Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 20,902, incorporated in 1983.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Mill Creek grades A− overall, 24th of 285 graded towns in Washington. CDC estimates put its residents' health ahead of 95% of the country and its schools rank ahead of 85% of Washington towns. The trade-off is money: the typical home is worth about $924K, 8 years of the Seattle metro’s $115K median household income. Mill Creek’s trail density is 2.1 miles per square mile, where Washington’s towns sit at 0.8 and U.S. towns at 0.4. Mill Creek is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 93% of U.S. towns. On history, just 8 of Washington’s 397 towns do worse.
Where Mill Creek beats most towns.
| School | Grades | Students |
|---|---|---|
| Mill Creek Elementary | PK–5 | 694 |
| Heatherwood Middle School | 6–8 | 1,031 |
| Henry M. Jackson High School | 9–12 | 2,148 |
18,244 counted in 2010 and 20,926 in 2020; an estimated 20,902 in 2025.
Growth has leveled off: within 1% of 2020, after 14.7% 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 Mill Creek is from typical.
Its grades run from A+ for health (better than 95% of comparable towns) to D− for cost of living (better than 4%), so the A− overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 7,172 in 1990, 20,926 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 1915 and 5 maps from 1944 on.
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Mill Creek. Close and well known come first.
Big draw18 mi LookoutSpace Needle
Big draw18 mi Stadium & arenaClimate Pledge Arena
Big draw19 mi Stadium & arenaLumen Field
20 mi Stadium & arenaT-Mobile Park
19 mi Ancient siteSeattle Underground
15 mi Stadium & arenaHusky StadiumSpace 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 · 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 Mill Creek, 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 Mill Creek.
Mill Creek has fewer 90° days than nearly all U.S. towns and pairs an A for schools with high home prices, but it has homes that cost more against local pay than most of Washington.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Heron Park | 0.3 mi | 7 |
| 2. North Creek County Park | 0.1 mi | 18 |
| 3. Nickel Creek Park | — | 17 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Its A for schools comes with a D− for cost of living: the typical home is worth about $924K.
Its public schools are run by the Everett School District. Two of its 3 schools are below, each with why it’s listed. The largest public high school is Henry M. Jackson High School, with 2,148 students.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Heatherwood Middle SchoolLargest public middle schoolGrades 6–8 | Grades 6–8 | 1,031 | – |
| Henry M. Jackson High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 9–12 | Grades 9–12 | 2,148 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within WA on state tests and graduation
14% of adults report frequent mental distress in Mill Creek, below both Washington’s towns (17%) and U.S. towns (17%). 7.9% of Mill Creek adults smoke cigarettes. Mill Creek beats the Washington average on 18 of 31 CDC measures and trails it on 1.
| Mill Creek | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 14% | 17% | 17% |
| Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES) | 7.9% | 11% | 14% |
| Obesity (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 33% | 35% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 11% | 13% | 14% |
| What stands out | Mill Creek | WA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer older adults who have lost all their teeth | 6% | 9% |
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 7% | 10.2% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 8.7% | 7.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
At 8 years of the Seattle metro’s $115K median household income, the typical home (about $924K) costs more against local pay than in 87% of Washington towns; that ratio is one input to its D− for cost of living. The typical value, about $924K, is 7% below its June 2022 peak.
The median rent in Mill Creek is $2,249 a month. The typical Mill Creek home is worth about $924,000, down 3.6% in a year, 57% above the Washington typical home. 59% of households own their home in Mill Creek.
| Mill Creek | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $2,249 a month | $1,737 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 59% | 71% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Jobs based here grew from 4,745 in 2013 to 6,271. 29.9% of workers work from home, against 19.8% across Washington.
Most working residents leave Mill Creek for work: only 3% work in town. Mill Creek’s average trip to work is 33 minutes. Jobs based in Mill Creek grew to 6,271 in 2023, 1,526 more than in 2013.
| Mill Creek | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work from home | 30% | 15% | 11% |
| Average trip to work | 33 minutes | 27 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $124,000 | $98,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 6.4% | 7.9% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
The Monroe weather station, 10 miles away, records that about 2 days a year reach 90°, fewer than in 98% of U.S. towns. July afternoons average 74.1°, cooler than in 99% of U.S. towns; January nights average 35.6°.
Mill Creek has mild winters and cool summers. About 3 inches of snow falls in a winter.
| Mill Creek | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 74°F | 77°F | 85°F |
| January low | 36°F | 35°F | 22°F |
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Mill Creek's reported crime rate is below Washington's. Most reported incidents are property crimes, mainly thefts. 26 violent crimes were reported in 2024.
| Mill Creek | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property crimes per 1,000 (2024) | 18.3 per 1,000 residents | 19.4 | 11.5 |
| Violent crimes per 1,000 (2024) | 1.3 per 1,000 residents | 1.9 | 1.7 |
FBI crime data, 2024 · crimes reported to police
Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 51% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
11 within 15 miles of the center of Mill Creek
About 6 of every 100 Mill Creek residents are enrolled in college, about the same as Washington.
Where Mill Creek’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
City in Washington, United States
Mill Creek is a city in Snohomish County, Washington, United States. It is located south of Everett and northeast of Lynnwood, approximately 20 miles (32 km) northeast of Seattle. The city has a population of 20,926 as of the 2020 census. The city lies along State Route 527 and North Creek, a tributary of the Sammamish River, on the east side of Interstate 5. The city is one of the highest-income suburbs in the Seattle metropolitan area and was originally a planned community conceived in the 1970s. The planned development was centered around a country club and golf course, with other development occurring nearby in later phases. It was incorporated as a city in 1983, shortly after the compl…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
3 towns share a border with Mill Creek.
| Town | WA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mill Creek | #24 | A− | D− | — | A | A+ |
| Martha Lake | #82 | B | D | — | B | A |
| Mill Creek East | #10 | A | D | — | A | A+ |
| Silver Firs | #22 | A− | D | — | A | A |
Mill Creek, Martha Lake, Mill Creek East and Silver Firs report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Mill Creek with a neighbor →
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
For most people who can afford it, yes. Mill Creek grades A− overall, better than 84% of U.S. towns and #24 of 285 in Washington. It grades A+ for health 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−.
