The 10 Best Neighborhoods In Raleigh, NC For 2024


The best Raleigh neighborhoods are Glenwood and Wade for 2024 based on Saturday Night Science.

Best Neighborhoods In Raleigh
Source: Wikipedia User Atlpedia | CC BY-SA 3.0

You want a change and you’ve decided that you want to live in Raleigh, North Carolina. So, you get the job and now you need a place to live. There’s a lot to think about when searching for the right neighborhood. Things like safety, affordability, and amenities are things that most people find important. But, if you’ve never been to Raleigh, where do you begin? We’ll tell you. HomeSnacks has created the ultimate guide to The City of Oak’s best neighborhoods for 2024 and listed them below.

Whether you’re going to be a Hurricane’s fan, a Wolfpack fan, a fan of renting a home, or a fan of buying one, there’s a great place to live in Raleigh that won’t break your bank. Matter of fact, the Falls of Neuse and North Central neighborhoods both have homes for under $349,390–that’s unheard of in a city with over 300,000 residents!

There’s always something brewing in Raleigh: great coffee, craft beer, and street festivals that rival those found in the biggest cities in the country. So, if you want to get your hands on one of this city’s hottest neighborhoods, don’t wait: Raleigh is also one of the fastest growing cities in the country. So, do yourself a favor and take a second to see our list of Raleigh’s top ten best neighborhoods.


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


The Best Neighborhoods In Raleigh For 2024

  1. Glenwood
  2. Wade
  3. Five Points
  4. Hillsborough
  5. Six Forks
  6. Mordecai
  7. North Central
  8. North
  9. Falls Of Neuse
  10. Northwest

To break it down even further, if you’re a student or have a job working for NC State, the Hillsborough neighborhoods is filled with eclectic coffee shops, restaurants, shopping and is close to a Target and the university. The Glenwood neighborhood is easily accessible by foot or bike and there are a lot of young professionals that frequent its classic corner bars and diverse restaurants. These both great neighborhoods, but they are not Raleigh’s best neighborhood.

So, what’s the best neighborhood in Raleigh for 2024? Well, according to the latest census data and our SnackAbility algorithm, that would be Glenwood.

Keep reading to see how the rest of Raleigh’s 18 fared.

For more North Carolina reading, check out:

The 10 Best Neighborhoods To Live In Raleigh

Glenwood Raleigh, NC

Source: Wikipedia User | CC BY-SA 3.0

Population: 8,325
Median Home Value: $665,475 (Second best)
Median Income: $165,486 (best)
More on Glenwood: Data | Real Estate

Wade Raleigh, NC

Source: Flickr User Dougtone | CC BY-SA 2.0

Population: 9,237
Median Home Value: $672,878 (best)
Median Income: $125,326 (Third best)
More on Wade: Data | Real Estate

Five Points Raleigh, NC

Source: Wikipedia User | CC BY-SA 4.0

Population: 8,669
Median Home Value: $593,800 (Third best)
Median Income: $148,413 (Second best)
More on Five Points: Data | Real Estate

Hillsborough Raleigh, NC

Source: Wikipedia User | CC BY-SA 3.0

Population: 16,059
Median Home Value: $494,338 (Fourth best)
Median Income: $66,214 (11th best)
More on Hillsborough: Data | Real Estate

Six Forks Raleigh, NC

Source: Flickr User MikeKalasnik | CC BY-SA 2.0

Population: 11,821
Median Home Value: $398,357 (Eighth best)
Median Income: $87,769 (Sixth best)
More on Six Forks: Data | Real Estate

Mordecai Raleigh, NC

Source: Flickr User My Lil’ Rotten | CC BY-ND 2.0

Population: 3,022
Median Home Value: $450,000 (Fifth best)
Median Income: $96,375 (Fifth best)
More on Mordecai: Data | Real Estate

Population: 5,599
Median Home Value: $425,040 (Sixth best)
Median Income: $105,066 (Fourth best)
More on North Central: Data | Real Estate

Population: 76,649
Median Home Value: $266,389 (12th best)
Median Income: $80,005 (Seventh best)
More on North: Data | Real Estate

Falls Of Neuse Raleigh, NC

Source: Flickr User James Willamor | CC BY-SA 2.0

Population: 9,886
Median Home Value: $324,617 (Tenth best)
Median Income: $68,103 (Tenth best)
More on Falls Of Neuse: Data | Real Estate

Population: 81,974
Median Home Value: $279,428 (11th best)
Median Income: $78,719 (Eighth best)
More on Northwest: Data | Real Estate

Methodology: How We Determined The Best Raleigh, NC Neighborhoods In 2024

To rank the best neighborhoods in Raleigh, 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 18 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 Raleigh.” We’re lookin’ at you, Glenwood.

Read on below to learn more about what it’s like to live in the best places Raleigh, North Carolina 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 Raleigh.

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

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

The best neighborhoods in Raleigh are Glenwood, Wade, Five Points, Hillsborough, Six Forks, Mordecai, North Central, North, Falls Of Neuse, and Northwest.

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

The worst neighborhoods in Raleigh are South, Southwest, Southeast, Northeast, and South Central.

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

For more North Carolina reading, check out:

Best Neighborhoods To Live In Raleigh For 2024 Detailed Data

Rank Neighborhood Population Home Value Median Income
1 Glenwood 8,325 $665,475 $165,486
2 Wade 9,237 $672,878 $125,326
3 Five Points 8,669 $593,800 $148,413
4 Hillsborough 16,059 $494,338 $66,214
5 Six Forks 11,821 $398,357 $87,769
6 Mordecai 3,022 $450,000 $96,375
7 North Central 5,599 $425,040 $105,066
8 North 76,649 $266,389 $80,005
9 Falls Of Neuse 9,886 $324,617 $68,103
10 Northwest 81,974 $279,428 $78,719
11 Central 7,434 $407,400 $69,122
12 East Raleigh 11,598 $372,057 $62,387
13 West 37,998 $161,100 $49,446
14 South Central 7,209 $235,712 $34,998
15 Northeast 87,424 $154,814 $56,500
16 Southeast 28,074 $124,092 $43,932
17 Southwest 22,629 $132,067 $38,691
18 South 17,197 $131,456 $42,477
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.