Housing & affordability
18% of the score · 55/100
C−
Median home value$223,600
St. Louis $244,800
Median rent$1,137/mo
St. Louis $1,113/mo
Cost-burdened households22%
St. Louis 26%
Swansea
St. Clair County14,710 residents5 school districts
57
C−
Suburbgrade score
37th of 60 St. Louis suburbs. Strongest on commute & transport, held back by amenities.
57
St. Louis median 60
0 · F
A+ · 100
Launch-day rule. Residents is not counted for Swansea yet: no poll responses so far. The overall score of 57 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 Swansea is like to live in, by category
Bars show Swansea against St. Louis. Weights are published in full.Schools
18% of the score · 63/100
C+
Within-state proficiency51st pct
St. Louis median 68th pct
Student–teacher ratio13.7
St. Louis median 14.5
Graduation rate—
St. Louis median 94%
Cost of living
14% of the score · 50/100
D+
Housing cost index109
St. Louis 100
Eff. tax rate2.08%
St. Louis 1.16%
Local sales tax8.96%
St. Louis median 8.44%
Commute & transport
14% of the score · 71/100
B−
Mean commute24.1 min
St. Louis 24.9 min
Under 30 minutes72%
St. Louis 65%
Transit stops / sq mi14
St. Louis median 1.4 · within 2 miles
Amenities
12% of the score · 47/100
D
Restaurants & cafés29
St. Louis median 32 · within 2 miles
Groceries3
St. Louis median 4 · within 2 miles
Parks15
St. Louis median 21 · within 2 miles
Employment & income
12% of the score · 54/100
C−
Median household income$91,587
St. Louis $80,196
Unemployment5.7%
St. Louis 4.2%
Professional occupations53%
St. Louis 45%
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.
Nobody has answered for Swansea 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 Swansea on amenities
Swansea's weakest grade is D. Six suburbs are within 25 miles and score higher on the same six inputs.
SuburbAmenitiesOverall
St. Louis15 mi from SwanseaA 57 C− Clayton20 mi from SwanseaA− 77 B Overland23 mi from SwanseaB+ 53 C− University City20 mi from SwanseaB+ 62 C Kirkwood23 mi from SwanseaB 76 B Crestwood21 mi from SwanseaB 74 B Restaurants & cafés: OpenStreetMap Sep 2026 · Groceries: OpenStreetMap Sep 2026
Common questions about living in Swansea
Is Swansea, IL a good place to live?
Swansea scores 57 out of 100, 37th of 60 St. Louis suburbs. It is strongest on commute & transport and weakest on amenities. Every weight behind that score is published on the methodology page.
Is Swansea expensive to live in?
Cost of living grades D+. The median home is $223,600, 9% below the St. Louis median, and the effective property tax rate is 2.08%. $1,137/mo is the median gross rent.
How good are the schools in Swansea?
Schools grade C+. The districts serving Swansea sit at the 51st pct within-state proficiency percentile, with a — graduation rate and a 13.7 student–teacher ratio. Swansea is served by Belleville Township High School District 201, Wolf Branch SD 113, High Mount SD 116, Belleville SD 118 and Whiteside SD 115. Proficiency is only ever compared inside the same state.
How long is the commute from Swansea?
The mean commute is 24.1 min, with 72% of workers travelling under 30 minutes and 15% working from home. Transit density is 14 stops per square mile.
Can you walk anywhere in Swansea?
Within two miles there are 3 groceries, 29 restaurants and cafés and 15 parks, which grades D on amenities.
Are the homes in Swansea old or new?
The median home in Swansea was built in 1993 — newer than the St. Louis median of 1973. That is a median, so a town can be half post-war and half new-build and still land there. 74% 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.