(Graphic courtesy of HomeSnacks)
Oregon cities are known for their quirky, avant-garde culture, iconic coffee shops, local flare, and farm-to-table restaurants.
There are hip millennial cities like Portland, hippie tree-hugging cities like Bend, and coastal cities like Coos Bay that are all great places to find work, raise families, and enjoy life.
But what are the best places to live in Oregon? Using Saturday Night Science, we identified the best places to live in Oregon based on factors that include cost of living, home prices, median incomes, and crime rates.
These are the places in Oregon that live up to the license plate aspirations of “We love Dreamers,” “Things Look Different Here,” and “Pacific Wonderland.”
People in Oregon live 77.7 years on average — 21st in the nation; see how every state stacks up in our life expectancy by state ranking.
No. 5 Best Place to Live in Oregon
Bend
103,390 people ~ SnackAbility 8.5/10
Median Income ~ +16% vs OR
$96,394 ~ OR $83k
Median Home Value ~ +47% vs OR
$732,650 ~ OR $499,
Unemployment ~ -31% vs OR
3.7% ~ OR 5.4%
Bend’s bold startup culture and unbeatable Oregon energy has made it the 5th best place to live in The Beaver State. Some are even going as far to call Bend “A Commuter Town for Silicon Valley” as it’s much cheaper to live here than San Francisco. Incidentally, this influx of people has made Bend one of the fastest growing cities in the state.
Besides strong job opportunities and the state’s 14th best unemployment rate at 3.7%, why are people flocking to Bend? Point blank, Bend has outstanding numbers. The crime rate here is below the state average and below the national average. Basically, Bend is super safe.
And what was once a logging town is now identified as a gateway for many sports, including biking, hiking, and white-water rafting the Deschutes River is also relatively affordable. Homes go for $732,650 here and the Bend’s cost of living is manageable if you make the city’s median income of $96,394/year. Folks, Bend is truly “Living at its best.”
1 ~ Lake Oswego
2 ~ West Linn
3 ~ Sherwood
4 ~ Central Point
5 ~ Bend
6 ~ Philomath
7 ~ Canby
8 ~ Sandy
9 ~ Tigard
10 ~ Molalla
Read about the other Best Places to Live in Oregon for 2026 at homesnacks.com/best-places-to-live-in-oregon.
