Everything else equal, we can all agree that living in a cheaper place is better than living in a more expensive place.
I’d much rather pay $500/mo in rent than $1,000. And I’d rather pay $2 for coffee than $5.
And while every neighbhorhood in Bellevue might be more expensive than living in rural Washington, there are certain neighborhoods that are definitely cheaper.
What exactly are those Bellevue neighborhoods where your dollar goes a little further — you can get that one bedroom instead of the studio?
Instead of relying on public opinion and speculation, we wanted to get the facts straight and determine which neighborhoods in Bellevue are the cheapest using Saturday Night Science.
What’s the cheapest neighborhood to live in Bellevue for 2024? According to the most recent census data, Phantom Lake looks to be the cheapest Bellevue neighborhood to live in.
At this point, we should make it clear that you do get what you pay for — some of these neighborhoods might not be the best places to live in Bellevue. You could be sacrificing location or crime rates for more space and cheaper groceries.
Read on to see how we determined the places around Bellevue that deserve a little bragging rights, or maybe you’re interested in the worst neighborhoods in Bellevue.
For more Washington reading, check out:
- Best Places To Live In Washington
- Cheapest Places To Live In Washington
- Cheapest Cities To Live In America
- Cheapest States To Live In America
Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table
The 10 Cheapest Neighborhoods To Live In Bellevue For 2024
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Population: 2,111
Cost Of Living Index: 160 (8th cheapest)
Home Value To Income Ratio: 5.0 (4th cheapest)
Rent To Income Ratio: 0.013 (5th cheapest)
More on Phantom Lake: Data | Real Estate
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Population: 6,416
Cost Of Living Index: 159 (7th cheapest)
Home Value To Income Ratio: 4.9 (3rd cheapest)
Rent To Income Ratio: 0.014 (7th cheapest)
More on Wilburton: Data | Real Estate
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Population: 12,054
Cost Of Living Index: 152 (2nd cheapest)
Home Value To Income Ratio: 5.1 (5th cheapest)
Rent To Income Ratio: 0.016 (13th cheapest)
More on Overlake: Data | Real Estate
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Population: 2,686
Cost Of Living Index: 185 (20th cheapest)
Home Value To Income Ratio: 4.7 (cheapest)
Rent To Income Ratio: 0.013 (2nd cheapest)
More on North Bellevue: Data | Real Estate
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Population: 1,997
Cost Of Living Index: 152 (2nd cheapest)
Home Value To Income Ratio: 6.0 (15th cheapest)
Rent To Income Ratio: 0.014 (8th cheapest)
More on Robinswood: Data | Real Estate
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Population: 1,354
Cost Of Living Index: 167 (9th cheapest)
Home Value To Income Ratio: 5.7 (11th cheapest)
Rent To Income Ratio: 0.014 (6th cheapest)
More on Vasa: Data | Real Estate
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Population: 5,341
Cost Of Living Index: 197 (23rd cheapest)
Home Value To Income Ratio: 4.8 (2nd cheapest)
Rent To Income Ratio: 0.01 (cheapest)
More on Meydenbauer: Data | Real Estate
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Population: 11,874
Cost Of Living Index: 168 (11th cheapest)
Home Value To Income Ratio: 5.2 (6th cheapest)
Rent To Income Ratio: 0.016 (12th cheapest)
More on Bridle Trails: Data | Real Estate
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Population: 7,474
Cost Of Living Index: 172 (16th cheapest)
Home Value To Income Ratio: 5.3 (7th cheapest)
Rent To Income Ratio: 0.015 (10th cheapest)
More on Eastgate: Data | Real Estate
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Population: 13,712
Cost Of Living Index: 185 (20th cheapest)
Home Value To Income Ratio: 5.3 (8th cheapest)
Rent To Income Ratio: 0.014 (9th cheapest)
More on Somerset: Data | Real Estate
Methodology: How We Determined The Cheapest Bellevue Hoods In 2024
To rank the cheapest places to live in Bellevue, we had to determine what criteria define “cheap” and then apply Saturday Night Science.
Using Census and extrapolated BLS data, we arrived at the following set of criteria:
- Overall Cost Of Living
- Rent To Income Ratio
- Median Home Value To Income Ratio
We then ranked each neighborhood with scores from 1 to 23 in each category, where 1 was the cheapest.
Next, we averaged the rankings for each neighborhood to create a cheap neighborhood index.
And finally, we crowned the neighborhood with the lowest cheapest neighborhood index, the “Cheapest City Neighborhood In Bellevue.” We’re lookin’ at you, Phantom Lake.
We updated this article for 2024. This is our fourth time ranking the cheapest neighborhoods to live in Bellevue. Skip to the end to see the list of all the neighborhoods in the city, from cheapest to most expensive.
Summary: Lowest Cost Places To Live In Bellevue
If you’re measuring the neighborhoods in Bellevue where prices are low, and it’s cheap to live, this is an accurate list.
The most affordable neighborhoods in Bellevue are Phantom Lake, Wilburton, Overlake, North Bellevue, Robinswood, Vasa, Meydenbauer, Bridle Trails, Eastgate, and Somerset.
As mentioned earlier, the neighborhoods in Bellevue aren’t all cheap. Hidden Valley takes the title of the most expensive neighborhood to live in Bellevue.
The most expensive neighborhoods in Bellevue are Hidden Valley, Woodbridge, West Lake Sammamish, Downtown, and Interlake.
We ranked the neighborhoods from cheapest to most expensive in the chart below.
For more Washington reading, check out:
- Most Dangerous Cities In Washington
- Richest Cities In Washington
- Safest Places In Washington
- Worst Places To Live In Washington
Detailed List Of The Cheapest Neighborhoods To Live In Bellevue For 2024
| Rank | Neighborhood | Cost Of Living Index |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Phantom Lake | 160 |
| 2 | Wilburton | 159 |
| 3 | Overlake | 152 |
| 4 | North Bellevue | 185 |
| 5 | Robinswood | 152 |
| 6 | Vasa | 167 |
| 7 | Meydenbauer | 197 |
| 8 | Bridle Trails | 168 |
| 9 | Eastgate | 172 |
| 10 | Somerset | 185 |
| 11 | Factoria | 158 |
| 12 | Lakemont | 196 |
| 13 | Enatai | 136 |
| 14 | Lake Hills | 155 |
| 15 | Newport Hills | 168 |
| 16 | Crossroads | 156 |
| 17 | Newport Shores | 192 |
| 18 | Tam O’shanter | 179 |
| 19 | Interlake | 168 |
| 20 | Downtown | 170 |
| 21 | West Lake Sammamish | 179 |
| 22 | Woodbridge | 172 |
| 23 | Hidden Valley | 171 |