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You might have to win the Washington lottery if you want to live in The Evergreen State's wealthiest places.
Now, if you've never been lucky, you might want to listen up if you're thinking about calling one of Washington's richest places home. We think that you can increase your luck if you take a look at HomeSnacks' list of the top ten richest cities in this Pacific Northwest Paradise for 2020.
But first, some insight into how we identified the top ten. We looked at the latest Census data from the American Community Survey for 120 Washington cities with more than 5,000 residents. And, folks, if you live in the greater Seattle and Tacoma you are definitely Washington's one percent and you are definitely rubbing elbows with the Joneses.
But, if you don't live where wealthy Washingtonians are 'rolling in the dough,' you're going to need to find a job that makes at least $95,859/year. And currently, the highest paying jobs are in healthcare and aviation. Next, you're going to have to have a vacation home in sunny San Diego, California so you have something to talk about at your fancy, rich parties.
So, want to know where Washington's finest live who only drink the cleanest Crystal Springs Water from Kent and only wear the Eddie Baur brand out of Bellevue? Keep reading.
At the end of the day, here's the set of the 10 richest places in Washington for 2020:
- Sammamish (Photos | Homes For Sale)
- Snoqualmie (Photos | Homes For Sale)
- Bainbridge Island (Photos | Homes For Sale)
- Ridgefield (Photos | Homes For Sale)
- Mercer Island (Photos | Homes For Sale)
- Brier (Photos | Homes For Sale)
- Woodinville (Photos | Homes For Sale)
- Redmond (Photos | Homes For Sale)
- Camas (Photos | Homes For Sale)
- Covington (>Homes For Sale)
In order to determine Washington's richest places, we also looked at the things that wealthy people find worthy of their time and efforts: high paying jobs and low poverty. To this, we gave every city that made Washington's richest places a Wealth score. Congrats to Washington's number one richest city, they scored a perfect 10/10!
So, what is Washington's richest place for 2020? According to the most recent data, that would be Sammamish.
To see the other cities in Washington where money REALLY does grow on trees, take a look below. And if you don't find what you're looking for there, head to the bottom.
Rich people not your cup of tea? Feel free to check out some more reading about Washington:
The 10 Richest Cities In Washington For 2020
/10
Population: 64,049
Rank Last Year: 1 (No Change)
Median Income: $165,318
Unemployment Rate: 3.1%
Poverty Rate: 2.2%
More on Sammamish: Real Estate | Data | Photos
Sammamish is a city in King County, Washington, United States. The population was 63,773 in a 2016 census estimate. Located on a plateau, the city is bordered by Lake Sammamish to the west and the Snoqualmie Valley to the east.
/10
Population: 13,317
Rank Last Year: 2 (No Change)
Median Income: $144,148
Unemployment Rate: 3.3%
Poverty Rate: 1.3%
More on Snoqualmie: Real Estate | Data | Photos
Snoqualmie is a city next to Snoqualmie Falls in King County, Washington. It is twenty-five miles east of Seattle. This city is home to the Northwest Railway Museum. The population was 13,190 in a 2016 census estimate.
/10
Population: 24,060
Rank Last Year: 3 (No Change)
Median Income: $115,230
Unemployment Rate: 3.1%
Poverty Rate: 4.9%
More on Bainbridge Island: Real Estate | Data | Photos
Bainbridge Island is a city in Kitsap County, Washington, United States, and is coextensive with the eponymous island in Puget Sound. The population was 23,025 at the 2010 census, making Bainbridge Island the second largest city in Kitsap County.
Just moved to Bainbridge Island last year and we think it's fabulous! Weak reasons for BI to appear on this list! And I'll take 35 minute ferry ride any day instead of sitting in my car in traffic!
That 35 minutes; read the paper, check emails, and a fabulous Happy Hour on the ride home! Are you kidding me!!! Who made up this list- BTW, there's plenty to do on the island! Hiking, kayaking, horseback riding, shopping, boating, golf, tennis, should I go on-
/10
Population: 7,178
Rank Last Year: 6 (Up 2)
Median Income: $95,859
Unemployment Rate: 1.5%
Poverty Rate: 3.3%
More on Ridgefield: Real Estate | Data | Photos
Ridgefield is a city in the pastoral, rolling-hills countryside of northern Clark County, Washington, in the United States. The population was 4,763 at the 2010 census.
