Housing & affordability
18% of the score · 67/100
C+
Median home value$932,200
Portland $559,400
Median rent$2,139/mo
Portland $1,724/mo
Cost-burdened households32%
Portland 35%
Lake Oswego
Clackamas County40,381 residentsLake Oswego SD 7j
76
B
Suburbgrade score
1st of 43 Portland suburbs. Strong on schools and commute & transport, held back by cost of living.
76
Portland median 61
0 · F
A+ · 100
Launch-day rule. Residents is not counted for Lake Oswego yet: no poll responses so far. The overall score of 76 is computed on the other six categories, re-normalised to 100%. Answer the poll →
What living here is actually like
Written summary in preparation This page is waiting for its written summary, and for a person to check it. Until then it is excluded from search engines.
What Lake Oswego is like to live in, by category
Bars show Lake Oswego against Portland. Weights are published in full.Schools
18% of the score · 87/100
A−
Within-state proficiency99th pct
Portland median 66th pct
Student–teacher ratio16.4
Portland median 18.5
Graduation rate94%
Portland median 86%
Cost of living
14% of the score · 61/100
C
Housing cost index137
Portland 100
Eff. tax rate0.85%
Portland 0.87%
Local sales tax0.00%
Portland median 0.00%
Commute & transport
14% of the score · 86/100
A−
Mean commute21.6 min
Portland 25.0 min
Under 30 minutes72%
Portland 65%
Transit stops / sq mi8.2
Portland median 8.1 · within 2 miles
Amenities
12% of the score · 85/100
A−
Restaurants & cafés87
Portland median 65 · within 2 miles
Groceries7
Portland median 5 · within 2 miles
Parks68
Portland median 68 · within 2 miles
Employment & income
12% of the score · 70/100
B−
Median household income$141,549
Portland $97,436
Unemployment3.4%
Portland 5.1%
Professional occupations68%
Portland 47%
Residents
12% of the score · inactive
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No responses yet. Residents is excluded from the score until eight people answer.
Ask the people who live here
Twelve yes/no questions, one tap each. No dataset knows whether the yards are kept or whether anyone talks to their neighbours. Answers feed the Residents grade, which needs eight responses before it counts.
Nobody has answered for Lake Oswego yet. If you live here, you can be the first.
Is it quiet at night?
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Do you feel safe walking after dark?
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Can you walk to a grocery store?
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Is it good for young children?
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Are yards and streets well kept?
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Tap either button to answer — no account neededAll twelve questions →
Better than Lake Oswego on cost of living
Lake Oswego's weakest grade is C. Six suburbs are within 25 miles and score higher on the same four inputs.
SuburbCost of livingOverall
Forest Grove21 mi from Lake OswegoA− 51 D+ Oak Grove3 mi from Lake OswegoA− 65 C+ Troutdale17 mi from Lake OswegoB+ 54 C− Milwaukie4 mi from Lake OswegoB+ 63 C+ Hazel Dell19 mi from Lake OswegoB+ 57 C− Orchards21 mi from Lake OswegoB+ 60 C Cost-of-living index composed in-house from housing cost, utilities, effective property tax and local sales tax · Median home value: ACS 2020–24 · Effective property tax: ACS 2020–24
Common questions about living in Lake Oswego
Is Lake Oswego, OR a good place to live?
Lake Oswego scores 76 out of 100, 1st of 43 Portland suburbs. It is strongest on schools and weakest on cost of living. Every weight behind that score is published on the methodology page.
Is Lake Oswego expensive to live in?
Cost of living grades C. The median home is $932,200, 67% above the Portland median, and the effective property tax rate is 0.85%. $2,139/mo is the median gross rent.
How good are the schools in Lake Oswego?
Schools grade A−. The districts serving Lake Oswego sit at the 99th pct within-state proficiency percentile, with a 94% graduation rate and a 16.4 student–teacher ratio. Lake Oswego is served by Lake Oswego SD 7j. Proficiency is only ever compared inside the same state.
How long is the commute from Lake Oswego?
The mean commute is 21.6 min, with 72% of workers travelling under 30 minutes and 32% working from home. Transit density is 8.2 stops per square mile.
Can you walk anywhere in Lake Oswego?
Within two miles there are 7 groceries, 87 restaurants and cafés and 68 parks, which grades A− on amenities.
Are the homes in Lake Oswego old or new?
The median home in Lake Oswego was built in 1982 — close to the Portland median of 1984. That is a median, so a town can be half post-war and half new-build and still land there. 69% of homes are houses rather than flats.
Every answer is built from the figures on this page, with their sources and as-of dates on the methodology page.