Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 6,978, settled in 1885.
Black Diamond's standout: it is healthier than 98% of U.S. towns. Overall it grades A, ranked 12th of 285 in Washington. The median household earns $141K and crime is low: it reports less per resident than 88% of U.S. towns. Black Diamond’s trail network density is 4.8 miles per square mile, where Washington’s towns sit at 0.8 and U.S. towns at 0.4. On the outdoors, just 26 of Washington’s 397 towns do better. Black Diamond has 2 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Black Diamond Cemetery and Luigi and Aurora Pagani House.
Where Black Diamond beats most towns.
9.5% of the town is conserved land, across 7 parks and preserves.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Washington), ordered by how far Black Diamond is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 561 in 1890, 4,697 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1915 and 3 maps from 1949 on.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Black Diamond. Close and well known come first.
Big draw26 mi LookoutSpace Needle
Big draw25 mi Stadium & arenaLumen Field
Big draw27 mi Stadium & arenaClimate Pledge Arena
24 mi Stadium & arenaT-Mobile Park
25 mi Ancient siteSeattle Underground
27 mi Stadium & arenaHusky StadiumSpace Needle: Another Believer, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Lumen Field: "Smart Destinations", GoSeattleCard.com, and Go Seattle Card Blog, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Climate Pledge Arena: Sea Cow, CC BY-SA 4.0 · T-Mobile Park: MyName (Cacophony), CC BY-SA 3.0 · Seattle Underground: Mark Hursh, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Husky Stadium: Atomic Taco, CC BY-SA 2.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Black Diamond, 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 30, 2026.
Ordered by what stands out in Black Diamond.
Black Diamond has more trail for its size than nearly any town in Washington, has cooler summers than nearly all U.S. towns and has less tooth loss than most of Washington.
At 4.8 miles of trail per square mile, it ranks #3 of 237 Washington towns.
Trails total 34 miles in 7 parks and preserves. The biggest place to walk is Lake Sawyer Regional Park, 144 acres with 6.4 miles of trail.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Lake Sawyer Regional Park | 6.4 mi | 144 |
| 2. Civic Park | 0.3 mi | 2 |
| 3. Village Green | 0.1 mi | 6 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its one school is below. Public schools: the Enumclaw School District. 414 students attend Black Diamond’s public school.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Black Diamond ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 414 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within WA on state tests and graduation
Its widest gap with Washington is tooth loss: 4.5% of those 65+ have lost all their teeth, against 9% statewide.
20% of Black Diamond adults binge drink, above both Washington’s towns (17%) and U.S. towns (16%). In Black Diamond, 28% of adults sleep under 7 hours. CDC measures, 31 in all: Black Diamond beats Washington on 23 and trails on 1.
| Black Diamond | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 24% | 33% | 35% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 12% | 18% | 25% |
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 6.5% | 9.8% | 12% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 33% | 36% |
| What stands out | Black Diamond | WA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 4.5% | 9% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 5.8% | 10.2% |
| More binge drinkers | 19.5% | 16.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Violent crime is rare: 3 reported in 2025, 0.4 per 1,000 residents.
Its violent offense rate comes in at 0.4 per 1,000 residents. Black Diamond’s rate of thefts and burglaries comes in at 4.2 per 1,000 residents.
| Black Diamond | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 4.2 per 1,000 residents | 15.1 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.4 per 1,000 residents | 1.5 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
Black Diamond has 525 jobs for its 2,110 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out. The average commute takes 37.5 minutes, against 26.6 across Washington.
Since 2013, Black Diamond has added 218 jobs, to 525 in 2023. Most people who work leave Black Diamond to do it: just 2% work in town. For Black Diamond, the average commute is 38 minutes. Half commute less than 16 miles.
| Black Diamond | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 38 minutes | 27 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $141,000 | $98,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 2.1% | 7.9% | 9.6% |
| Working residents who work in town | 1.8% | 5% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
In the year to September 2026, typical home values slipped 3.5%. For households in Black Diamond, the share who own their home is 86%. On the market here: a median 63 days to sell.
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
July afternoons average 75.9°, cooler than in 98% of U.S. towns; January nights average 34.4°.
About 18 inches of snow falls in a winter. The peak summer temperature here is 76°F.
| Black Diamond | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 76°F | 77°F | 85°F |
| January low | 34°F | 35°F | 22°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
FEMA expects more storm and flood damage in Black Diamond than in nearly two thirds of U.S. communities. Expected losses in Black Diamond break down as 82% from avalanches and 10% from earthquakes. Federal disaster aid has reached households in Black Diamond after 5 declared disasters, most recently in 2025.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
3 within 15 miles of the center of Black Diamond
About 3 of every 100 Black Diamond residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Washington.
4,151 counted in 2010 and 4,697 in 2020; an estimated 6,978 in 2025.
Growth hasn’t slowed: 48.6% since 2020, after 13.2% in the decade before.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
2 places in Black Diamond on the National Register of Historic Places.
One town shares a border with Black Diamond.
| Town | WA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Black Diamond | #12 | A | C | A | B+ | A+ |
| Lake Morton-Berrydale | #137 | B− | D | — | B− | A |
Lake Morton-Berrydale reports no FBI crime data of its own. Compare Black Diamond with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
By most measures, yes. Black Diamond grades A overall, better than 90% of U.S. towns and #12 of 285 in Washington. It grades A+ for health, A for safety and B+ for schools.
Yes, by national standards. Black Diamond reports less crime per resident than 88% of U.S. towns, an A Safety Grade: 3 violent and 31 property crimes in 2025.
That is 6.5 years of the area's median household income ($115,177 across the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA metro area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C.
