One of the interesting, and we think cool things about Gilbert is its insistence both philosophically and legally that it is a town and NOT a city. It is the most populous town in the entire U.S. of A. Why is this important or a good thing? Because Gilbert, which is technically a suburb of Phoenix, doesn’t want to be seen as a boring appendage of a bigger city, and it isn’t so hungry to be a CITY that it stakes its claim on that status -- quite the opposite. That civic pride in being distinct and intimate feels important in a world of mindlessly growth-oriented suburbs and cities.

Now, just being a town isn’t necessarily something to celebrate. Instead, what seems magical about Gilbert is how it maintains a small community energy but with a growing population. This is done in part through a vibrant series of events, mostly free, that bring everyone together in the town square. This includes a three-day festival called Gilbert Days that celebrates the paving of Gilbert Road through downtown. Gilbert Days festivities include a carnival, a 5k and 1k run, and an appearance of Santa himself. If they do that for the paving of the main street road, imagine what they do the rest of the year!

The tough part about living in Gilbert? Come on, it’s Arizona. You had to know this was coming. If you aren’t up for extreme heat from May through September, when the line crosses 100 degrees many days, then steer clear. That said, we should note that the people who live here are not immune to the heat, they’re just smart about it. Get stuff done in the morning, hide in the air conditioning in the afternoon, and then get out again at night when it cools off a bit. 

We highly recommend visiting Gilbert and staying in the community in a [**VRBO**](vrbo.com/affiliate/p4JS4ZC) rather than a hotel to get a feel for what it's like to live among the locals. You can receive discounted fares on travel via our [**partnership with Expedia**](expedia.com/affiliate/9NZ8LBQ) as well.


We Ain’t No CITY!

LookyLOO Review of Gilbert

We talked earlier about the town-like vibe of Gilbert that manifests in lots of family-friendly communal activities. They certainly contribute to a warm lifestyle for the mostly families that live here. 

Gilbert also has lots of parks for your kiddo’s recreation, and it’s a biker’s dream town with a Central Trail System with over 135 miles of hiking and biking trails. It also has a skate park, an observatory, a Trapeze artist training facility, and, for god’s sake, a Wakeboard park. Who knew that was even a thing? It has such an interesting blend of things to do for just a “town” that your lifestyle here is going to include the options of a full-blown city but in the wrapper of a much smaller place. 


Lifestyle 

Gilbert is only 25 or so minutes from Phoenix so plenty of residents commute into the big city -- at least they did pre-pandemic. Those working locally tend to work in either education or healthcare with some tech thrown in for good measure. The school districts are big employers as are local healthcare companies including Banner Health and Dignity Health. 

Historically Gilbert has been more of a commuter city for Phoenix workers but the appeal of low housing prices, a great school system and compelling lifestyle are likely to pull in plenty of remote/wfh, pandemic movers. 


Worklife

Gilbert feels like a dream target for pandemic movers who want to escape California, Austin, Denver or any other place where prices have stretched beyond their budgets and want to settle down in someplace pleasant without the higher price tags. This might be particularly true if you’re looking for a generally more conservative population than some of the aforementioned states or cities possess. Gilbert was already growing at a fast pace pre-pandemic and we expect that pace to pick up speed as remote work becomes perennially available. 


Economical Living

Why You Should Move Here Now?

**Emergency-Wear-9969**
1y ago
🦉🦉🦉🦉

We love Gilbert. It feels the safest out of any area I’ve lived as an adult. We live more toward south east Gilbert and really close to east east Mesa, past Power Road (and Eastmark). Those are nice areas. We looked high and low at surrounding areas before we bought a house and can agree that below the 60 is a safe bet. However, people do seem to like Superstition Springs area. I go to a church right by there so I drive around in that area and it seems nice enough. Mesa in general does seem to have a dustier vibe than Gilbert overall.

For more reviews of what living in Gilbert is like from locals check out: [The Reviews](https://lookyloomove.com/locations/gilbert/reviews).




