West PensacolaFL
The town, home to 20,665 people, lies in Florida.
Is West Pensacola a good place to live?
Where it falls short is health: residents are less healthy than 98% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. Homes run about $116K for a typical one, 1.5 times the Pensacola metro’s $76K median household income. Walkability is its strong suit (A+) — it is more walkable than 96% of U.S. towns. Overall, that makes a D, good for 540th of 634 in Florida. On that grade it does better than 11% of U.S. towns. 26% of residents live below the poverty line in West Pensacola, against 11% in Florida’s towns and 9.6% across U.S. towns. On cost of living, just 73 of Florida’s 774 towns do better. FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 84% of U.S. communities, with hurricanes at the top.
Figures: health, CDC PLACES · home values, Zillow · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · FEMA National Risk Index.
What makes West Pensacola stand out
Where West Pensacola beats most towns, and one thing worth knowing.
95% of working residents leave West Pensacola for work
Where West Pensacola’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
How West Pensacola grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Florida), ordered by how far West Pensacola is from typical.
Its grades run from A+ for walkability (better than 96% of comparable towns) to D− for health (better than 2%), so the D overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Fort Pickens and 13 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around West Pensacola. Close and well known come first.
7 mi LandmarkFort Pickens
6 mi MuseumNational Naval Aviation Museum
9 mi Ancient siteUSS Massachusetts
5 mi National SeashoreGulf Islands National Seashore7.6M visitors a year
6 mi LandmarkFort Barrancas17 mi BeachOno IslandPhoto credits
Fort Pickens: Notneb82, CC BY-SA 3.0 · National Naval Aviation Museum: Ebyabe, CC BY-SA 3.0 · USS Massachusetts: Unknown authorUnknown author or not provided, Public domain · Gulf Islands National Seashore: National Park Service, Public domain · Fort Barrancas: National Park Service, Public domain
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Moving to West Pensacola: who provides what
West Pensacola is unincorporated, so Escambia 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 West Pensacola.
West Pensacola has homes that are cheap against local pay and has a longer frost-free season than most of the country, though not than most of Florida; it also has poverty well above the Florida rate.
More of West Pensacola’s adults smoke cigarettes than in the typical Florida or U.S. town
44% of adults have obesity in West Pensacola. This Florida town does better than the Florida average on 1 of 31 CDC measures and worse on 24.
| West Pensacola | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 20% | 19% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 22% | 13% | 14% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 22% | 16% | 17% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 15% | 14% |
| What stands out | West Pensacola | FL |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 7.3% | 9.1% |
| More adults facing a utility shut-off | 16.1% | 8.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Public schools in West Pensacola fall behind 83% of Florida districts
The Escambia school district runs its public schools. Two of its 9 schools are shown below, with the reason for each. 4 public schools serve West Pensacola, with 2,109 students in all.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Warrington Preparatory AcademyLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 559 | D |
| Pensacola Catholic High School PrivateLargest high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 698 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within FL on state tests and graduation
West Pensacola faces a very high natural-hazard risk, led by hurricanes
Since 1978, West Pensacola has seen 132 flood insurance claims paid out. Expected losses in West Pensacola break down as 70% from hurricanes and 16% from inland flooding.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
With 0.5 jobs for every working resident, most of West Pensacola’s workers commute out
The share of workers in West Pensacola who work from home: 8%. For most workers, West Pensacola is a place to come home to: only 5% work in town. In West Pensacola, the median household income is $41,000. Jobs here fell by 666 from 2013 to 2023, to 4,216.
| West Pensacola | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below the poverty line | 26% | 11% | 9.6% |
| Median household income | $41,000 | $73,000 | $80,000 |
| Work from home | 8% | 14% | 11% |
| Average trip to work | 25 minutes | 27 minutes | 25 minutes |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Mild winters and hot summers: that is West Pensacola’s year
The Pensacola Forest Sherman Nas weather station, 6 miles away, records that the frost-free season runs about 277 days: longer than most of the country, but shorter than 77% of Florida places with climate records. The Pensacola Forest Sherman Nas weather station, 6 miles away, records that about 56 days a year reach 90°: more than most of the country, but fewer than 85% of Florida places with climate records.
July afternoons reach 91°, January nights drop to 43° and snow is almost unheard of.
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
The median home in West Pensacola sells for about $160K
At 1.5 years of the Pensacola metro’s $76K median household income, the typical home costs less against local pay than in 99% of Florida towns; that ratio is one input to its B+ for cost of living. The median property tax bill is $670, against $2,730 across Florida, another input to its cost-of-living grade.
West Pensacola: 49% of households own their home. In West Pensacola, the midpoint rent is $1,138 a month. A home in West Pensacola typically sold within 65 days of listing.
| West Pensacola | Florida towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 49% | 72% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,138 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 West Pensacola
Colleges nearby
2 within 15 miles of the center of West Pensacola
About 4 of every 100 West Pensacola residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Florida.
About West Pensacola
Census-designated place in Florida, United States
West Pensacola is a census-designated place (CDP) in Escambia County, Florida. The population was 21,019 at the 2020 census, down from 21,339 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Pensacola–Ferry Pass–Brent, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. The CDP area includes the community of Brownsville.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 7.3 sq mi
- Elevation
- 89 ft
- Area code
- 850
West Pensacola’s neighbors
6 towns share a border with West Pensacola.
| Town | FL rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| West Pensacola | #540 | D | B+ | — | C− | D− |
| Pensacola | #333 | C | C | B+ | C− | B |
| Brent | #468 | C− | B | — | C− | C− |
| Myrtle Grove | #465 | C− | B− | — | C− | C+ |
| Warrington | #560 | D | B− | — | C− | D |
| Goulding | #546 | D | B+ | — | C− | D− |
| Bellview | #551 | D | B− | — | C− | C |
West Pensacola, Brent, Myrtle Grove, Warrington, Goulding and Bellview report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare West Pensacola with a neighbor →
Questions about West Pensacola
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is West Pensacola, FL a good place to live?
West Pensacola grades D overall, better than 11% of U.S. towns and #540 of 634 in Florida. It grades D− for health and C− for schools. Health is its weak spot, with a D−.
Is West Pensacola, FL expensive?
Not for the area. The typical home is worth about $116,000, 69% 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 B+.