GFDL

Population: 6,888
Median Home Value: $655,710 (Sixth best)
Median Income: $117,538 (Sixth best)
More on Irvington: Data | Real Estate

Population: 8,217
Median Home Value: $639,744 (Seventh best)
Median Income: $126,414 (Fifth best)
More on Hillsdale: Data | Real Estate

Mount Tabor Portland, OR

Source: Wikipedia User | GFDL

Population: 11,071
Median Home Value: $531,473 (18th best)
Median Income: $86,375 (24th best)
More on Mount Tabor: Data | Real Estate

Methodology: How We Determined The Best Portland, OR Neighborhoods In 2024

To rank the best neighborhoods in Portland, we had to determine what criteria define “best” and then apply Saturday Night Science to it.

Using FBI crime, Census, and extrapolated BLS data, we arrived at the following set of criteria:

  • High incomes
  • Low unemployment rates
  • Low crime
  • High home prices
  • High population densities (A proxy for things to do)

We then ranked each neighborhood with scores from 1 to 63 in each category, where 1 was the best.

Next, we averaged the rankings for each neighborhood to create a best neighborhood index.

And finally, we crowned the neighborhood with the lowest best neighborhood index, the “Best City Neighborhood In Portland.” We’re lookin’ at you, Pearl District.

Read on below to learn more about what it’s like to live in the best places Portland, Oregon has to offer. Or skip to the end to see the list of all the neighborhoods in the city, from best to worst.

We updated this article for 2024. This report is our tenth time ranking the best neighborhoods to live in Portland.

Summary: Putting A Bow On Our Analysis Of The Best Neighborhoods In Portland

If you’re measuring the neighborhoods in Portland where crime is low and everyone wants to live, this is an accurate list.

The best neighborhoods in Portland are Pearl District, Alameda, Southwest Hills, Bridlemile, Eastmoreland, Homestead, Forest Park, Irvington, Hillsdale, and Mount Tabor.

As mentioned earlier, the neighborhoods in Portland aren’t all good. Saintjohns takes the title of the worst neighborhood to live in Portland.

The worst neighborhoods in Portland are Saintjohns, Powellhurst, Centennial, Parkrose, and Portsmith.

We ranked the neighborhoods from best to worst in the chart below.

For more Oregon reading, check out:

Best Neighborhoods To Live In Portland For 2024 Detailed Data

Rank Neighborhood Population Home Value Median Income
1 Pearl District 9,159 $630,200 $102,361
2 Alameda 5,173 $711,033 $165,672
3 Southwest Hills 5,516 $831,817 $172,903
4 Bridlemile 4,543 $631,700 $117,312
5 Eastmoreland 4,897 $729,150 $157,265
6 Homestead 2,497 $661,400 $103,449
7 Forest Park 10,184 $664,927 $138,185
8 Irvington 6,888 $655,710 $117,538
9 Hillsdale 8,217 $639,744 $126,414
10 Mount Tabor 11,071 $531,473 $86,375
11 Corbett-Terwilliger-Lair Hill 9,745 $595,773 $93,468
12 Hayhurst 5,685 $548,625 $100,939
13 Richmond 13,863 $570,560 $97,974
14 Linnton 736 $554,700 $115,628
15 Reed 4,972 $587,867 $82,106
16 Arbor Lodge 7,552 $451,278 $101,657
17 Concordia 12,215 $528,145 $98,964
18 Ross Island 154 $450,000 $100,139
19 Woodstock 10,148 $469,742 $91,722
20 King 7,657 $528,200 $80,066
21 Far Southwest 1,911 $449,300 $67,612
22 Roseway 7,276 $414,960 $92,378
23 Sellwood-Moreland 11,437 $509,817 $82,661
24 Eliot 4,990 $552,300 $66,836
25 Center 9,781 $436,970 $78,398
26 Overlook 7,116 $500,544 $94,750
27 Northwest 15,790 $608,590 $76,223
28 University Park 5,848 $479,075 $88,197
29 South Tabor 7,365 $416,957 $77,546
30 Boise 4,881 $449,040 $78,122
31 Mount Scott 8,205 $383,973 $77,163
32 Buckman 10,359 $492,950 $65,544
33 Woodlawn 5,292 $453,567 $86,659
34 Downtown 13,640 $462,350 $49,632
35 Hosford 8,107 $417,230 $71,902
36 Maplewood-Ashcreek 17,712 $361,243 $79,174
37 Sunderland 492 $391,450 $111,891
38 Creston-Kenilworth 9,530 $432,967 $68,844
39 Brooklyn 5,248 $489,033 $78,382
40 Kerns 6,087 $561,086 $50,693
41 Lloyd 3,181 $433,520 $62,631
42 Mill Park 9,784 $265,186 $58,057
43 Pleasant Valley 12,150 $367,575 $89,568
44 Kenton 7,526 $407,683 $76,704
45 Brentwood-Darlington 13,753 $319,340 $67,974
46 Lents 20,735 $349,793 $70,070
47 Government Island 418 $281,500 $67,280
48 Hazelwood 25,397 $308,732 $53,042
49 Bridgeton 682 $289,400 $73,450
50 Wilkes 8,465 $339,243 $73,738
51 Montavilla 16,478 $372,617 $65,253
52 Foster Powell 7,801 $250,786 $54,018
53 Old Town-Chinatown 2,845 $418,750 $20,650
54 Cathedral Park 3,556 $352,350 $76,628
55 Argay 5,466 $364,000 $75,251
56 Madison South 7,738 $352,820 $66,078
57 Cully 13,078 $371,260 $68,454
58 Haden Island 565 $149,050 $60,522
59 Portsmith 10,654 $250,000 $46,666
60 Parkrose 5,614 $329,625 $58,037
61 Centennial 22,726 $279,580 $51,060
62 Powellhurst 25,760 $186,475 $40,114
63 Saintjohns 7,933 $227,860 $60,428
About Chris Kolmar

Chris Kolmar has been in the real estate business for almost ten years now. He originally worked for Movoto Real Estate as the director of marketing before founding HomeSnacks.

He believes the key to finding the right place to live comes down to looking at the data, reading about things to do, and, most importantly, checking it out yourself before you move.

If you've been looking for a place to live in the past several years, you've probably stumbled upon his writing already.

You can find out more about him on LinkedIn or his website.