Sun City

Maricopa County37,486 residentsSchool District Not Defined
55
C−
Suburbgrade score

14th of 31 Phoenix suburbs. Strongest on cost of living, held back by employment & income.

Launch-day rule. Residents is not counted for Sun City yet: no poll responses so far. The overall score of 55 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 Sun City is like to live in, by category

Bars show Sun City against Phoenix. Weights are published in full.

Housing & affordability

18% of the score · 43/100
D
Median home value$280,900
Phoenix $440,900
Median rent$1,569/mo
Phoenix $1,702/mo
Cost-burdened households32%
Phoenix 32%

Schools

18% of the score · inactive
—
Within-state proficiency—
Phoenix median 63rd pct
Student–teacher ratio—
Phoenix median 18.0
Graduation rate—
Phoenix median 91%
EDFacts SY2021–22 · NCES CCD 2024–25 · EDFacts ACGR SY2018–19Full page →

Cost of living

14% of the score · 84/100
A−
Housing cost index66
Phoenix 100
Eff. tax rate0.37%
Phoenix 0.45%
Local sales tax8.52%
Phoenix median 8.52%
Composed in-house · ACS 2020–24 · ACS 2020–24 · Tax Foundation state average, January 1, 2026Full page →

Commute & transport

14% of the score · 65/100
C+
Mean commute24.1 min
Phoenix 26.4 min
Under 30 minutes64%
Phoenix 61%
Transit stops / sq mi2.6
Phoenix median 0.0 · within 2 miles

Amenities

12% of the score · 58/100
C
Restaurants & cafés15
Phoenix median 6 · within 2 miles
Groceries3
Phoenix median 1 · within 2 miles
Parks36
Phoenix median 26 · within 2 miles

Employment & income

12% of the score · 23/100
F
Median household income$54,586
Phoenix $88,301
Unemployment6.2%
Phoenix 4.7%
Professional occupations29%
Phoenix 43%

Residents

12% of the score · inactive
—

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.

0 responses·Residents category: waiting for first responses·Live

Nobody has answered for Sun City 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 Sun City on employment & income

Sun City's weakest grade is F. Six suburbs are within 25 miles and score higher on the same four inputs.

Median household income: ACS 2020–24 · Unemployment: ACS 2020–24

Common questions about living in Sun City

Is Sun City, AZ a good place to live?

Sun City scores 55 out of 100, 14th of 31 Phoenix suburbs. It is strongest on cost of living and weakest on employment & income. Every weight behind that score is published on the methodology page.

Is Sun City expensive to live in?

Cost of living grades A−. The median home is $280,900, 36% below the Phoenix median, and the effective property tax rate is 0.37%. $1,569/mo is the median gross rent.

How long is the commute from Sun City?

The mean commute is 24.1 min, with 64% of workers travelling under 30 minutes and 19% working from home. Transit density is 2.6 stops per square mile.

Can you walk anywhere in Sun City?

Within two miles there are 3 groceries, 15 restaurants and cafés and 36 parks, which grades C on amenities.

Are the homes in Sun City old or new?

The median home in Sun City was built in 1973 — older than the Phoenix median of 1994. That is a median, so a town can be half post-war and half new-build and still land there. 88% 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.