Pelican BayFL
A town of 6,159.
Is Pelican Bay a good place to live?
For most people who can afford it, yes. Pelican Bay grades B overall, ranked 112th of 634 in Florida. CDC estimates put its residents' health ahead of 85% of the country and its schools rank ahead of 83% of Florida towns. The trade-off is money: the typical home is worth about $1.3 million, 14.3 years of the Naples metro’s $90K median household income. 78% of residents are 65 or older in Pelican Bay, against 20% in Florida’s towns and 18% across U.S. towns. FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 89% of U.S. communities, with hurricanes at the top. Only 1 of the 638 Florida towns we compare have a higher median age than Pelican Bay.
What makes Pelican Bay stand out
Where Pelican Bay beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
Jobs vs. working residents
| Widest gap | Pelican Bay | FL |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 2.7% | 13.9% |
10 miles of trails in Pelican Bay
4.1% of the town is conserved land, across 4 parks and preserves.
How Pelican Bay grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Florida), ordered by how far Pelican Bay is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Moving to Pelican Bay: who provides what
Pelican Bay is unincorporated, so Collier 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 Pelican Bay.
Pelican Bay draws workers from Bonita Springs and beyond and has more 90° days than nearly all U.S. towns, but it has homes that cost more against local pay than most of Florida.
Pelican Bay stands out in Florida and nationally: trail density there is higher
The trail density in Pelican Bay is 3.0 miles per square mile. The biggest place to walk is Clam Pass Park, 139 acres with 1 miles of trail. 10 miles of trail in 4 parks and preserves.
| Pelican Bay | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 3.0 miles per square mile | 0.4 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 4.1% | 3% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Clam Pass Park | 1 mi | 139 |
| 2. Pelican Bay Community Park | 0.9 mi | 13 |
| 3. Ridgewood Park | — | 6 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
In Pelican Bay, the median household income runs higher than in the typical Florida or U.S. town
3,854 jobs are based in Pelican Bay, 3.4 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in. Jobs based here fell from 5,395 in 2013 to 3,854.
Pelican Bay’s median household income is $164,000. Jobs based in Pelican Bay fell to 3,854 in 2023, 1,541 fewer than in 2013. 7.7% of residents live below the poverty line in Pelican Bay.
| Pelican Bay | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | $164,000 | $73,000 | $80,000 |
| Average trip to work | 19 minutes | 27 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 7.7% | 11% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 8.4% | 5% | 8% |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
For health, Pelican Bay earns an A−
Against the 1,957 U.S. towns with household incomes like Pelican Bay’s, it is less healthy than 73%: its national edge comes with its incomes.
8% of Pelican Bay adults report frequent mental distress. Of the 636 Florida towns we compare, none has a lower share of adults who smoke cigarettes than Pelican Bay. 6.7% of Pelican Bay adults binge drink.
| Pelican Bay | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 8% | 16% | 17% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 6.7% | 15% | 16% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 37% | 36% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 12% | 18% | 23% |
| What stands out | Pelican Bay | FL |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 2.7% | 13.9% |
| Fewer adults facing a utility shut-off | 1.9% | 8.6% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 23.7% | 9.1% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Very high risk in Pelican Bay, with hurricanes at the top
Since 1988, 322 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Pelican Bay.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
In Pelican Bay, expect mild winters and hot summers
The Naples Muni Ap weather station, 6 miles away, records that about 104 days a year reach 90°, more than in 95% of U.S. towns. January nights average 55.4°, milder than in 99% of U.S. towns; July afternoons average 91.3°.
Pelican Bay has warm winters and warm summers, with plenty of rain. Snow is almost unheard of.
| Pelican Bay | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 55°F | 51°F | 22°F |
| July high | 91°F | 91°F | 85°F |
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The median home in Pelican Bay sells for about $2.15M
At 14.3 years of the Naples metro’s $90K median household income, the typical home costs more against local pay than in 99% of Florida towns; that ratio is one input to its D− for cost of living. The median property tax bill is $8,943, against $2,730 across Florida, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
Only 6 of the 630 Florida towns we compare have a higher median rent than Pelican Bay.
| Pelican Bay | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $3,420 a month | $1,647 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 95% | 72% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Everglades National Park and 11 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Pelican Bay. Close and well known come first.
32 mi National ParkEverglades National Park778K visitors a year
29 mi National PreserveBig Cypress National Preserve2.3M visitors a year
14 mi Stadium & arenaHertz Arena13 mi State parkMound Key Archeological State Park
14 mi State parkKoreshan State Historic Site
28 mi MuseumEdison and Ford Winter EstatesPhoto credits
Everglades National Park: Everglades NPS from Homestead, Florida, United States, Public domain · Big Cypress National Preserve: Gzzz, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Hertz Arena: Tthaas, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Koreshan State Historic Site: Ebyabe, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Edison and Ford Winter Estates: Rolf Müller (User:Rolfmueller), CC BY-SA 3.0
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Everything we know about Pelican Bay
Colleges nearby
1 within 15 miles of the center of Pelican Bay
About 1 of every 100 Pelican Bay residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Florida.
Pelican Bay lives by the ocean
Coastal flooding makes up 8% of the storm damage FEMA expects here.
41.8% of homes are seasonal or vacation homes, so the town is fuller in summer than its census count suggests.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA · OpenStreetMap
About Pelican Bay
Census-designated place in Florida, United States
Pelican Bay is a census-designated place (CDP) in Collier County, Florida, United States. The population was 6,660 at the 2020 census, up from 6,346 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Naples–Marco Island Metropolitan Statistical Area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 3.3 sq mi
- Elevation
- 10 ft
- Area code
- 239
Pelican Bay’s neighbors
2 towns share a border with Pelican Bay.
| Town | FL rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pelican Bay | #112 | B | D− | — | A− | A− |
| Naples | #46 | B+ | D− | — | A− | A− |
| Pine Ridge | — | — | D | — | A− | A+ |
Pine Ridge has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Pelican Bay, Naples and Pine Ridge report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Pelican Bay with a neighbor →
Questions about Pelican Bay
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Pelican Bay, FL a good place to live?
For most people who can afford it, yes. Pelican Bay grades B overall, better than 56% of U.S. towns and #112 of 634 in Florida. It grades A− for health and A− for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D−.
Is Pelican Bay, FL expensive?
Yes. The typical home is worth about $1,288,000, 243% above 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 D−.