While big cities like Salem offer culture, cuisine, and charisma, they also deliver terrible traffic, towering expenses, and a taxing quality of life.
With that in mind, we wanted to uncover the best suburbs around Salem. These burbs have all of the benefits of being near Salem without actually having to be in the city.
Of course, not all suburbs of Salem are created equally, which is precisely why we set out to find the best ones. Using Saturday Night Science, we delve into the factors that matter most, from commutes and housing costs to community vibes, to help you uncover the perfect suburban spots in the Greater Salem area.
Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table
The 10 best suburbs to live around Salem for 2024:
What’s the best suburb of Salem? Lafayette ranks as the best suburb of Salem for 2024 based on the most recent Census and FBI data. If you happen to be a resident of Lafayette, you’re probably not too surprised to find it on the top our list.
We’ll tell you what makes each of these 10 Salem ‘burbs better than the rest–but first, a bit about our methodology.
Feel free to check out some more reading about Oregon:
The 10 Best Salem Suburbs To Live For 2024
/10
Population: 4,391
Median Income: $93,243
Unemployment Rate: 4.7%
Poverty Rate: 6.4%
More on Lafayette: Data | Real Estate
Lafayette is always mentioned as one of the best suburbs in the Salem area. We’ll tell you the good about “Awesome Lafayette.”
Everyone here is rich; families average $93,243 a year, which is the 4th highest in the Salem region. And only 4.65% are out of work. Homes average more than $426,274 each.
Crime is normal, schools are pretty good! I love this town now, although I did not use to. The community here is amazing. It takes a village to raise a family and I have that here.
The community is amazing! But have a security system because there is a few town hoodlums who like to cause trouble.
2. Millersburg, OR
/10
Population: 2,964
Median Income: $119,148
Unemployment Rate: 2.9%
Poverty Rate: 7.6%
More on Millersburg: Real Estate
Millersburg is the second best ‘burb we looked at near Salem for 2024.
It ranks 1st for incomes in the area and only 7.64% of residents lack insurance, good for 18th best.
3. Sublimity, OR
/10
Population: 2,945
Median Income: $74,875
Unemployment Rate: 2.5%
Poverty Rate: 7.6%
More on Sublimity: Real Estate
Here in Sublimity, it’s really safe, and residents are just about as rich as you’ll see in the Salem metro area.
The bad side? Schools are more crowded, and the cost of living puts a large part of the city out of reach for most families.
But price is based on demand and a lot of people want to live in Sublimity.
/10
Population: 25,379
Median Income: $87,873
Unemployment Rate: 3.3%
Poverty Rate: 8.0%
More on Newberg: Data | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
Newberg ranks as the 4th best suburb of Salem for 2024.
You won’t find many better places to raise your kids in the region than in Newberg and the schools are some of the best around.
5. Turner, OR
/10
Population: 2,792
Median Income: $101,292
Unemployment Rate: 6.0%
Poverty Rate: 3.4%
More on Turner: Real Estate
Coming in as the fifth best is Turner.
Turner gets kudos for having the 5th most expensive homes in the Salem area, where houses sell for an average of $555,790. However, the cost of living here is among the highest in the area.
/10
Population: 18,127
Median Income: $91,823
Unemployment Rate: 3.1%
Poverty Rate: 8.8%
More on Canby: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
Canby is proud of its 6th place finish on this list. And here’s why.
Most residents have great jobs and the unemployment rate sits at 3.11%.
According to online reports, Canby is quickly becoming one of the more affluent suburbs in the Salem area, meaning you need to get in soon.
/10
Population: 3,224
Median Income: $98,152
Unemployment Rate: 5.7%
Poverty Rate: 2.6%
More on Dundee: Data | Real Estate
The 7th best suburb on our list goes to Dundee.
Dundee schools are some of the best in the region, and crime is really low. The cost of living makes it a lot more desirable for many families, especially first-time home buyers.
And, it’s only 24.3 miles to downtown, which is a good thing.
/10
Population: 25,992
Median Income: $83,210
Unemployment Rate: 5.8%
Poverty Rate: 8.7%
More on Wilsonville: Data | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
Wilsonville is growing quickly, and for a good reason. Crime is far below average, and most residents are gainfully employed. Even the cost of living is reasonable.
A solid 5.77% of people lack insurance, good for 11th in the area.
/10
Population: 4,219
Median Income: $85,636
Unemployment Rate: 4.8%
Poverty Rate: 9.5%
More on Aumsville: Data | Real Estate
Is ‘Everything Better In Aumsville?’
