The 10 Worst Miami Suburbs For 2022


We used science to determine which Miami burbs are the real pits.

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Not everyone is cut out for city life. Some people would prefer to live in the cities and towns that surround Miami.

So the question arises, do the suburbs maintain a semblance of the larger-than-life appeal of their more famous neighbor?

Today, we'll use science and data to determine which Miami 'burbs need a little tender loving care - the sore thumbs of the Miami area if you will. Realistically, you can't expect all the suburbs to live up to Miami proper, although Key Biscayne certainly tries.

Of course, not all suburbs of Miami are created equally, which is precisely why we set out to find the best ones..

We examined the 48 biggest suburbs of Miami to find out the worst places to live. And while you won't necessarily find them on the worst places to live in Florida lists, these ten places are a little too far downwind of Miami in terms of quality of life.

What's the worst suburb of Miami? Florida City ranks as the worst suburb of Miami for 2022 based on the most recent Census and FBI data.

Read on to see how we determined the places around Miami that need a pick-me-up. And remember, don't blame the messenger.

Or, if you're thinking of moving to elsewhere in Florida check out the best places in Florida overall or the worst.

And remember, there are some good places to live around Miami too.

Editor's Note: If you see a slight difference between the worst in state rankings and this suburb ranking, it's because of the methodology. We needed a way to include more places, so we eliminated crime and commute times as criteria for this analysis.

For more Florida reading, check out:

The 10 Worst Miami Suburbs To Live For 2022

We'll get the ball rolling with Florida City, the absolute worst place to live around Miami according to the data.

And in the world of worst rankings, Florida City beat the competition pretty handily thanks to scoring in the bottom 15% in three major categories. Income is the 3rd worst in the Miami area, and to make matters worse, the city ranks 4th worst when it comes to home values.

But hey, at least it's cheap to live there. But there's a reason for that... it's Florida City.

You won't feel bad about not having a great income for the area, there aren't a bunch of places to spend your money anyway.

Overall SnackAbility

2
/10

Population: 11,855
Rank Last Year: 1 (No Change)
Median Income: $37,556 (3rd lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 12.4% (highest)
Median Home Value: $172,100 (4th lowest)
More on Florida City:  Data | Photos

Florida City, FL

Welcome to Opa Locka. Home to KMart, Big Lots, and a lot of gas stations.

This city is 9.1 miles to Miami. Income levels here are the lowest in the metro area, where families bring in about $22,494 a year, which doesn't go a long ways even on a shoestring budget.

But on the bright side, there are a lot of fast food joints in the area.

Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 16,008
Rank Last Year: 2 (No Change)
Median Income: $22,494 (lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 10.6% (2nd highest)
Median Home Value: $169,900 (3rd lowest)
More on Opa Locka:  Data | Photos

Opa Locka, FL

Back up the highway we go for the third worst Miami suburb you can live in. You might have expected to see Pembroke Park on here. While the cost of living is low, your entertainment and work options are limited. And that's an understatement.

In terms of numbers, it's in the worst 15% for insurance, and the adult high school drop out rate is poor compared to other Miami suburbs.

But at least there are nice parks to bring the kids during the day.

Overall SnackAbility

3
/10

Population: 6,716
Rank Last Year: 3 (No Change)
Median Income: $40,024 (5th lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 6.1% (18th highest)
Median Home Value: $47,100 (lowest)
More on Pembroke Park:  Data | Photos

Pembroke Park, FL

If you live in Homestead, most likely you struggle to make ends meet every month. It ranks as the 16th lowest Miami suburb when it comes to residents making money.

Not only that, but this is the 15th worst unemployed suburb you can live in if you choose to live near Miami. Remember, we looked at 48 cities for this study.

Homestead is about 25.9 miles to downtown.

Overall SnackAbility

4
/10

Population: 68,937
Rank Last Year: 5 (Up 1)
Median Income: $50,723 (16th lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 6.3% (15th highest)
Median Home Value: $235,800 (16th lowest)
More on Homestead:  Data | Photos

Homestead, FL

Lauderdale Lakes has the distinction of being a Miami suburb. Which means that's about all it has going for it.

