Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Kirkland grades A− overall, 28th of 285 graded towns in Washington. On CDC health estimates it is near the top nationally. Its public schools beat 98% of Washington towns on state tests and graduation and the median household earns $150K. What holds it back is price: the typical home is worth about $1.2 million, 10 years of the Seattle metro’s $115K median household income. 66% of adults 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or more in Kirkland, where Washington’s towns sit at 30% and U.S. towns at 29%. Kirkland is more walkable than 97% of U.S. towns. Kirkland is home to Lake Washington Institute of Technology.
Where Kirkland beats most towns.
| Widest gap | Kirkland | WA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 5.1% | 9% |
| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Lakeview Elementary | K–5 | 602 |
| Peter Kirk Elementary | K–5 | 592 |
| Rose Hill Elementary | K–5 | 570 |
48,787 counted in 2010 and 92,175 in 2020; an estimated 97,410 in 2025.
Growth hasn’t slowed: 5.7% since 2020, after 88.9% in the decade before.
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 Kirkland is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 264 in 1900, 92,175 in 2020. The archive holds 8 old photos and papers going back to 1889 and 3 maps from 1950 on.
8 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Kirkland. Close and well known come first.
Big draw9 mi LookoutSpace Needle
Big draw9 mi Stadium & arenaClimate Pledge Arena
Big draw9 mi Stadium & arenaLumen Field
9 mi Stadium & arenaT-Mobile Park
6 mi Stadium & arenaHusky Stadium
9 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 · Husky Stadium: Atomic Taco, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Seattle Underground: Mark Hursh, CC BY-SA 3.0
Who provides power, water and the rest in Kirkland, 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 Kirkland.
Kirkland has schools in the top 5% of Washington and has fewer 90° days than nearly all U.S. towns, but it has homes that cost more against local pay than most of Washington.
At 10 years of the Seattle metro’s $115K median household income, the typical home (about $1.15M) costs more against local pay than in 95% of Washington towns; that ratio is one input to that grade. The typical value, about $1.15M, is 11% below its June 2022 peak.
In Kirkland, the midpoint rent is $2,401 a month. A typical home locally is worth about $1,154,000, down 5.6% in a year, 96% above the Washington typical home. Among households in the town, 61% own their home.
| Kirkland | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $2,401 a month | $1,737 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 61% | 71% | 73% |
| Renters paying 30%+ of income on rent | 44% | 51% | 48% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
That grade ranks #3 of the 285 Washington towns we grade for schools. It comes with a D− for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $1.15M.
The Lake Washington School District runs its public schools. Two of its 38 schools are shown below, with the reason for each. The 6 public schools in Kirkland teach 3,269 students between them.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kirkland Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 746 | – |
| Lake Washington High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 2,081 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within WA on state tests and graduation
Count the trails in 54 parks and preserves and they come to 45 miles. Big Finn Hill Park, at 215 acres with 8.8 miles of trail, is the biggest park or preserve. For Kirkland, the trail density is 2.0 miles per square mile.
| Kirkland | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 2.0 miles per square mile | 0.8 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 6.9% | 4% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Big Finn Hill Park | 8.8 mi | 215 |
| 2. Taylor Field Sports Park | 2.2 mi | 33 |
| 3. Watershed Park | 2.1 mi | 71 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its widest gap with Washington is tooth loss: 5.1% of those 65+ have lost all their teeth, against 9% statewide.
In Kirkland, 6.3% of adults smoke cigarettes. Of 31 CDC measures, Kirkland beats the Washington average on 25 and trails it on 1. Among 285 Washington towns, just 10 have a lower share of adults who have obesity than Kirkland.
| Kirkland | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 22% | 33% | 35% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 9.1% | 13% | 14% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 6.3% | 11% | 14% |
| Get no exercise (CDC PLACES) | 12% | 18% | 25% |
| What stands out | Kirkland | WA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 5.1% | 9% |
| Fewer adults with COPD | 3.1% | 5.1% |
| Fewer adults treating high blood pressure | 67.5% | 70.7% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Expected losses in Kirkland break down as 75% from earthquakes and 24% from inland flooding. Compared with 72% of U.S. communities, expected storm and flood damage locally is higher. Federal disaster aid has reached households in Kirkland after 8 declared disasters, most recently in 2025.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The Seattle Sand Pt Wsfo weather station records that about 2 days a year reach 90°, fewer than in 95% of U.S. towns. July afternoons average 75.9°, cooler than in 98% of U.S. towns; January nights average 36.2°.
The January low in Kirkland is 36°F. About 4 inches of snow falls in a winter.
| Kirkland | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 76°F | 77°F | 85°F |
| January low | 36°F | 35°F | 22°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Kirkland has about as many jobs (50,608) as working residents, but only 5,308 people both live and work here. Jobs based here grew from 36,581 in 2013 to 50,608.
Between 2013 and 2023, jobs in Kirkland rose by 14,027, to 50,608. Commuting out is the norm locally: 11% of working residents work locally. For workers in the town, the share who do their job from home is 34%. The top destinations are Seattle (30%), Redmond (17%) and Bellevue (14%).
| Kirkland | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 34% | 15% | 11% |
| Median household income | $150,000 | $98,000 | $80,000 |
| Working residents who work in town | 11% | 4.8% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 24 minutes | 27 minutes | 25 minutes |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Reported crimes fell from 1,996 to 1,222 over the last three FBI years, a drop beyond ordinary year-to-year swings.
Within Washington, it does better than 67% of towns. Kirkland’s rate of reported violence is 0.6 per 1,000 residents.
| Kirkland | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 0.6 per 1,000 residents | 1.5 | 1.6 |
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2025) | 12.1 per 1,000 residents | 15.1 | 9.9 |
FBI crime data, 2025 · crimes reported to police
23 within 15 miles of the center of Kirkland
About 6 of every 100 Kirkland residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Washington.
3 colleges in town.
8 places in Kirkland on the National Register of Historic Places.
24 notable people were born in Kirkland.
City in Washington, United States
Kirkland is a city in King County, Washington, United States. A suburb east of Seattle, its population was 92,175 in the 2020 U.S. census which made it the sixth largest city in King County and the twelfth largest city in the state of Washington. The city's downtown waterfront has restaurants, art galleries, a performing arts center, public parks, beaches, and a collection of public art that includes bronze sculptures. Kirkland was the original home of the Seattle Seahawks; the NFL team's headquarters and training facility were located at the Lake Washington Shipyard (now Carillon Point) along Lake Washington for their first ten seasons (1976–85), then at nearby Northwest University through…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
8 towns share a border with Kirkland.
| Town | WA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kirkland | #28 | A− | D− | B− | A+ | A+ |
| Kenmore | #9 | A | D | B+ | A+ | A+ |
| Seattle | #128 | B− | D | D− | A | A+ |
| Yarrow Point | — | — | D− | A | A+ | A+ |
| Redmond | #49 | B+ | D− | C | A+ | A+ |
| Woodinville | #52 | B+ | D− | C | A+ | A+ |
| Bellevue | #63 | B+ | D− | C− | A+ | A+ |
| Bothell | #23 | A− | D− | B− | A+ | A+ |
Yarrow Point has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade. Compare Kirkland with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Kirkland grades A− overall, better than 80% of U.S. towns and #28 of 285 in Washington. It grades A+ for health, B− for safety and A+ for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D−.
Within Washington, it does better than 67% of towns.
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−.
24 notable people were born here, including Jennie Reed and Mike O'Hearn.
