What BestPlaces Users Say about Boise City
As the capital and largest city of Idaho, Boise City has garnered a lot of attention as a desirable place to live. With its vibrant downtown, outdoor recreation opportunities, and affordable cost of living, it's no surprise that many people have chosen to call this city their home. However, as with any place, there are always varying opinions from those who have experienced living there. Let's take a look at what some users have to say about living in Boise City.
From , JohnB shares his positive experience, stating "Boise is a great place to live! The people are friendly, the city is clean, and there is always something to do." Similarly, user, KatieM, raves about the city's outdoor activities, writing "I love the access to hiking, biking, and skiing. There's always something to do, no matter what season it is." On the other hand, some reviewers have expressed concerns about the city's growth. MaryC from says, "Boise has grown tremendously in the past few years and it's starting to feel crowded. Traffic and housing prices have increased, making it less affordable." Another user, RyanH, echoes this sentiment, stating "The growth of the city has brought in a lot of transplants from other states, which has changed the feel of the community."
based on 131 ReviewsGet to know Boise City with the latest comments and reviews from people who live in or have visited Boise City
Great Place To Live If You Live Frugally - 4/15/2021
Been here since 2016 when I moved from Greensburg Pennsylvania and got married to my lovely wife that same year. Was born and raised in Dallas Texas with strong conservative views. I was the republican in a blue state in Pennsylvania in which I never felt welcome there. Boise Idaho is a great place to live, but my heart still is in Texas and I might go there on vacation soon. Below are my pros and cons since I've lived here for 5 years.
Pros
1. Great work opportunities if you are willing to work hard for it. Blue Collar work is a booming industry here that has been very lucrative for my family and my wife in the medical field as well. If big tech is your thing, Micron is located here.
2. If being outdoors is your thing, then this place is the right place for you! There is a lot to do here from camping, riding bikes on the Greenbelt or hiking trails there as well, there are several places in Idaho for hot springs with a short drive, skiing in Bogus Basin
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Not What it Used To Be - 10/16/2020
Used to be clean. Used to be caring. Used to be low crime. Used to be native majority. Used to be quiet. Used to be low pollution. Used to be inexpensive and ungentrified. Used to be small town city. Used to have good college and football team. Used to be can continue, and everyone else can have the waste can thats getting bigger every day.
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Great place to live; especially for families - 6/28/2020
I've lived in Boise for twenty years. It has grown quite a bit but still maintains a "smaller town" feeling rather than the "small town" it once had. Weather is mile, lots of outdoor recreation and the Boise State Bronco Football Team. Very low crime, moderate COL, is not redneck despite they media hype. Awesome place for families. Lots of trees, parks, things to do in town. Caldwell - Nampa- Meridian- Boise is really the metro area.
Can get smoke from forest
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Colorado to Boise transplant - 6/5/2020
Colorado transplant. Boise in 2020 compares to Denver in 1994. Fantastic place to live, especially up in the mountains. Low cost of living. Plenty of things to do. Lots of outdoor activities. Great restaurants. Good qualify food and water. We saved over $5k just on insurance (car/home). I've heard the locals say how busy it has gotten, but if they ever lived in Los Angeles, or Denver, or Chicago, or Houston, or some other BIG city, they'd know that Boise is still a small comfortable and very friendly place. Even in 2020. LOVE
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A great place, twenty years ago....not today - 4/18/2020
I lived in this city for over 20 years. This place is regressive with too many conservatives and not enough social programs. The cost of living is expensive compared to the pay. There is a misalignment where organizations can get away with paying low wages for skilled labor. This is great for Employers and Entrepreneurs, but if you are moving here to find a great job and buy a house, you might keep looking. As a right to work state, the laws are not in your favor. The rich are getting richer, while the average family is struggling to keep up. The population is shifting away from a conservative majority, and in the next 10-15 years, this will likely result in changing laws and social dynamics. For anyone looking to invest in real-estate, the influx of people has created a housing shortage, making this an attractive place to invest. Traffic and congestion are similar to what you find in Portland, Seattle, Salt Lake, and Denver. There are two issues, and ineffective
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Mixed bag of pros and cons- just too conservative. - 12/13/2019
Moved here on Veterans Day 1998 and have very mixed views. 3.5 Stars. Reviewers are generous with praise and derogation. With it's shortcomings Boise is still a pretty good city. But keep in mind that Idaho is the LOWEST PAYING place from the Mexican border to the North Pole, has poorly educated kids, shuns diversity, aches from growing pains and has unexpected pollution.