/10
Population: 25,492
Rank Last Year: 4 (Down 1)
Median Income: $142,413
Unemployment Rate: 3.6%
Poverty Rate: 4.7%
More on Mercer Island: Real Estate | Data | Photos
Mercer Island is a city in King County, Washington, United States located on an island of the same name in the southern portion of Lake Washington. Mercer Island is in the Seattle Metropolitan Area, with Seattle located to its west and Bellevue located to its east.
/10
Population: 6,819
Rank Last Year: 7 (Up 1)
Median Income: $122,623
Unemployment Rate: 3.1%
Poverty Rate: 6.0%
More on Brier: Real Estate | Data | Photos
Brier is a city in Snohomish County, Washington, United States. It is bordered by Mountlake Terrace to the west, Lynnwood to the north, Bothell to the east, and the Lake Forest Park to the south. The population was 6,087 at the 2010 census.
/10
Population: 12,026
Rank Last Year: 8 (Up 1)
Median Income: $100,306
Unemployment Rate: 3.5%
Poverty Rate: 4.5%
More on Woodinville: Real Estate | Data | Photos
Woodinville is a city in King County, Washington, United States. The population was 10,938 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Seattle metropolitan area. There is also a much larger population with Woodinville mailing addresses in adjacent unincorporated areas of King and Snohomish counties. Woodinville has waterfront parks on the Sammamish River, sweeping winery and brewery grounds, and densely wooded residential areas.
/10
Population: 63,197
Rank Last Year: 11 (Up 3)
Median Income: $123,449
Unemployment Rate: 3.9%
Poverty Rate: 5.7%
More on Redmond: Real Estate | Data | Photos
Redmond is a city in King County, Washington, United States, located 16 miles east of Seattle, within the high-tech enclave of Seattle metropolitan area. The population is 62,458 in 2016, an increase from the 2010 census, up from 45,256 in the 2000 census. Redmond is commonly recognized as the home of Microsoft and Nintendo of America. With an annual bike race on city streets and the state's only velodrome, Redmond is also known as the "Bicycle Capital of the Northwest".
/10
Population: 22,615
Rank Last Year: 21 (Up 12)
Median Income: $106,513
Unemployment Rate: 4.0%
Poverty Rate: 3.8%
More on Camas: Real Estate | Data | Photos
Camas is a city in Clark County, Washington, with a population of 19,355 at the 2010 census. The east side of town borders the city of Washougal, Washington, and the west side of town borders Vancouver, Washington. Camas lies along the Washington side of the Columbia River, across from Troutdale, Oregon, and is part of the Portland metropolitan area.
/10
Population: 20,447
Rank Last Year: 14 (Up 4)
Median Income: $98,687
Unemployment Rate: 3.5%
Poverty Rate: 5.1%
More on Covington: Real Estate | Data
Covington is a city in King County, Washington, United States. The population was 17,575 at the time of the 2010 census. Prior to the 2010 census, Covington was counted as part of Covington-Sawyer-Wilderness CDP.
How We Determined The Richest Places In Washington For 2020
The first thing that comes to most people's minds when they think about determining the richest places is to simply identify personal incomes. After all, rich people have really high salaries.
However, we don't believe that one statistic wholly encompasses what it means to be one of the "richest places". So we looked at this set of criteria from the newly released 2014-2018 American Community Survey:
- Poverty Level
- Median Household Income
- Unemployment Rate
Median household income is the most digestible way to understand how rich a place really is. The unemployment rate tries to capture the prospects for more people to become rich. If more people are employed, the richer the future looks.
After we collected the data for all 120 places with more than 5,000 people in Washington, we ranked each place from 1 to 120 for each of the criteria, with 1 being the richest.
We then averaged all the rankings for a place into a "Rich Score" with the place having the lowest overall Rich Score, Sammamish, crowned the "Richest City In Washington For 2020". You can download the data here.
You can learn more about the top ten below or skip to the end to see the rankings for all 120 places.
There You Have It - The Wealthiest Places In Washington For 2020
Like we said earlier, when we set out to identify the richest places in Washington, we weren't sure what we'd encounter, but it ended up being some of the best places to live in Washington.
When you look at the data, the cities and places mentioned above meet the criteria for being at the very top of the income ladder for everyone that lives there.
