Kansas City

Best Kansas City suburbs for young professionals

Ranked on employment and income at 25%, amenities at 25%, commute at 20%, median rent at 15% (lower is better) and cost of living at 15%. Schools are not counted.

Updated Sep 2026·25 suburbs considered, 10 listed
1
Overland Park$414k median · 19.7 min commute
Employment B−Amenities B+Commute A−
70
Score
overall 75 B
2
Olathe, Kansas
Olathe$365k median · 20.6 min commute
Employment BAmenities B−Commute B+
69
Score
overall 73 B
3
Events are commonly held at the new Lenexa civic campus
Lenexa$395k median · 19.4 min commute
Employment BAmenities B−Commute A−
68
Score
overall 71 B−
4
City Hall of Gladstone
Gladstone$232k median · 22.9 min commute
Employment CAmenities BCommute C+
67
Score
overall 67 C+
5
Prairie Village$436k median · 19.6 min commute
Employment BAmenities BCommute A−
67
Score
overall 75 B
6
Merriam$263k median · 22.2 min commute
Employment C−Amenities BCommute B+
67
Score
overall 68 B−
7
Downtown
Kansas City$243k median · 21.7 min commute
Employment C−Amenities BCommute B+
66
Score
overall 61 C
8
Historic Clay County Court House in the Historic Square Liberty, Missouri
Liberty$283k median · 22.9 min commute
Employment C−Amenities B−Commute C+
63
Score
overall 66 C+
9
Blue Springs, Missouri City Hall
Blue Springs$263k median · 25.7 min commute
Employment C+Amenities B+Commute D+
63
Score
overall 66 C+
10
Informational kiosk for downtown Lee's Summit on the corner of Main Street and Third Street, with storefronts of local businesses in the background
Lee's Summit$341k median · 25.2 min commute
Employment C+Amenities BCommute C
63
Score
overall 69 B−
This list's weighting
Employment 25%Amenities 25%Commute 20%Median rent (lower is better) 15%Cost of living 15%
Other Kansas City lists
Best Kansas City suburbs for familiesMost affordable Kansas City suburbsBest Kansas City suburbs for schoolsShortest commutes to Downtown Kansas CityMost walkable Kansas City suburbsHow we score Kansas City suburbs →

Photos from Wikimedia Commons: Olathe (KS123 · CC BY-SA 4.0); Lenexa (Kelseyneth · CC BY-SA 4.0); Gladstone (SamuelNelsonGISP · CC0); Kansas City (Stephen Edmonds · CC BY-SA 3.0); Liberty (Chiefs190 · CC BY-SA 4.0); Blue Springs (Rowen Hansen · CC BY-SA 4.0); Lee's Summit (Damiens the Regicide · CC0).