Housing & affordability
18% of the score · 26/100
F
Median home value$461,200
Seattle $717,500
Median rent$1,525/mo
Seattle $2,000/mo
Cost-burdened households40%
Seattle 35%
Lakewood
Pierce County62,937 residentsClover Park School District
49
D+
Suburbgrade score
52nd of 59 Seattle suburbs. Strong on amenities and cost of living, held back by housing & affordability.
49
Seattle median 59
0 · F
A+ · 100
Launch-day rule. Residents is not counted for Lakewood yet: no poll responses so far. The overall score of 49 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 Lakewood is like to live in, by category
Bars show Lakewood against Seattle. Weights are published in full.Schools
18% of the score · 41/100
D−
Within-state proficiency30th pct
Seattle median 70th pct
Student–teacher ratio16.3
Seattle median 18.4
Graduation rate80%
Seattle median 88%
Cost of living
14% of the score · 77/100
B
Housing cost index76
Seattle 100
Eff. tax rate0.85%
Seattle 0.77%
Local sales tax10.30%
Seattle median 10.30%
Commute & transport
14% of the score · 51/100
D+
Mean commute29.3 min
Seattle 29.2 min
Under 30 minutes63%
Seattle 55%
Transit stops / sq mi16
Seattle median 8.8 · within 2 miles
Amenities
12% of the score · 77/100
B
Restaurants & cafés115
Seattle median 84 · within 2 miles
Groceries2
Seattle median 6 · within 2 miles
Parks44
Seattle median 95 · within 2 miles
Employment & income
12% of the score · 35/100
F
Median household income$74,720
Seattle $115,177
Unemployment5.7%
Seattle 4.8%
Professional occupations32%
Seattle 52%
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 Lakewood 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 Lakewood on housing & affordability
Lakewood's weakest grade is F. Six suburbs are within 25 miles and score higher on the same four inputs.
SuburbHousingOverall
Artondale11 mi from LakewoodC+ 54 C− Bonney Lake17 mi from LakewoodC− 58 C Covington24 mi from LakewoodC− 56 C− Graham15 mi from LakewoodD+ 45 D Lakeland North17 mi from LakewoodD+ 53 C− Elk Plain11 mi from LakewoodD+ 46 D Median home value: ACS 2020–24 · Ownership rate: ACS 2020–24
Common questions about living in Lakewood
Is Lakewood, WA a good place to live?
Lakewood scores 49 out of 100, 52nd of 59 Seattle suburbs. It is strongest on amenities and weakest on housing & affordability. Every weight behind that score is published on the methodology page.
Is Lakewood expensive to live in?
Cost of living grades B. The median home is $461,200, 36% below the Seattle median, and the effective property tax rate is 0.85%. $1,525/mo is the median gross rent.
How good are the schools in Lakewood?
Schools grade D−. The districts serving Lakewood sit at the 30th pct within-state proficiency percentile, with a 80% graduation rate and a 16.3 student–teacher ratio. Lakewood is served by Clover Park School District. Proficiency is only ever compared inside the same state.
How long is the commute from Lakewood?
The mean commute is 29.3 min, with 63% of workers travelling under 30 minutes and 8.8% working from home. Transit density is 16 stops per square mile.
Can you walk anywhere in Lakewood?
Within two miles there are 2 groceries, 115 restaurants and cafés and 44 parks, which grades B on amenities.
Are the homes in Lakewood old or new?
The median home in Lakewood was built in 1975 — older than the Seattle median of 1985. That is a median, so a town can be half post-war and half new-build and still land there. 51% 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.