All snarkiness aside, Lauderdale Lakes has the 2nd lowest home values in the metro Miami area, where the median price is $122,300. To put that into perspective, in Key Biscayne, the median income is $166,667, which is the best in the area.

Lauderdale Lakes has an unemployment rate of 7.07% which ranks 11th worst.

Overall SnackAbility

4
/10

Population: 36,063
Rank Last Year: 4 (Down 1)
Median Income: $36,103 (2nd lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 7.1% (11th highest)
Median Home Value: $122,300 (2nd lowest)
More on Lauderdale Lakes:  Data | Photos

Lauderdale Lakes, FL

Source: Public domain

Miami Gardens has 110,767 residents that probably know it's a pretty crummy place to live when you look at the data. (Or, if you've ever been there, you don't need to look at the data.)

Incomes are towards the bottom and the poverty rate sits at 17.27413176827652%.

Overall SnackAbility

4
/10

Population: 110,767
Rank Last Year: 6 (No Change)
Median Income: $46,760 (11th lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 8.7% (4th highest)
Median Home Value: $216,500 (11th lowest)
More on Miami Gardens:  Data | Photos

Miami Gardens, FL

Ah, West Park. You rank as the 7th worst place to live around Miami.

It's the place with the 3rd most out of work residents in the Miami metro area (9.81%).

Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 15,052
Rank Last Year: 8 (Up 2)
Median Income: $47,755 (13th lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 9.8% (3rd highest)
Median Home Value: $194,600 (8th lowest)
More on West Park:  Data | Photos

West Park, FL

North Miami is a city about 9.0 miles from Miami, but Miami probably wishes it was further away. It ranks as the 8th worst burb for 2018.

You'd be hard pressed to find a worse place to live. North Miami has the 3rd most uninsured people, 8th worst incomes, and has the 7th highest unemployment rate (7.47%) in the entire Miami metro area.

Homes only cost $232,600 for a reason. That's cheap for Miami standards.

Overall SnackAbility

4
/10

Population: 62,468
Rank Last Year: 7 (Down 1)
Median Income: $43,562 (8th lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 7.5% (7th highest)
Median Home Value: $232,600 (15th lowest)
More on North Miami:  Data | Photos

North Miami, FL

If you absolutely have to live near Miami, then Dania Beach might be a place for you to consider as it's only the 9th worst Miami suburb.

About 7.26% of residents are out of work.

Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 32,125
Rank Last Year: 12 (Up 3)
Median Income: $45,187 (10th lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 7.3% (8th highest)
Median Home Value: $201,600 (9th lowest)
More on Dania Beach:  Data | Photos

Dania Beach, FL

Rounding out the ten worst Miami suburbs to call home is Lauderhill.

Located 26.7 miles outside the city, Lauderhills is a real pit when you look at the data. Its residents have the 5th highest unemployment rate (8.15%), and poverty is far above the area average.

Overall SnackAbility

4
/10

Population: 71,827
Rank Last Year: 9 (Down 1)
Median Income: $43,658 (9th lowest)
Unemployment Rate: 8.1% (5th highest)
Median Home Value: $178,500 (6th lowest)
More on Lauderhill:  Data | Photos

Lauderhill, FL

Methodology: Determining The Worst Suburbs Around Miami for 2022

To figure out how bad a place is to live in, we only needed to know what kinds of things people like and then decide what cities have the least amount of those things.

We threw a lot of criteria at this one in order to get the best, most complete results possible. Using the most recent American Community Survey data from 2016-2020, this is the criteria we used:

  • High unemployment rate
  • Low median household incomes
  • Low population density (no things to do)
  • Low home values
  • A lot of high school drop outs
  • High poverty
  • High rate of uninsured families

FYI: We defined a suburb as being within 30 miles of Miami.

Additionally, we limited the analysis to places that have over 2,000 people. This left us with a grand total of 48 suburbs to evaluate around Miami.

We ranked each place with scores from 1 to 48 in each category, where 1 was the "worst".

Next, we averaged the rankings for each place to create a quality of life index.

And finally, we crowned the city with the worst quality of life index the "Worst Suburb near Miami." We're lookin' at you, Florida City. You can download the data here.