If you're curious enough, here are the poorest cities in Washington, according to data:
Poorest: Pullman
2nd Poorest: Wapato
3rd Poorest: Kelso
For more Washington reading, check out:
- Worst Places To Live In Washington
- Cheapest Places To Live In Washington
- Safest Places In Washington
Detailed List Of The Richest Cities In Washington
| Rank | City | RichScore |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sammamish | 4.0 |
| 2 | Snoqualmie | 4.67 |
| 3 | Bainbridge Island | 9.33 |
| 4 | Ridgefield | 9.33 |
| 5 | Mercer Island | 11.33 |
| 6 | Brier | 11.33 |
| 7 | Woodinville | 13.67 |
| 8 | Redmond | 15.33 |
| 9 | Camas | 15.67 |
| 10 | Covington | 16.0 |
| 11 | Duvall | 16.67 |
| 12 | Lake Forest Park | 16.67 |
| 13 | Mill Creek | 17.0 |
| 14 | Edgewood | 17.0 |
| 15 | Kirkland | 18.67 |
| 16 | Normandy Park | 18.67 |
| 17 | Newcastle | 21.0 |
| 18 | Bellevue | 21.33 |
| 19 | Bonney Lake | 22.0 |
| 20 | Edmonds | 23.0 |
| 21 | Mukilteo | 24.67 |
| 22 | Lake Stevens | 26.67 |
| 23 | Washougal | 27.33 |
| 24 | Kenmore | 28.67 |
| 25 | Lynden | 29.0 |
| 26 | Bothell | 29.67 |
| 27 | Pacific | 30.0 |
| 28 | Sultan | 30.67 |
| 29 | Maple Valley | 31.0 |
| 30 | Issaquah | 31.33 |
| 31 | Mountlake Terrace | 32.67 |
| 32 | Milton | 33.33 |
| 33 | West Richland | 34.33 |
| 34 | Shoreline | 38.67 |
| 35 | Monroe | 39.0 |
| 36 | Arlington | 40.67 |
| 37 | Seattle | 41.67 |
| 38 | Battle Ground | 42.0 |
| 39 | Renton | 42.33 |
| 40 | Selah | 44.0 |
| 41 | Gig Harbor | 45.33 |
| 42 | Richland | 45.67 |
| 43 | Marysville | 46.33 |
| 44 | Anacortes | 47.33 |
| 45 | Snohomish | 48.0 |
| 46 | Orting | 48.67 |
| 47 | Puyallup | 49.33 |
| 48 | Prosser | 49.67 |
| 49 | Steilacoom | 49.67 |
| 50 | Stanwood | 50.67 |
| 51 | University Place | 51.0 |
| 52 | Fircrest | 53.33 |
| 53 | Dupont | 53.33 |
| 54 | North Bend | 56.0 |
| 55 | Poulsbo | 56.33 |
| 56 | Lynnwood | 56.67 |
| 57 | Tumwater | 59.67 |
| 58 | Sumner | 59.67 |
| 59 | Liberty Lake | 60.33 |
| 60 | Fife | 62.0 |
| 61 | Seatac | 62.67 |
| 62 | Enumclaw | 62.67 |
| 63 | Wenatchee | 63.33 |
| 64 | Moses Lake | 64.67 |
| 65 | Auburn | 64.67 |
| 66 | Blaine | 65.33 |
| 67 | East Wenatchee | 66.0 |
| 68 | Lacey | 67.33 |
| 69 | Des Moines | 67.33 |
| 70 | Burien | 67.67 |
| 71 | Kent | 68.33 |
| 72 | Ephrata | 70.67 |
| 73 | Port Orchard | 70.67 |
| 74 | Pasco | 71.67 |
| 75 | Federal Way | 72.33 |
| 76 | Oak Harbor | 73.33 |
| 77 | Vancouver | 73.33 |
| 78 | Spokane Valley | 74.33 |
| 79 | Yelm | 74.67 |
| 80 | Tacoma | 75.33 |
| 81 | Woodland | 76.67 |
| 82 | Everett | 76.67 |
| 83 | Ferndale | 78.0 |
| 84 | Kennewick | 78.33 |
| 85 | Sedro-Woolley | 80.67 |
| 86 | Walla Walla | 82.67 |
| 87 | Airway Heights | 82.67 |
| 88 | Mount Vernon | 82.67 |
| 89 | Olympia | 83.33 |
| 90 | Port Townsend | 83.67 |
| 91 | Connell | 84.33 |
| 92 | Othello | 88.0 |
| 93 | Ocean Shores | 88.67 |
| 94 | Burlington | 90.33 |
| 95 | Sequim | 92.67 |
| 96 | Tukwila | 93.67 |
| 97 | Spokane | 94.0 |
| 98 | Union Gap | 94.0 |
| 99 | College Place | 94.33 |
| 100 | Bremerton | 95.67 |
