Alafaya vs Winter Garden

Which is the better fit for you?

Alafaya, FL
62
Area Score
Top 38% nationally
Winter Garden, FL
59
Area Score
Top 48% nationally

Want a third or fourth place beside these? Open them in the shortlist and add more.

Alafaya receives the higher standardized Area Score. That reflects AreaProfile's weighting, not a judgment about which place is better to live in.

If you are moving

What the difference in prices, rent, homes and weather comes to, using the published figures for the two places. Add your income to see what it would take to keep pace.

Moving from Alafaya to Winter Garden

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Everyday prices
About the same
Regional price level 101.6 against 101.6 (US = 100). Both places sit in the same price region, so the index cannot tell them apart.
Income to keep the same purchasing power
Enter your household income to see it.
A new two-bedroom lease
+$252 a month
HUD benchmarks it at $2,350 in Winter Garden against $2,098 in Alafaya.
The median home
12% more
$476,000 in Winter Garden against $425,500 in Alafaya.
The weather you would swap
Similar winters
Normal January lows are 52°F in Winter Garden against 52°F in Alafaya; July highs are 92°F against 92°F (summers the same).

These are differences between published figures, not a forecast of your budget. Income and sales taxes, commuting, schools, insurance and the job you would actually get are not in them, and a price index describes a metropolitan area, so two places in one metro read the same. HUD’s rent is a benchmark for a new lease, not a listing.

Signals

Alafaya
Winter Garden
Opportunity: Winter Garden is the more favorable of the two.
Opportunity
57 · Top 49%
vs
59 · Top 43%
Growth: Winter Garden is the more favorable of the two.
Growth
48 · Bottom 46%
vs
61 · Top 27%
Climate
80 · Top 17%
vs
80 · Top 17%
Physical resilience: Winter Garden is the more favorable of the two.
Physical resilience
46 · Bottom 37%
vs
47 · Bottom 39%
Housing affordability: Alafaya is the more favorable of the two.
Housing affordability
66 · Bottom 48%
vs
65 · Bottom 47%
Schools: Alafaya is the more favorable of the two.
Schools
68 · Top 27%
vs
31 · Bottom 26%
Access: Alafaya is the more favorable of the two.
Access
99 · Top 9%
vs
94 · Top 44%
Economic stability: Alafaya is the more favorable of the two.
Economic stability
67 · Top 30%
vs
61 · Top 45%

Measured values

MetricAlafayaWinter GardenSource period
Population92,44947,8722024 ACS 5-Year
Median household income — the two are too close to separate$100,950 ±$2,224$106,495 ±$7,9252024 ACS 5-Year
Per capita income$41,632$46,282 — more favorable2024 ACS 5-Year
Population density3,018/sq mi2,921/sq mi2024 ACS 5-Year
Median home value$425,500$476,0002024 ACS 5-Year
Median gross rent — the two are too close to separate$1,999 ±$84$1,963 ±$2172024 ACS 5-Year
Market rent, two bedroom$2,098 — more favorable$2,350FY2026
Cost of living index101.6101.62023
Homeownership rate64.4%65.7%2024 ACS 5-Year
Unemployment rate4.6%4.2% — more favorableJuly 2026
Employment change (year over year)−0.5%−0.5%July 2026
Bachelor's degree or higher — the two are too close to separate50.0% ±3%46.1% ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year
Poverty rate — the two are too close to separate7.3% ±2%9.7% ±3%2024 ACS 5-Year
Housing units permitted (12 months)8,97912712 months ending July 2026
Permits per 1,000 residents6.1 — more favorable2.712 months ending July 2026
Permit change (year over year)−21.1%+95.4%12 months ending July 2026
Average July high92°F92°F1991-2020 Normals
Average January low52°F52°F1991-2020 Normals
Annual precipitation51.5"51.5"1991-2020 Normals
Distance to major airport10 mi — more favorable19 miNASR current cycle
Average commute33.7 min29.4 min — more favorable2024 ACS 5-Year
Median age37.140.12024 ACS 5-Year
Students per teacher17.3 — more favorable18.32024-25 school year
Math proficiency65.1% — more favorable53.4%2018-19 school year
Reading proficiency64.4% — more favorable53.3%2018-19 school year

A bolded value is the more favorable of the two where the metric has a clear direction. Metrics like population and density have no inherent better or worse and are shown unweighted.

4 rows above show both figures with a ± margin and neither in bold. Those come from the American Community Survey, which samples rather than counts, and the gap between the two is smaller than the uncertainty on the figures themselves — so the survey did not find a difference to report, and calling either one the winner would be reading a result out of noise.

The number of units permitted is not marked because the larger place always permits more; the per-resident rate is the fair comparison. The year-over-year change is not marked either: a percentage on fewer than 300 units swings on a handful of permits.

Physical risk tradeoff

Alafaya

Elevated or high exposure: strong wind, hurricane.

Winter Garden

Elevated or high exposure: strong wind, hurricane.

Your best match

Weight what matters to you. Your preferences stay in this browser and never change either Area Score.

Alafaya
—
Alafaya: Your Score
62
Area Score
Winter Garden
—
Winter Garden: Your Score
59
Area Score

Select your priorities to see which of the two fits them better.

Full profiles: Alafaya, FL · Winter Garden, FL · How this is calculated: methodology