Read on below to learn more about what it's like to live in the worst of the worst. Or skip to the end to see the list of all the suburbs ranked from worst to best.

Summary: The areas around Miami where the dream is more of a nightmare for 2022

Well there you have it -- the worst of the 'burbs surrounding Miami with Florida City casting itself ahead of the pack.

As we mentioned earlier, the suburbs around Miami aren't all bad. Key Biscayne takes the cake as the best place to live around Miami.

  • Key Biscayne
  • Pinecrest
  • Coral Gables

For more Florida reading, check out:

Detailed List Of The Worst Miami Suburbs

Rank City Population Median Income Median Home Values
1 Florida City 11,855 $37,556 $172,100
2 Opa Locka 16,008 $22,494 $169,900
3 Pembroke Park 6,716 $40,024 $47,100
4 Homestead 68,937 $50,723 $235,800
5 Lauderdale Lakes 36,063 $36,103 $122,300
6 Miami Gardens 110,767 $46,760 $216,500
7 West Park 15,052 $47,755 $194,600
8 North Miami 62,468 $43,562 $232,600
9 Dania Beach 32,125 $45,187 $201,600
10 Lauderhill 71,827 $43,658 $178,500
11 North Miami Beach 42,824 $46,761 $212,300
12 Hallandale Beach 39,782 $40,237 $229,300
13 Hialeah 233,876 $38,471 $256,900
14 Sweetwater 20,852 $43,391 $176,200
15 Oakland Park 44,950 $53,744 $243,200
16 Fort Lauderdale 181,818 $64,313 $350,900
17 Hollywood 153,834 $54,317 $281,300
18 Tamarac 66,432 $51,799 $186,600
19 Sunrise 94,657 $54,701 $220,600
20 Hialeah Gardens 23,546 $52,979 $227,400
21 Virginia Gardens 2,322 $51,797 $353,500
22 Davie 105,594 $74,523 $322,300
23 Miramar 140,479 $70,477 $314,200
24 Cutler Bay 43,928 $75,699 $304,100
25 South Miami 11,958 $66,769 $569,100
26 West Miami 8,152 $49,212 $347,700
27 Miami Beach 89,439 $57,211 $441,300
28 Doral 62,367 $75,138 $412,500
29 Pembroke Pines 171,979 $68,683 $302,900
30 Miami Springs 14,041 $65,910 $426,300
31 Bal Harbour 2,980 $77,005 $1,316,400
32 Sunny Isles Beach 21,853 $50,617 $347,700
33 Wilton Manors 12,582 $72,070 $383,200
34 Islandia 3,315 $82,500 $331,100
35 Florida 2,873 $95,000 $286,400
36 Miami Lakes 31,021 $77,535 $410,300
37 Surfside 5,665 $57,775 $619,300
38 Weston 70,965 $113,032 $505,400
39 Palmetto Bay 24,308 $123,235 $585,600
40 El Portal 2,066 $108,750 $437,100
41 Southwest Ranches 7,947 $133,750 $670,100
42 Aventura 37,151 $65,893 $354,100
43 Miami Shores 10,372 $125,202 $556,100
44 Biscayne Park 3,089 $76,467 $510,300
45 Bay Harbor Islands 5,832 $99,063 $466,000
46 Coral Gables 49,937 $103,999 $856,600
47 Pinecrest 19,183 $164,419 $938,600
48 Key Biscayne 12,867 $166,667 $1,430,100

How Is Your Town In ?

Editor's Note: This article is an opinion based on facts and is meant as infotainment. Don't freak out we updated this article for 2022. This is our ninth time ranking the worst suburbs around Miami.

About Nick Johnson

Nick Johnson earned his masters in Business Administration from the Drucker School At Claremont Graduate University. He has written for 39 publications across the country and ran the media relations department at Movoto, a real estate portal based in San Francisco. He has been featured in over 500 publications as an expert in real estate and as an authority on real estate trends.

Nick's the creator of the HomeSnacks YouTube channel that now has over 260,000 subscribers and is an excellent source to learn about different parts of the country.