Traffic--- Depends on tolerance. Drivers here are goofy; they slow waaaay down when it sprinkles, get in the wrong lane then have to race you to the next light and cut you off, and there are slowpokes and dragsters making things less than smooth. Downtown a charlie foxtrot of epic proportions. That said, people are pretty good at letting you in-assuming you are polite and use blinkers. Growing pains are torture with constant construction in town and on the freeway. Road construction is TERRIBLE here with unfinished jobs EVERYWHERE ALWAYS! Contractors start the job to get initial payment then disappear.
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Boise Used To Be Nice Place - 11/27/2019
Lived in Boise since 2002 and am not happy with the drastic changes. This city wasn't set up for the large influx of people who are now driving up home prices, real-estate, and cost of living index. The wages are low, the educational system is in the bottom 5 for the nation, and crime and other problems are increasing. Really sad. Ready to find a new place to live.
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F**k Idaho in general - 10/25/2019
Moved here 3 years ago. Biggest mistake I have EVER made. People in Idaho are some of the rudest, most stuck up, pieces of s**t I've ever encountered. When it's dark outside, everyone thinks they have to use their brights and could care less if they're behind you or coming your direction, as long as they can see they don't care. And on the topic of driving, people are maniacs here. Always riding your as$ even on the freeway when there's other lanes for them to go into, they choose to get very close to you and try and push you, so they can be in front of every car, everyone just seems to need to be the first car in front. People will literally try and race you. Even if you're going 10 over the speed limit its not good enough for anyone. Oh, and people LOVE cutting you off! If people find out you weren't born here, or didn't grow up here they freak out and automatically think you don't belong and damn near shun you. Like it's the damn united states, people can move wherever the hell
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You can have shitti Boise! I'm out! - 9/25/2019
I moved to Boise in 1999 and I loved living there ...well up until about 2012. Firstly traffic is horrid and road rage is on the rise and the road construction is the slowest I've seen anywhere and it's everywhere too. It will take a year to widen a less than a mile stretch of road and by the time they are done widening it ...well it needs widened again. What use to be a 15 to 20 minute commute across town now takes sometimes an hour ...back roads or not doesn't matter anymore. City planning and development is a joke (Boise needs a new Mayor and the whole city council replaced as they are not qualified enough to handle the fast growth / size). Crimes are increasing and so is drug use. It seems like everyone hates on everyone in Boise now (Natives vs Newcomers). It's definitely not a friendly small city anymore. Ever since the city passed the "needle exchange" law I have noticed now when I go down by the River near the college and even all the way down to Eagle ...I find used
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Great if you like bad traffic and bad air :-P - 8/23/2019
I was born in Boise and lived there for most of my life, just shy of 40 years (1976-2016). It used to be an amazing place! I moved to rural Maine because it had become so congested, cramped, noisy and the air quality was often terrible. I returned this summer (2019) three years later for a visit to find it much worse.
IF a person lived in LA county and spent 3-4 hours a day commuting in gridlocked traffic, I can see how the Treasure Valley might seem a respite. But then they also have to accept the inversions of Boise winters which are abysmal, even for someone from LA county. For the rest of the "sane" people out there, I can't imagine what they see in the place.
It is urban sprawl from the foothills into the desert. When will there be no open space between Nampa and Caldwell? It's horrible. I've spent plenty of time driving in Chicago and the Treasure Valley traffic can be far worse. At least in Chicago there is world-class dining and entertainment. Boise
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