Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A good place to live, if you can afford it. On health it is strong (A): it is healthier than 87% of U.S. towns. It also does well on walkability (A): it is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 93% of U.S. towns. What counts against it is cost of living (C−): the typical home is worth about $500K, 5.8 years of the Boise City metro’s $86K median household income. The overall grade lands at B+, 20th of 58 in Idaho. That leaves it better than two thirds of U.S. towns. Its National Register listings include Assay Office and Joseph Chitwood House. On the outdoors, just 2 of Idaho’s 94 towns do better.
Figures: health, CDC PLACES · home values, Zillow · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · National Register of Historic Places · USGS PAD-US.
Where Boise City beats most towns.
Assay Office is a National Historic Landmark, the National Register’s top tier. Its founding year, 1863, comes before those of 96% of the Idaho towns we grade with a known year.
Census counts: 995 in 1870, 235,684 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1864 and 3 maps from 1897 on.
137 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Idaho), ordered by how far Boise City is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Boise City. Close and well known come first.
in town Stadium & arenaAlbertsons Stadium
in town MuseumOld Idaho State Penitentiary
in town Stadium & arenaExtraMile Arena
in town Stadium & arenaIdaho Central Arena
in town City parkJulia Davis Park14 mi Ski areaBogus Basin Mountain Recreation Area117 runs · 1,792 ft verticalAlbertsons Stadium: Iamneven, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Old Idaho State Penitentiary: Peter Wollheim, CC BY 2.5 · ExtraMile Arena: Larry D. Moore, CC BY 4.0 · Idaho Central Arena: mark6mauno, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Julia Davis Park: Karakorum9, Public domain
Who provides power, water and the rest in Boise City, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 12, 2025.
Ordered by what stands out in Boise City.
Boise City draws workers from Meridian and beyond, is one of Idaho’s best towns for the outdoors and is safe by national standards but not by Idaho’s.
Its A for the outdoors ranks #2 of 59 in Idaho.
188 miles of trail wind through 109 parks and preserves. Military Reserve, at 675 acres with 11.5 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve. The trail network density for Boise City comes to 2.2 miles per square mile, above both Idaho’s towns (0.8) and U.S. towns (0.4).
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Military Reserve | 11.5 mi | 675 |
| 2. Hillside to Hollow Reserve | 11.4 mi | 382 |
| 3. Hulls Gulch Reserve | 9.7 mi | 358 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Three of its 94 schools are shown below, with the reason for each. Its public schools are run by the Boise Independent District. Public school enrollment in Boise City: 3,260 students across 6 schools.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lowell Scott Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 773 | B+ |
| Centennial High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,743 | A |
| Highlands Elementary SchoolTop results in townGrades PK–6 | Grades PK–6 | 291 | A+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within ID on state tests and graduation
176,500 jobs are based in Boise City, 1.6 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in.
In Boise City, the typical household income is $84,000. The average trip to work for Boise City comes to 19 minutes, below both the Idaho town median (20 minutes) and the median of U.S. towns (25 minutes). Between 2013 and 2023, jobs locally rose by 31,951, to 176,500. 18% of Boise City workers work from home.
| Boise City | Idaho towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 18% | 9.9% | 11% |
| Average trip to work | 19 minutes | 20 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $84,000 | $67,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its widest gap with Idaho is tooth loss: 9.6% of those 65+ have lost all their teeth, against 16.2% statewide.
For adults in Boise City, the share who binge drink is 17%. Only 5 of the 59 Idaho towns we compare have a higher share of adults who have been diagnosed with depression than Boise City. Nearly a fifth of adults in Boise City get no exercise outside work; 29% have obesity.
| Boise City | Idaho towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 34% | 36% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 19% | 23% | 25% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 33% | 35% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 8.7% | 10% | 12% |
| What stands out | Boise City | ID |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 9.6% | 16.2% |
| Fewer adults with COPD | 5.4% | 6.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
FEMA expects less storm and flood damage in Boise City than in 79% of U.S. communities. Since 1979, Boise City has seen 13 flood insurance claims paid out. Expected losses in Boise City break down as 62% from inland flooding and 9% from earthquakes.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
Boise City’s typical July afternoon high stands at 93°F.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
At 21.8 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports more crime than 80% of Idaho’s graded towns. Reported crimes fell from 3,583 to 2,631 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
The level of property crime for Boise City comes to 8.2 per 1,000 residents. Boise City’s level of violent crime comes in at 2.8 per 1,000 residents.
| Boise City | Idaho towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 2.8 per 1,000 residents | 2 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 8.2 per 1,000 residents | 6.3 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Homes sold in Boise City spent a median 15 days on the market. The typical Boise City home is worth about $500,000, up 2.1% in a year, close to the Idaho typical home. Its going rate for rent is $1,446 a month.
| Boise City | Idaho towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,446 a month | $1,109 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 63% | 70% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
5 within 15 miles of the center of Boise City
About 9 of every 100 Boise City residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Idaho.
10.4% of the town is conserved land, across 109 parks and preserves.
137 places in Boise City on the National Register of Historic Places.
39 notable people were born in Boise City.
Capital of Idaho, U.S.
Boise (locally also ) is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Idaho. It is the county seat of Ada County. The population of the city was 235,685 at the 2020 census. The Boise metropolitan area, located in the Treasure Valley, includes five counties of Idaho with an estimated population of 846,000, the most populous metropolitan area in Idaho and 95th-most populous in the United States. Located on the Boise River in southwestern Idaho, it is 41 miles (66 km) east of the Oregon border and 110 miles (177 km) north of the Nevada border. Downtown Boise's elevation is 2,704 feet (824 m) above sea level. Boise is home to major employers in the technology, manufacturing, and serv…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with Boise City.
| Town | ID rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boise City | #20 | B+ | C− | C+ | B+ | A |
| Garden City | #36 | C+ | C | C− | B+ | B+ |
| Meridian | #1 | A | C− | B+ | A− | A |
| Eagle | #2 | A | C− | — | A− | A |
Eagle reports no FBI crime data of its own. Compare Boise City with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Boise City grades B+ overall, better than 67% of U.S. towns and #20 of 58 in Idaho. It grades A for health, C+ for safety and B+ for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a C−.
Idaho has less crime than most states, so among its own towns Boise City sits nearer the middle.
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−.
39 notable people were born here, including Torrie Wilson and Kristine Sutherland.
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