Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 12,630, settled in 1885.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Gig Harbor grades B overall, 102nd of 285 graded towns in Washington. Residents are healthier than 88% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates and its schools outperform 88% of the state's. The catch is cost: the typical home is worth about $811K, 7 years of the Seattle metro’s $115K median household income. 31% of residents are 65 or older in Gig Harbor, above both Washington’s towns (16%) and U.S. towns (18%). Gig Harbor is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 91% of U.S. towns. Gig Harbor has 2 places on the National Register of Historic Places, among them Midway School.
Where Gig Harbor beats most towns.
7,126 counted in 2010 and 12,029 in 2020; an estimated 12,630 in 2025.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts · Census Bureau estimate, July 1, 2025
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Washington), ordered by how far Gig Harbor is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 321 in 1890, 12,029 in 2020. The archive holds 12 old photos and papers going back to 1893 and 6 maps from 1942 on.
2 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Gig Harbor. Close and well known come first.
Big draw23 mi LookoutSpace Needle
Big draw23 mi Stadium & arenaClimate Pledge Arena
Big draw22 mi Stadium & arenaLumen Field
22 mi Stadium & arenaT-Mobile Park
Big draw33 mi National ParkOlympic National Park3.6M visitors a year
22 mi Ancient siteSeattle UndergroundSpace Needle: Another Believer, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Climate Pledge Arena: Sea Cow, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Lumen Field: "Smart Destinations", GoSeattleCard.com, and Go Seattle Card Blog, CC BY-SA 2.0 · T-Mobile Park: MyName (Cacophony), CC BY-SA 3.0 · Olympic National Park: Wsiegmund, CC BY 2.5 · Seattle Underground: Mark Hursh, CC BY-SA 3.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Gig Harbor, 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 Gig Harbor.
Gig Harbor draws workers from Tacoma and beyond, has cooler summers than nearly all U.S. towns and fares better on crime within Washington than nationally.
9,688 jobs are based in Gig Harbor, 2.1 for every working resident, so most of the people who work here commute in. Jobs based here grew from 7,112 in 2013 to 9,688.
Most working residents leave Gig Harbor for work: only 9% work in town. Gig Harbor’s average trip to work is 32 minutes. Jobs based in Gig Harbor grew to 9,688 in 2023, 2,576 more than in 2013.
| Gig Harbor | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 24% | 15% | 11% |
| Average trip to work | 32 minutes | 27 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $118,000 | $98,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 9.4% | 4.8% | 8% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Its A for schools comes with a D for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $811K.
Its public schools are run by the Peninsula School District. Two of its 8 schools are below, each with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harbor Ridge Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 627 | – |
| Gig Harbor HighLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 1,375 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within WA on state tests and graduation
14% of adults report frequent mental distress in Gig Harbor. Gig Harbor beats the Washington average on 17 of 31 CDC measures and trails it on 7. 7.7% of adults smoke cigarettes in Gig Harbor.
| Gig Harbor | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 17% | 17% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 7.7% | 11% | 14% |
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 77% | 71% | 79% |
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 5.8% | 10% | 14% |
| What stands out | Gig Harbor | WA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 5.8% | 10.2% |
| Fewer adults facing housing insecurity | 6.2% | 9.9% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 12.1% | 7.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
At 39.3 crimes per 1,000 residents a year, it reports more crime than 71% of Washington’s graded towns. Reported crimes fell from 486 to 335 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
The property crime rate in Gig Harbor is 23.4 per 1,000 residents.
| Gig Harbor | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 23.4 per 1,000 residents | 15 | 9.9 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 2.8 per 1,000 residents | 1.5 | 1.6 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
5.9 miles of trail in 18 parks and preserves. The biggest park or preserve is txʷaalqəł Conservation Area, at 50 acres.
| Gig Harbor | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 1.0 miles per square mile | 0.8 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 4.7% | 4% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. McCormick Forest Park | 0.8 mi | 19 |
| 2. Grandview Forest Park | 0.5 mi | 10 |
| 3. Wilkinson Farm Park | 0.4 mi | 13 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
The typical Gig Harbor home is worth about $811,000, up 0.6% in a year, 38% above the Washington typical home. 62% of Gig Harbor households own their home.
| Gig Harbor | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $2,301 a month | $1,737 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 62% | 71% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 69% of U.S. communities. One flood insurance claim has been paid in Gig Harbor since 1979.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
July afternoons average 76.6°, cooler than in 97% of U.S. towns; January nights average 35.9°.
Gig Harbor has mild winters and pleasant summers, with plenty of rain. Snow is almost unheard of.
| Gig Harbor | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 77°F | 77°F | 85°F |
| January low | 36°F | 35°F | 22°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
9 within 15 miles of the center of Gig Harbor
About 3 of every 100 Gig Harbor residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Washington.
Where Gig Harbor’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
2 places in Gig Harbor on the National Register of Historic Places.
9 notable people were born in Gig Harbor.
City in Washington, United States
Gig Harbor (Lushootseed: txʷaalqəɬ) is the name of both a bay on Puget Sound and a city on its shore in Pierce County, Washington. The population was 12,029 at the 2020 census. Gig Harbor bills itself as "the Maritime City" and maintains a strong connection to its maritime heritage. Due to its close access to several state and city parks, and historic waterfront that includes boutiques and fine dining, it has become a popular tourist destination. Gig Harbor is located along State Route 16, about 6 mi (9.7 km) from its origin at Interstate 5, over the Tacoma Narrows Bridge.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
6 towns share a border with Gig Harbor.
All 5 graded towns on its borders grade higher than its B; Maplewood (B) is closest.
| Town | WA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gig Harbor | #102 | B | D | C− | A | A |
| Maplewood | #73 | B | C− | — | A | A− |
| Rosedale | #68 | B+ | C− | — | A | A |
| Wollochet | #16 | A | C− | — | A | A |
| Canterwood | #70 | B+ | C− | — | A | A |
| Artondale | #54 | B+ | D | — | A | A |
| Purdy | — | — | C | — | A | A |
Purdy has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Maplewood, Rosedale, Wollochet, Canterwood, Artondale and Purdy report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Gig Harbor with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Gig Harbor grades B overall, better than 56% of U.S. towns and #102 of 285 in Washington. It grades A for health, C− for safety and A for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D.
Yes. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades D.
9 notable people were born here, including Kyle Stanley and Marian Call.
