Desoto LakesFL
This town in Florida has a population of 1,735.
Is Desoto Lakes a good place to live?
The best of Desoto Lakes’ subject grades is an A− for schools; the weakest is a D for hazard risk. 28% of residents live below the poverty line in Desoto Lakes, above both the Florida town median (11%) and the median of U.S. towns (9.6%). Desoto Lakes is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 69% of U.S. towns. On the outdoors, just 13 of Florida’s 779 towns do worse. Desoto Lakes has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
Desoto Lakes has shrunk 41% from 2010 to 2020
3,646 counted in 2010 and 2,137 in 2020.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts
How Desoto Lakes grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Florida), ordered by how far Desoto Lakes is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Tropicana Field and 46 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Desoto Lakes. Close and well known come first.
Big draw28 mi Stadium & arenaTropicana Field
16 mi BeachAnna Maria Island
4 mi MuseumJohn and Mable Ringling Museum of Art
39 mi Stadium & arenaBenchmark International Arena
28 mi MuseumSalvador Dalí Museum
22 mi Park & preserveFort De Soto ParkPhoto credits
Tropicana Field: EaglesFanInTampa, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Anna Maria Island: Bfpage at English Wikipedia, CC BY 3.0 · John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art: Taty2007, CC BY 3.0 · Benchmark International Arena: Miosotis Jade, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Salvador Dalí Museum: Taty2007, CC BY 3.0 · Fort De Soto Park: Christopher Hollis, Public domain
Moving to Desoto Lakes: who provides what
Desoto Lakes is unincorporated, so Sarasota County 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 Nov 17, 2025.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Desoto Lakes.
Very high risk in Desoto Lakes, with hurricanes at the top
Expected damage from storms and floods is higher here than in 87% of U.S. communities. Nearly two thirds of Desoto Lakes’s expected losses from natural hazards come from hurricanes, followed by inland flooding at 27%.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Residents of Desoto Lakes are less healthy than 79% of U.S. towns
17% of adults smoke cigarettes in Desoto Lakes. On the CDC’s 31 measures, Desoto Lakes is ahead of Florida on 4 and behind on 7.
| Desoto Lakes | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 14% | 8.1% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 15% | 14% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 26% | 20% | 19% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 13% | 14% |
| What stands out | Desoto Lakes | FL |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing a utility shut-off | 7.2% | 8.6% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 14.2% | 16.8% |
| More smokers | 16.9% | 12.4% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Most of Desoto Lakes’ workers head elsewhere: there are 0.4 jobs for each of them
The top destinations are Sarasota (22%), Fruitville (4%) and Lakewood Ranch (4%). Most working residents leave Desoto Lakes for work: only 2% work in town. Employers in Desoto Lakes added 417 jobs between 2013 and 2023, to 453. Half of commuters travel less than 7 miles.
| Desoto Lakes | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 1.6% | 5% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 26 minutes | 27 minutes | 25 minutes |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Expect mild winters and hot summers in Desoto Lakes
The midsummer high for Desoto Lakes comes to 92°F.
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The median home in Desoto Lakes sells for about $350K
Desoto Lakes’ going rate for rent is $1,468 a month. For households in the town, the share who live in a home they own is 67%.
| Desoto Lakes | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 67% | 72% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,468 a month | $1,647 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Everything we know about Desoto Lakes
Colleges nearby
7 within 15 miles of the center of Desoto Lakes
About 11 of every 100 Desoto Lakes residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Florida.
98% of working residents leave Desoto Lakes for work
Where Desoto Lakes’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Questions about Desoto Lakes
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Desoto Lakes, FL expensive?
The typical home is worth about $358,000, 5% below the Florida 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+.