Housing & affordability
18% of the score · 60/100
C
Median home value$474,500
Raleigh $418,400
Median rent$1,596/mo
Raleigh $1,573/mo
Cost-burdened households22%
Raleigh 28%
Wake Forest
Wake County52,844 residentsWake County Schools
66
C+
Suburbgrade score
6th of 14 Raleigh suburbs. Strongest on amenities, held back by commute & transport.
66
Raleigh median 64
0 · F
A+ · 100
Launch-day rule. Residents is not counted for Wake Forest yet: no poll responses so far. The overall score of 66 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 Wake Forest is like to live in, by category
Bars show Wake Forest against Raleigh. Weights are published in full.Schools
18% of the score · 70/100
B−
Within-state proficiency75th pct
Raleigh median 75th pct
Student–teacher ratio16.5
Raleigh median 16.0
Graduation rate90%
Raleigh median 90%
Cost of living
14% of the score · 71/100
B−
Housing cost index111
Raleigh 100
Eff. tax rate0.82%
Raleigh 0.68%
Local sales tax7.00%
Raleigh median 7.00%
Commute & transport
14% of the score · 49/100
D+
Mean commute30.9 min
Raleigh 26.8 min
Under 30 minutes45%
Raleigh 60%
Transit stops / sq mi2.9
Raleigh median 1.7 · within 2 miles
Amenities
12% of the score · 77/100
B
Restaurants & cafés82
Raleigh median 55 · within 2 miles
Groceries10
Raleigh median 6 · within 2 miles
Parks26
Raleigh median 34 · within 2 miles
Employment & income
12% of the score · 69/100
B−
Median household income$123,802
Raleigh $100,103
Unemployment4.0%
Raleigh 4.1%
Professional occupations64%
Raleigh 55%
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 Wake Forest yet. If you live here, you can be the first.
Is it quiet at night?
—
Do you feel safe walking after dark?
—
Can you walk to a grocery store?
—
Is it good for young children?
—
Are yards and streets well kept?
—
Tap either button to answer — no account neededAll twelve questions →
Better than Wake Forest on commute & transport
Wake Forest's weakest grade is D+. Six suburbs are within 25 miles and score higher on the same four inputs.
SuburbCommuteOverall
Morrisville20 mi from Wake ForestA− 71 B− Cary22 mi from Wake ForestA− 74 B Durham22 mi from Wake ForestA− 62 C Raleigh12 mi from Wake ForestB+ 68 B− Knightdale12 mi from Wake ForestC+ 65 C+ Garner20 mi from Wake ForestC 61 C Mean commute: ACS 2020–24 · Commuting under 30 minutes: ACS 2020–24
Common questions about living in Wake Forest
Is Wake Forest, NC a good place to live?
Wake Forest scores 66 out of 100, 6th of 14 Raleigh suburbs. It is strongest on amenities and weakest on commute & transport. Every weight behind that score is published on the methodology page.
Is Wake Forest expensive to live in?
Cost of living grades B−. The median home is $474,500, 13% above the Raleigh median, and the effective property tax rate is 0.82%. $1,596/mo is the median gross rent.
How good are the schools in Wake Forest?
Schools grade B−. The districts serving Wake Forest sit at the 75th pct within-state proficiency percentile, with a 90% graduation rate and a 16.5 student–teacher ratio. Wake Forest is served by Wake County Schools. Proficiency is only ever compared inside the same state.
How long is the commute from Wake Forest?
The mean commute is 30.9 min, with 45% of workers travelling under 30 minutes and 29% working from home. Transit density is 2.9 stops per square mile.
Can you walk anywhere in Wake Forest?
Within two miles there are 10 groceries, 82 restaurants and cafés and 26 parks, which grades B on amenities.
Are the homes in Wake Forest old or new?
The median home in Wake Forest was built in 2009 — newer than the Raleigh median of 2000. That is a median, so a town can be half post-war and half new-build and still land there. 80% 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.