You’re a young professional and you want to find the best spot near Phoenix to launch or grow your career. The problem is, young professionals are busy.
Between climbing the corporate ladder, planning your own startup, studying for a few more certifications, or playing as hard as you work, you don’t have a whole lot of time to hunt for the perfect place to call home.
So, we’ve done the hard part for you. We’ve compiled a list using a whole lot of research and data of the best places near Phoenix for young professionals.
In these 10 spots, you may just finally find that work-life balance you’ve been dreaming about.
1. Tempe
2. Chandler
3. Gilbert
4. Queen Creek
5. Peoria (tie)
5. Goodyear (tie)
5. Anthem (tie)
8. El Mirage (tie)
8. Mesa (tie)
10. Avondale
We created this list by researching places near Phoenix in terms of the following criteria:
- Unemployment rate (the lower the better)
- Percent of population aged 22-29
- Percent of population who attained a bachelor’s degree
- Median earnings for those who attained a bachelor’s degree
- Percent of population who work in management, business, financial, or other professional fields
- Cost of living (the lower the better)
Then we did a whole lot of analysis and number crunching, which we’ll tell you about at the end of the post. But for now, let’s take a look at the 10 best places near Phoenix for young professionals.
1. Tempe
Key Stats:
- Population aged 22-29 21.25 percent, the highest of any we ranked
- Bachelor's degree holders: 25.13 percent
Located less than 20 minutes from downtown Phoenix, Tempe is a great option for young professionals due to the high percent of the population aged 22-29, and the high percent of the population who attained a bachelor’s degree. If you’re looking for fellow young professionals, Tempe is the best place to be.
Arizona State University also has a Tempe campus, and there are plenty of options for nightlife, dining, shopping, and entertainment in this city of over 164,000 residents.
2. Chandler
Key Stats:
- Unemployment rate 7.56 percent
- Median earnings for those who attained a bachelor’s degree $57,728
Chandler is a good mid sized city of just over 241,000 for young professionals, thanks to the lower unemployment rate and high median earnings for those who have a bachelor’s degree.
There are plenty of dining and nightlife options in Chandler, like SanTan Brewing Company, where young professionals can relax on the weekend.
3. Gilbert
Key Stats:
- Unemployment rate 6.49 percent, the third lowest
- Bachelor's degree holders: 27.27 percent, the third highest
- Population working in professional fields: 46.05 percent, the third highest
Gilbert ranks third in three important categories for young professionals: low unemployment rate, the percent of the population who have attained a bachelor’s degree, and the percent of the population working in professional fields.
With a population of over 215,000, those living in Gilbert will likely be able to work and play there as well, but a commute to Phoenix is just 30 minutes by car.
4. Queen Creek
Key Stats:
- Unemployment rate 5.12 percent, the second lowest
- Bachelor's degree holders: 26.12 percent
- Median earnings for bachelor’s degree holders: $58,524
The smaller town of Queen Creek is a good pick for young professionals who want a more close-knit community vibe. With the second lowest unemployment rate, a large percent of the population with bachelor’s degrees, and high median earnings, Queen Creek provides a laid back lifestyle without sacrificing professional opportunities.
Queen Creek is as little further from downtown Phoenix, but the commute isn’t outrageous at 40 minutes by car.
5. Peoria (tie)
Key Stats:
- Population working in professional fields: 37.63 percent
Peoria is one of three places that tied for the fifth place spot. This city of just over 157,000 residents will appeal to active young professionals. The Peoria Sports Complex is a training spot for the San Diego Padres and Seattle Mariners, and the city offers 25 miles of trails, including a scenic route along the New River Trail.
Peoria has a relatively high percentage of professionals, with 37.63 percent of the population working in professional fields. It’s just a 25-minute drive from downtown Phoenix.
5. Goodyear (tie)
Key Stats:
- Unemployment rate: 7.94 percent
- Bachelor's degree holders: 19.25 percent
Goodyear is a quickly growing suburb about 25 minutes from downtown Phoenix. This once tiny town now has a population of over 67,000 residents. Goodyear has a relatively low unemployment rate and a high percent of the population holds a bachelor’s degree.
The Goodyear Ballpark is the spring training home to the Cleveland Indians and Cincinnati Reds, and nearby Estrella Mountain Regional Park offers 20,000 acres for active young professionals to explore.
5. Anthem (tie)
Key Stats:
- Bachelor's degree holders: 29.64 percent, the highest
- Population working in professional fields: 46.46 percent, the second highest
- Median earnings for bachelor’s degree holders: $64,332, the second highest
Anthem is the third spot tied for fifth, with the highest percent of residents with a bachelor’s degree, the second highest percent working in professional fields, and the second highest median earnings with a bachelor’s degree.
So, why doesn’t Anthem place higher on the list? Well, if you’re looking for a ton of friends your own age, this suburb may not be the best bet, since only 3.68 percent of the population is aged 22-29. You won’t have any trouble finding a mentor here though.
8. El Mirage (tie)
Key Stats:
- Cost of living: 91, compared to the Phoenix average of 96
- Population aged 22-29: 13.8 percent
El Mirage is a small but quickly growing city of nearly 32,000 residents, located about 35 minutes from downtown Phoenix. The low cost of living and community of young adults are the main draws for young professionals.
El Mirage also offers a close-knit community vibe that big city living can lack, and could be a great spot for young professionals who are looking ahead to their young family days.
8. Mesa (tie)
Key Stats:
- Cost of living: 95, compared to the Phoenix average of 96
- Population aged 22-29: 11.87 percent
Tied for eighth place is the city of Mesa. With a population of 447,002 and a slightly lower cost of living than Phoenix, Mesa is a great option for young professionals who still want that big city vibe.
Mesa offers plenty of nightlife, dining, shopping, and entertainment to keep young professionals busy on their days off, but it’s also just 25 minutes from downtown Phoenix.
10. Avondale
Key Stats:
- Cost of living: 95, compared to the Phoenix average of 96
- Population aged 22-29: 12.81 percent
Avondale earns the 10th spot on our list with a lower cost of living than Phoenix, and 12.81 percent of the population aged 22-29. This small city is just 25 minutes west of downtown Phoenix, but offers a more suburban vibe.
If you’re looking for an easy commute, more room to spread out, and a more laid back lifestyle, Avondale may be the place to launch your career.
Get Back To That Five Year Plan
Now that you can cross finding the perfect spot near Phoenix off your to-do list, you have plenty of time to get back to doing what you do best: working so hard that everyone swears you’ll take over the world someday.
If this wasn’t enough of a time-saver, we’ll even help you
find your new home.
Our Methodology
In creating our list of 10 best places for young professionals near Phoenix, we relied on facts and figures, not opinions.
We used U.S. Census data to research places near Phoenix in terms of the following criteria:
- Unemployment rate (the lower the better)
- Percent of population aged 22-29
- Percent of population who attained a bachelor’s degree
- Median earnings for those who attained a bachelor’s degree
- Percent of population who work in management, business, financial, or other professional fields
- Cost of living (the lower the better)
Then, we cut down our list to 24 places by removing places that had the top 25 percent highest costs of living.
Because young professionals care a little more about some things than others, we weighted the percent of population aged 22-29, the median earnings of those who attained a bachelor’s degree, and the cost of living so that they each made up 20 percent of our overall score.
We averaged all of the scores into one overall
Big Deal Score, and got our 10 best places near Phoenix for young professionals.
To see how the other places we ranked measured up, check out the table below.
Feature image source: Flickr user
Nick Bastian Tempe, AZ
Know Phoenix? Tell us your favorite places nearby in the comments below! 