Almost.
It placed 9th on our list thanks to the fact that it’s really expensive to live here, but the schools are great, so you get what you pay for in that regard.
/10
Population: 10,147
Median Income: $77,442
Unemployment Rate: 7.0%
Poverty Rate: 7.0%
More on Molalla: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
And rounding out the top ten for 2024 is Molalla.
This city is far above average in every category, and the best part? It’s far more affordable than the other cities listed above. So, you get a big bang for your buck here.
Methodology: How We Determined The Best Suburbs Around Salem for 2024
Figuring out the best suburbs around Salem was simple. We used Saturday Night Science to find things people like about living in the suburbs and then locate the suburbs with those things.
We analyzed the newest American Community Survey data for 2018-2022 to research each suburb. We decided upon the following criteria:
- Low unemployment rate
- High median household incomes
- Population density (lots of things to do)
- High home values
- A lot of college-educated people
- Low poverty
- High rate of insured families
We defined a suburb as being within 30 miles of Salem.
Additionally, we limited the analysis to places that have over 2,000 people. This left us with a grand total of 29 suburbs to evaluate around Salem.
We ranked each place with scores from 1 to 29 in each category, where 1 was the “best.
Next, we averaged the rankings for each place to create a quality-of-life index.
Finally, we crowned the city with the best quality of life index, the “Best Suburb near Salem.” We’re lookin’ at you, Lafayette.
This result may differ from our state-wide data as we did not include commute times and crime for this analysis to allow for a more extensive selection of suburbs.
We updated the data for 2024. This report is our tenth time ranking the best Salem suburbs. Skip to the end to see the list of all the suburbs ranked from best to worst.
Summary: Welcome to the Best Salem ‘Burbs of 2024
We said it once, and we’ll say it again–life in the big city isn’t for everyone. At least not all the time.
The best suburbs of Salem are .
So if you’re craving the amenities of a larger city like Salem but don’t want to deal with the drawbacks, one of these suburbs might be for you.
For more Oregon reading, check out:
Table: Best Salem Suburbs
| Rank | City | Population | Median Income | Average Home Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lafayette, OR | 4,391 | $93,243 | $426,274 |
| 2 | Millersburg, OR | 2,964 | $119,148 | $563,434 |
| 3 | Sublimity, OR | 2,945 | $74,875 | $544,981 |
| 4 | Newberg, OR | 25,379 | $87,873 | $519,518 |
| 5 | Turner, OR | 2,792 | $101,292 | $555,790 |
| 6 | Canby, OR | 18,127 | $91,823 | $566,045 |
| 7 | Dundee, OR | 3,224 | $98,152 | $571,189 |
| 8 | Wilsonville, OR | 25,992 | $83,210 | $637,996 |
| 9 | Aumsville, OR | 4,219 | $85,636 | $461,119 |
| 10 | Molalla, OR | 10,147 | $77,442 | $478,905 |
| 11 | Keizer, OR | 39,122 | $75,753 | $434,715 |
| 12 | Silverton, OR | 10,439 | $75,167 | $518,976 |
| 13 | Hubbard, OR | 3,427 | $89,016 | $484,033 |
| 14 | Carlton, OR | 2,339 | $92,500 | $536,434 |
| 15 | Stayton, OR | 8,210 | $72,639 | $434,159 |
| 16 | Monmouth, OR | 11,054 | $61,282 | $446,850 |
| 17 | Dallas, OR | 16,945 | $67,935 | $447,818 |
| 18 | Corvallis, OR | 60,050 | $61,610 | $530,933 |
| 19 | Independence, OR | 9,981 | $73,361 | $395,971 |
| 20 | Mcminnville, OR | 34,432 | $65,318 | $466,521 |
| 21 | Jefferson, OR | 3,324 | $87,604 | $426,346 |
| 22 | Gervais, OR | 2,605 | $86,875 | $406,186 |
| 23 | Albany, OR | 56,348 | $69,777 | $413,665 |
| 24 | Sheridan, OR | 6,237 | $56,989 | $378,924 |
| 25 | Woodburn, OR | 26,222 | $58,916 | $403,723 |
| 26 | Dayton, OR | 2,677 | $76,014 | $495,587 |
| 27 | Mount Angel, OR | 3,413 | $54,583 | $454,344 |
| 28 | Willamina, OR | 2,287 | $54,310 | $338,479 |
| 29 | Lebanon, OR | 18,587 | $53,246 | $377,909 |
