North LakesAK
Public schools that outperform most of Alaska. A town of 10,223 in Alaska.
Is North Lakes a good place to live?
Some subjects shine; others lag. Its weakest is hazard risk: FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 92% of U.S. communities, with earthquakes at the top. North Lakes’s overall grade of C+ puts it better than 42% of U.S. towns, 22nd of 41 in Alaska. Walkability is weaker too (C). Most errands need a car: it is less walkable than 70% of U.S. towns. Schools are its strong suit (A−): its schools rank ahead of 77% of Alaska towns. At about $358K, a typical home costs 3.6 years of the Anchorage metro’s $101K median household income. The biggest park or preserve is Alcantra Recreation Facility, at 102 acres.
Figures: schools, state test and graduation results · FEMA National Risk Index · home values, Zillow · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · OpenStreetMap.
What makes North Lakes stand out
Where North Lakes beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Teeland Middle School | PK–8 | 643 |
| John Shaw Elementary | PK–5 | 507 |
| Finger Lake Elementary | PK–5 | 445 |
How North Lakes grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Alaska), ordered by how far North Lakes is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Moving to North Lakes: who provides what
North Lakes is unincorporated, so Matanuska-Susitna Borough and regional agencies provide most services.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 30, 2026.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in North Lakes.
North Lakes has a shorter frost-free season than nearly all U.S. towns and is healthy by national standards but behind most towns in Alaska.
North Lakes faces a very high natural-hazard risk, led by earthquakes
Of the losses FEMA expects in North Lakes, 93% come from earthquakes and 6% from inland flooding. The town has had one paid flood insurance claim since 2022.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
North Lakes’ grade for schools is an A−
The public schools here belong to the Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District. The largest public high school is Mat-Su Career & Tech Ed High School, with 705 students. Three of its 7 schools are below, each with the reason it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Teeland Middle SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–8 | Grades PK–8 | 643 | B+ |
| Mat-Su Career & Tech Ed High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 705 | A+ |
| John Shaw ElementaryTop results in townGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 507 | A− |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within AK on state tests and graduation
In North Lakes, 6.1% of the land is conserved
The trail density for North Lakes comes to 0.2 miles per square mile, where Alaska’s towns sit at 0.4 and U.S. towns at 0.4. Trails total 2.5 miles in 1 park or preserve.
| North Lakes | Alaska towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 6.1% | 15% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.2 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Alcantra Recreation Facility | — | 102 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
In North Lakes, expect snowy winters and pleasant summers
The Matanuska Exp Farm weather station records that the frost-free season runs about 127 days, shorter than in 96% of U.S. towns. July afternoons average 67.9°, cooler than in 99% of U.S. towns; January nights average 6.7°. The Matanuska Exp Farm weather station records that 50 inches of snow fall in a normal winter: more than most of the country, but less than 79% of Alaska places with climate records.
The January low for North Lakes comes to 7°F, against 7°F in Alaska’s towns and 22°F across U.S. towns. For North Lakes, the peak summer temperature is 68°F.
| North Lakes | Alaska towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 68°F | 66°F | 85°F |
| January low | 7°F | 7°F | 22°F |
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Residents of North Lakes are healthier than 64% of U.S. towns
Within Alaska it is less healthy than 67% of the 41 graded towns: Alaska sets a high bar. Against the 8,333 U.S. towns with household incomes like North Lakes’s, it is less healthy than 55%: its national edge comes with its incomes.
Nearly a tenth of North Lakes adults have diabetes. The town tracks Alaska closely on all 32 CDC measures.
| North Lakes | Alaska towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 71% | 68% | 79% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 15% | 14% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 8.6% | 8.8% | 12% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 32% | 35% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Ages in North Lakes track Alaska closely
North Lakes’ median age comes in at 36.2 years. By age, North Lakes looks like Alaska: each broad group is within 4 points. 27% of residents are under 18 locally. The bachelor’s-degree share among adults 25 and older is 26%, against 32% across Alaska.
| North Lakes | Alaska towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 18 | 27% | 24% | 22% |
| Aged 65 or older | 13% | 13% | 18% |
| Median age | 36.2 years | 37 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 26% | 29% | 29% |
Ages · share of residents
Education · adults 25 and older
Women and men · all residents
48% women, 52% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±2.3 points. Across Alaska, 47.5% of residents are women.
| North Lakes | AK | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 12% | 13.2% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 14.7% | 10.9% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 8.1% | 9.2% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 13.6% | 15.4% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 14.7% | 14.2% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 12.5% | 11.3% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 11.4% | 11.9% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 9.6% | 9.2% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 3.3% | 4.6% | 7% |
| No diploma | 7% | 6.4% | 10.4% |
| High school | 30.5% | 28.9% | 26% |
| Some college | 24.5% | 24% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 12.4% | 9.1% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 15% | 19.8% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 10.7% | 11.8% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
Homes in North Lakes sell for about $452K
The share of households in North Lakes who live in a home they own: 78%. The rent at the middle of the market here is $1,441 a month. Sellers in North Lakes got 100.1% of the asking price, typically.
| North Lakes | Alaska towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 78% | 68% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,441 a month | $1,402 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Everything we know about North Lakes
Colleges nearby
1 within 15 miles of the center of North Lakes
About 5 of every 100 North Lakes residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Alaska.
About North Lakes
Census-designated place in Alaska, United States
North Lakes is a census-designated place (CDP) in Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska, United States. It was first listed as a CDP prior to the 2020 census, after the split of the former CDP of Lakes. As of the 2020 census, North Lakes had a population of 9,450. It is part of the Anchorage, Alaska Metropolitan Statistical Area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Elevation
- 446 ft
North Lakes’s neighbors
5 towns share a border with North Lakes.
| Town | AK rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Lakes | #22 | C+ | C+ | — | A− | B |
| South Lakes | #8 | B | C+ | — | A− | B+ |
| Fishhook | #27 | C+ | C | — | A− | B+ |
| Tanaina | #21 | C+ | B− | — | A− | B− |
| Farm Loop | #12 | B | C+ | — | A− | A− |
| Wasilla | #40 | C− | C+ | D | A− | C+ |
North Lakes, South Lakes, Fishhook, Tanaina and Farm Loop report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare North Lakes with a neighbor →
Questions about North Lakes
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is North Lakes, AK a good place to live?
North Lakes grades C+ overall, better than 42% of U.S. towns and #22 of 41 in Alaska. It grades B for health and A− for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a D−.
Is North Lakes, AK expensive?
The typical home is worth about $358,000, 10% below the Alaska typical home. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C+.