North Fort LewisWA
A town of 6,337 in Washington.
What should you know before moving to North Fort Lewis?
Strong in places, weak in others. The weak point is cost of living — the typical home is worth about , years of the Seattle metro’s $115K median household income. North Fort Lewis’s overall grade, C, puts it better than 25% of U.S. towns. It ranks 206th of 285 in Washington. Schools are weaker too: its schools rank behind 71% of the state's. Its strongest subject is walkability (A): it is easier to get around on foot or by transit than 93% of U.S. towns. Add health to its strengths: residents are healthier than 80% of U.S. towns on CDC estimates. American Lake Veterans Hospital is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Figures: health, CDC PLACES · home values, Zillow · incomes, Census ACS, 2020–24 · schools, state test and graduation results · National Register of Historic Places.
What makes North Fort Lewis stand out
Where North Fort Lewis beats most towns.
North Fort Lewis has grown 122% from 2010 to 2020
2,699 counted in 2010 and 5,978 in 2020.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts
How North Fort Lewis grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Washington), ordered by how far North Fort Lewis is from typical.
Its grades run from A for walkability (better than 93% of comparable towns) to D− for cost of living (better than 1%), so the C overall blends very different results.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Space Needle and 120 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around North Fort Lewis. Close and well known come first.
Big draw36 mi LookoutSpace Needle
Big draw36 mi Stadium & arenaClimate Pledge Arena
Big draw35 mi Stadium & arenaLumen Field
11 mi Stadium & arenaTacoma Dome
35 mi Stadium & arenaT-Mobile Park
35 mi Ancient siteSeattle UndergroundPhoto credits
Space 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 · Tacoma Dome: Broran28, Public domain · T-Mobile Park: MyName (Cacophony), CC BY-SA 3.0 · Seattle Underground: Mark Hursh, CC BY-SA 3.0
Moving to North Fort Lewis: who provides what
North Fort Lewis is unincorporated, so Pierce County and regional agencies provide most services.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Sep 30, 2026.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in North Fort Lewis.
North Fort Lewis has less cancer than most of Washington and has fewer 90° days than nearly all U.S. towns, but it has lost a quarter or more of its jobs in ten years.
North Fort Lewis’ grade for schools is a C
The Clover Park School District runs its public schools. One of its 2 schools is below, with the reason it’s listed. 2 public schools serve North Fort Lewis, with 637 students in all.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beachwood Elementary SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–5 | Grades PK–5 | 397 | – |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within WA on state tests and graduation
Fewer of North Fort Lewis’ adults have diabetes than in the typical Washington or U.S. town
Its widest gap with Washington is cancer: 1.5% of its 4,341 adults have had cancer, against 7.9% statewide. Against the 10,512 U.S. towns with household incomes like North Fort Lewis’s, it is healthier than 95%, so its A− isn’t only a matter of income.
Among 285 Washington towns, just 4 have a higher share of adults who report frequent mental distress than North Fort Lewis. 27% of North Fort Lewis adults have been diagnosed with depression, where Washington’s towns sit at 26% and U.S. towns at 23%. North Fort Lewis: 16% of adults have high blood pressure. CDC measures, 31 in all: North Fort Lewis beats Washington on 9 and trails on 17.
| North Fort Lewis | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 3.5% | 9.8% | 12% |
| Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES) | 23% | 17% | 17% |
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 24% | 17% | 16% |
| High blood pressure (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 31% | 35% |
| What stands out | North Fort Lewis | WA |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults who have had cancer | 1.5% | 7.9% |
| Fewer adults with heart disease | 1.4% | 5.4% |
| More adults without reliable transportation | 12.1% | 7.2% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
North Fort Lewis stands out in Washington and nationally, with the average trip to work shorter than most
Jobs based here fell from 915 in 2013 to 324. The average commute for its 573 working residents takes 10.2 minutes, against 26.6 across Washington.
The top destinations are Seattle (11%), Lakewood (6%) and Tacoma (6%). Employers in North Fort Lewis shed 591 jobs between 2013 and 2023, to 324. In North Fort Lewis, 3.7% of workers work remotely from home. 13% of North Fort Lewis residents live below the poverty line, above both Washington’s towns (7.9%) and U.S. towns (9.6%).
| North Fort Lewis | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 10 minutes | 27 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Work from home | 3.7% | 15% | 11% |
| Median household income | $70,000 | $98,000 | $80,000 |
| Below the poverty line | 13% | 7.9% | 9.6% |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
North Fort Lewis has mild winters and pleasant summers
The Olympia Ap weather station, 18 miles away, records that about 6 days a year reach 90°, fewer than in 95% of U.S. towns. July afternoons average 77.1°, cooler than in 97% of U.S. towns; January nights average 35.2°.
For North Fort Lewis, the January low is 35°F. About 4 inches of snow falls in a winter.
| North Fort Lewis | Washington towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 77°F | 77°F | 85°F |
| January low | 35°F | 35°F | 22°F |
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Natural hazards: high risk in North Fort Lewis, mostly earthquakes
FEMA expects more storm and flood damage in North Fort Lewis than in 60% of U.S. communities.
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
0% of North Fort Lewis is conserved land
In 3 parks and preserves, walkers have 0.4 miles of trail. The concentration of trails in North Fort Lewis is 0.1 miles per square mile. Parks and preserves locally: 3, covering 15 acres.
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Shoreline Park | — | 11 |
| 2. Summer Cove | — | 2 |
| 3. Vehicle Park | — | 2 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
Everything we know about North Fort Lewis
Colleges nearby
10 within 15 miles of the center of North Fort Lewis
About 10 of every 100 North Fort Lewis residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Washington.
99% of working residents leave North Fort Lewis for work
Where North Fort Lewis’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
About North Fort Lewis
CDP in Washington, United States
North Fort Lewis is a census-designated place located in Pierce County, Washington. As of the 2020 census, North Fort Lewis had a population of 5,978. It is a part of Fort Lewis, which is a part of Joint Base Lewis-McChord.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 5.9 sq mi
- Elevation
- 246 ft
- Area code
- 253
North Fort Lewis’s neighbors
3 towns share a border with North Fort Lewis.
| Town | WA rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Fort Lewis | #206 | C | D− | — | C | A− |
| Fort Lewis | #250 | D | D− | — | C | B+ |
| Lakewood | #262 | D | C | D | C | C+ |
| DuPont | #51 | B+ | C− | B | A− | A |
North Fort Lewis and Fort Lewis report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare North Fort Lewis with a neighbor →
Questions about North Fort Lewis
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is North Fort Lewis, WA a good place to live?
North Fort Lewis grades C overall, better than 25% of U.S. towns and #206 of 285 in Washington. It grades A− for health and C for schools. Cost of living is its weak spot, with a D−.