IntelliMoveTake the quiz →Living in Palmer, AK
Palmer is a big small town of 6,268 people in Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska. It's about 30 miles from Anchorage, AK and 1,424 miles from Seattle, WA, the nearest major city. Summer highs average 69°F and winter highs 23°F, with about 72 inches of snow a year. The typical home is valued around $295k and rent runs about $1k a month.
6,268people
$295kTypical home
$1,125/moRent
69° / 23°Summer / winter
72"Snow
144Sunny days
95Rain/snow days
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Size & setting
- Big small town of 6,268
- Part of a metro area
- About 1,236 people per sq mi
- 1,424 mi to Seattle, WA
- 30 mi to Anchorage, AK
- 7 mi to the nearest town of 10k+
Money
- Typical home $295k (≈$1,860/mo)
- Median rent $1,125/mo
- Median household income $72k
- Property tax about 1.0% of value
- 7.0% unemployment
Weather
- Summer highs around 69°F
- Winter highs around 23°F
- Dry summers (dew point 46°F)
- 144 sunny days a year (30 totally clear)
- 221 cloudy days a year
- 47 of 90 winter days are gray
- 95 days a year with rain or snow
- 72" of snow a year
- 22 days a year with 1"+ of snow
- Rarely hits 100°F
- 61 nights a year below 10°F
- Usually calm
Safety
- Low violent crime (209 per 100k)
- About average property crime (1,629 per 100k)
People
- Median age 33
- 31% of households have kids
- 16% are 65 or older
- 25% have a college degree
- Mixed community
- 7% of residents are college students
Getting around & homes
- Average commute 30 min
- 4% walk or take transit to work
- 36 mi to MRI airport
- 41 mi to ANC (major hub)
- 71% single-family homes
- Typical home built around 1990
- 92% of homes have broadband
Outdoors
- Mountain country
- Elevation 233 ft
- 8 mi to the ocean
- 86 mi to a big lake
- 4 mi to the nearest trailhead
- 11 mi to the nearest ski area
- 4 mi to the nearest campground
- 4 golf courses within 25 mi
Things to do
- 47 sit-down restaurants within 25 mi
- 7 bars within 25 mi
- 48 coffee shops within 25 mi
- No music venues & clubs within 25 mi
- 7 museums within 25 mi
- 1 brewery or distillery within 25 mi
- Farmers market in town
Everyday
- Schools in the top 50% of Alaska districts (reading)
- Grocery store in town
- 5 mi to the nearest ER hospital
- 2 mi to the nearest vet
- 23 mi to the nearest dog park
- 5 congregations per 10k people
- 5 mi to the nearest college
Politics
- Matanuska-Susitna Borough: R+14 in 2024
- Alaska: R+14 in 2024
Natural hazards
- Very low hurricane risk
- Very low tornado risk
- Low wildfire risk
- High earthquake risk
- Very low flood risk
- Very low drought risk
- Moderate winter storm risk
- Very low heat wave risk
- High volcano risk