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City

Salem

#2 in Best Places to Live in Salem Area
  • B
    Overall Grade
  • City in Oregon
  • 378 reviews
B
Overall Niche Grade
How are grades calculated?
  1. Public Schools
    B-
  2. Crime & Safety
    C
  3. Housing
    C+
  4. Nightlife
    A-
  5. Good for Families
    B-
  6. Diversity
    A
  7. Jobs
    B
  8. Weather
    B
  9. Cost of Living
    C+
  10. Health & Fitness
    B+
  11. Outdoor Activities
    A
  12. Commute
    A-
View Full Report Card
Salem is a city in Oregon with a population of 163,654. Salem is in Marion County. Living in Salem offers residents a suburban feel and most residents own their homes. In Salem there are a lot of bars and parks. Many families and young professionals live in Salem and residents tend to lean conservative. The public schools in Salem are above average.
About Salem...
Population
163,654

Real Estate

Median Home Value
$201,900
National
$184,700
Median Rent
$861
National
$949
Area Feel
Suburban
Rent vs. Own
  • Rent
    47%
  • Own
    53%
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Salem Rankings

Niche rankings are based on rigorous analysis of key statistics from the U.S. Department of Education and millions of reviews.

Crime & Safety

Crime & Safety
C
Based on violent and property crime rates.
Violent Crimes
  • Calculated annually per 100,000 residents
National
  • Assault
    250.1
    282.7
  • Murder
    3.5
    6.1
  • Rape
    25.9
    40.7
  • Robbery
    98.5
    135.5
Property Crimes
  • Calculated annually per 100,000 residents
National
  • Burglary
    529
    500.1
  • Theft
    3,206.4
    2,042.8
  • Motor Vehicle Theft
    507.8
    284
Home Security Options for Salem
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  • 24/7 Whole home protection with no contract
  • CNET Editor’s choice winner 2018

Residents

Diversity
A
Based on ethnic and economic diversity.
Age
  • <10 years
    13%
  • 10-17 years
    11%
  • 18-24 years
    11%
  • 25-34 years
    15%
  • 35-44 years
    13%
  • 45-54 years
    12%
  • 55-64 years
    11%
  • 65+ years
    13%
Education Levels
National
  • Master's degree or higher
    11%
    12%
  • Bachelor's degree
    17%
    19%
  • Some college or associate's degree
    34%
    29%
  • High school diploma or equivalent
    25%
    28%
  • Less than high school diploma
    13%
    13%
  • Public Schools
  • Private Schools
  • Colleges

Working in Salem

Jobs
B
Based on employment rates, job and business growth, and cost of living.
Median Household Income
$51,666
National
$55,322
Search for Jobs in Salem
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Salem Reviews

378 reviews
All Categories
I’ve lived in Salem since I was four years old. I love the weather, I love that I’m an hour away from Portland, about two hours from Bend, and an hour away from Lincoln beach. We just got an ice-skating rink last year, a new ice cream shop, tons of sushi joints, and an abundance of cute vintage/ antique/ thrift stores. We’re hip (not as hip as Portland), very stylish, and super positive, outdoorsy, and caring! I love Salem and it’s the place to be especially if you’re looking for a little oomph in your life.
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Salem is a pretty great place to live lot of things to do in and around. The mountains and the coast are close. There is fishing, hiking ,boating, just about anything you can think of for outside activities. That's what I love most about it. For the people that like city life you have porland that is not that fair away.... and if portland is not enough seattle is 4-5 hours up i-5. The done side is that we have become quit poupulated in the past few years which is making our cost of living sky rocket. Manly housing, i have to say it is very hard trying to make ends in todays market. Over all Salem is a petty awsome place to rase a family! But I am a liitle biast, I was born and rised here!
I have lived in Salem for 24 years and I love it! Major towns such as Portland, and Eugene are only an hour away, north and south, respectively. The Pacific Ocean and the mountains are also only an hour away both west and east respectively! Salem has a lot to offer fore people who like to be outside, own pets, or even fun things such as rock climbing or ice skating! our downtown area isn't small, but it's just the right size. We have malls, small businesses to support and everything in between with restaurants catering to all different sorts of dietary restrictions. Salem's best kept secret is definitely the Kitchen on Court Street. It's open 24 hours a day, serving breakfast all day, on addition to a normal menu!