Best places to live in Idaho
3 Idaho metros scored on the default family weighting — schools and safety heaviest, then affordability, climate, college pipeline and jobs. Change the weights on the ranking engine to see your own order.
Who lives in Idaho
Population-weighted racial and ethnic composition across the 3 tracked Idaho metros, from Census ACS table B03002.
- White (non-Hispanic)
- 78.2%
- Hispanic or Latino
- 13.3%
- Black (non-Hispanic)
- 0.9%
- Asian (non-Hispanic)
- 1.8%
- Other or two or more
- 5.9%
Diversity index 46/100 — how evenly the population is spread across these groups. It is descriptive, not a judgement: weight it up, down or to zero on the ranking engine.
| # | Metro | Score | US rank | Typical home | Schools | Safety | Climate | Diversity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Boise | 50.0 | #54 of 103 | $470k | 76 | 97 | 24° / 91° | — |
| 2 | Boise City-Nampa | 44.3 | #80 of 103 | $497k | 60 | 97 | 24° / 92° | 49 |
| 3 | Coeur d'Alene | 42.3 | #84 of 103 | $605k | 61 | 97 | 23° / 85° | 32 |
Figures are compiled estimates. Methodology and sources.