Is Poinciana a good place to live?
The data are hard on it. Its weakest is schools (C−): its public schools trail 83% of Florida towns on state tests and graduation. Poinciana grades D− overall, behind almost every U.S. town. It ranks 617th of 634 in Florida. Cost of living is weaker too — the typical home is worth about $280K, 3.6 years of the Orlando metro’s $79K median household income. Hazard risk is weaker too (D) — FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 80% of U.S. communities, with inland flooding at the top. The biggest place to walk is Lake Marion Creek Wildlife Management Area, 6,072 acres with 6.8 miles of trail. The city has 1 place on the National Register.
Figures: schools, state test and graduation results · home values, Zillow · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenStreetMap · National Register of Historic Places.
How Poinciana grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Florida), ordered by how far Poinciana is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
What makes Poinciana stand out
Where Poinciana beats most towns.
Poinciana has grown 30% from 2010 to 2020
53,193 counted in 2010 and 69,309 in 2020.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Poinciana.
Poinciana keeps more of its land conserved than most of Florida, has more 90° days than nearly all U.S. towns and has home values still below their peak.
Poinciana keeps nearly a third of its land conserved
Its 17,774 conserved acres are a larger share of the town than in 98% of Florida towns.
Trails run 37 miles in 9 parks and preserves. Parks and preserves in Poinciana: 9, covering 15,014 acres. The town’s density of trails is 0.5 miles per square mile, against 0.4 in Florida’s towns and 0.4 across U.S. towns.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Disney Wilderness Preserve | 20.4 mi | 5,045 |
| 2. Lake Marion Creek Wildlife Management Area | 6.8 mi | 6,072 |
| 3. Huckleberry Islands Tract | 0.4 mi | 1,095 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Poinciana earns a C− for schools
The Osceola school district runs its public schools. Two of the 16 schools are below, and why each made the list. 6 public schools serve Poinciana, with 4,443 students in all.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Laurel Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 1,126 | C− |
| New Dimensions High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 445 | B+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within FL on state tests and graduation
Very high risk in Poinciana, with inland flooding at the top
Since 2004, 44 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Poinciana. Expected losses in Poinciana break down as 50% from inland flooding and 22% from hurricanes. Households locally have drawn federal disaster aid in 7 declared disasters, most recently in 2024.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Poinciana stands out in Florida and nationally, with the average trip to work longer than most
Poinciana has 3,301 jobs for its 28,843 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out. The average commute takes 46.8 minutes, against 28 across Florida.
For most workers, Poinciana is a place to come home to: only 2% work in town. Jobs based in Poinciana grew to 3,301 in 2023, 1,915 more than in 2013. Poinciana: 15% of residents live below the poverty line. Half of commuters travel less than 24 miles.
| Poinciana | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 47 minutes | 27 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Below the poverty line | 15% | 11% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 2.5% | 5% | 8% |
| Median household income | $68,000 | $73,000 | $80,000 |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Residents of Poinciana are less healthy than 74% of U.S. towns
For adults 18 to 64 in Poinciana, the share who have no health insurance is 25%. Against the Florida average, Poinciana comes out ahead on 1 CDC measures out of 31, and behind on 12. 42% of adults have obesity locally, above both Florida’s towns (32%) and U.S. towns (35%). Two figures for adults here: 42% sleep under 7 hours, 16% have diabetes.
| Poinciana | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 25% | 14% | 8.1% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 42% | 32% | 35% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 42% | 37% | 36% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 13% | 12% |
| What stands out | Poinciana | FL |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 7.5% | 9.1% |
| More uninsured adults | 24.6% | 15.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Poinciana earns a C− for cost of living
The typical value, about $280K, is 14% below its September 2022 peak.
A typical home in Poinciana is worth about $280,000, down 3.9% in a year, 25% below the Florida typical home. Its midpoint rent is $1,965 a month. A home in Poinciana typically sold within 86 days of listing.
| Poinciana | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,965 a month | $1,647 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 77% | 72% | 73% |
Typical home value
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
In Poinciana, a typical July afternoon runs hotter than in the typical Florida or U.S. town
The Kissimmee 2 weather station, 11 miles away, records that about 109 days a year reach 90°, more than in 96% of U.S. towns. January nights average 49.6°, milder than in 98% of U.S. towns; July afternoons average 92.5°.
Expect warm winters and hot summers in Poinciana, with plenty of rain. Its January low stands at 50°F. Snow is almost unheard of.
| Poinciana | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| January low | 50°F | 51°F | 22°F |
| July high | 93°F | 91°F | 85°F |
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Everything we know about Poinciana
Walt Disney World Resort and 51 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Poinciana. Close and well known come first.
Big draw18 mi Theme parkWalt Disney World Resort
Big draw25 mi Theme parkUniversal Studios Florida9.3M visitors a year
Big draw22 mi Theme parkUniversal Epic Universe4.0M visitors a year
24 mi Theme parkUniversal's Islands of Adventure9.2M visitors a year
Big draw29 mi Stadium & arenaCamping World Stadium
20 mi Theme parkSeaWorld Orlando4.3M visitors a yearPhoto credits
Walt Disney World Resort: Anthony Quintano from Westminster, United States, CC BY 2.0 · Universal Studios Florida: Radiobroadcastcenter, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Universal Epic Universe: Martin Lewison, CC BY 2.0 · Universal's Islands of Adventure: David Bjorgen, CC BY-SA 2.5 · Camping World Stadium: Quintin Soloviev, CC BY 4.0 · SeaWorld Orlando: SeaWorld, CC BY 2.0
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Moving to Poinciana: who provides what
Poinciana is unincorporated, so Osceola 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.
98% of working residents leave Poinciana for work
Where Poinciana’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
Colleges nearby
None within 15 miles of Poinciana; the nearest are
About 5 of every 100 Poinciana residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Florida.
About Poinciana
Census-designated place in Florida, United States
Poinciana (English: ) is a settlement and census-designated place (CDP) in Osceola and Polk counties in the U.S. state of Florida. It is part of the Greater Orlando area. As of the 2020 census, the CDP had a population of 69,309.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 73 sq mi
- Elevation
- 66 ft
Questions about Poinciana
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Poinciana, FL a good place to live?
Poinciana grades D− overall, in the bottom 2% of U.S. towns and #617 of 634 in Florida. It grades C for health and C− for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a D.
Is Poinciana, FL expensive?
Yes. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C−.
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