Sweltering Heat

Reviews of Gilbert from Locals

Gilbert has historically not been a great place for young professionals but there are some signs of that changing. Downtown has expanded housing options for youngsters looking for a good walkscore to some kind of nightlife but that want to pay less than Phoenix or Scottsdale prices. We would encourage you to live in those bigger cities unless you’re ready for a quieter scene, however perhaps you’re ready to save some dough and just head into the big cities when the mood strikes you? There are converted lofts and apartment buildings downtown we’d recommend checking out first if you check out Gilbert. 
- Downtown/Old Town
- SanTan


Young Professionals

While there are lots of fancy neighborhoods in Gilbert the city’s heart is middle-class and you have several choices like Morrison Ranch and Agritopia that are primarily craftsman homes, a bit closer together and ideal for younger families. There are also some newer cluster home communities, like Cooley Station, with less expensive options, ideal for first time homebuyers 
Morrison Ranch
- Agritopia
- Cooley Station
- Finley Farms
- Power Ranch


Young Families

As mentioned there are lots of neighborhoods with bigger, fancier digs for the growing families who need more room and yard for older kids to spread their recreational wings. Many of these have been built on man-made lakes so you can take the boat out for a cruise. Plenty are also built on golf course for those who want that country club lifestyle. 
- Val Vista Lakes
- Seville
- The Islands


Established Families

Arizona is ground zero for western retirees. Gilbert and the Phoenix Metro serves this community well with friendly neighborhoods and plenty of 55+ retirement neighborhoods and communities. Given the closeness of the suburban cities in Phoenix metro most people will start with the facility before thinking about the city/town but considering Gilbert ranks #46 on Money's 2020-2021 Best Places to Live Rankings perhaps starting here is a good choice.
- Encanterra 
- The Links Estates

Retirees

Gilbert

**AZ115Degrees**
9mo ago
🦉🦉🦉

For me. Nice homes, clean neighborhoods, good schools, close enough to the big city(Phoenix), low crime, I feel quite insulated from problem of the world here. Been here in the area 20+ years. I grew up in Los Angeles. My wife and kids genuinely shocked when we travel around LA and parts of CA in general. I’ve traveled to some pretty bad areas around the US as well.

**Anonymous**
9mo ago
🦉🦉🦉🦉

My anecdotal evidence- my kids have left their bikes in the driveway over night on multiple occasions and they’ve never been taken. They play with friends well past dark and I’m never worried. I know my neighbors and they’re mostly great people, willing to lend a hand or a cup of sugar at anytime. Gilbert has been a great place to raise my family.

**proteinstyle_**
1y ago
🦉🦉🦉

Anyone from here knows that there are pockets of less desirable areas all over, and the opinions people hold on certain areas are wild. I grew up in North Phoenix/North Scottsdale. The general opinion out there was always that Mesa is unsavory and filled with drug addicts. I live in Mesa now (and have for almost ten years now). I have met people out this way that view Phoenix proper as being some sort of dangerous underbelly.

Gilbert is easily one of the more sought-after areas for average families (obviously excluding more affluent areas like PV, Arcadia, etc.). It would be good for a young family looking for a quieter part of town. To those outside of this area, it's often seen as Mormon Central (kind of like Mesa) and boring.

Between Mesa and Gilbert, I'd choose the nicer parts of Gilbert... but they are too far out for the more centralized parts of the valley that my husband and I need to travel regularly to. With that being said, there are still many nice neighborhoods in Mesa, and there are still sketchy parts of Gilbert.

**Emergency-Wear-9969**
1y ago
🦉🦉🦉🦉

We love Gilbert. It feels the safest out of any area I’ve lived as an adult. We live more toward south east Gilbert and really close to east east Mesa, past Power Road (and Eastmark). Those are nice areas. We looked high and low at surrounding areas before we bought a house and can agree that below the 60 is a safe bet. However, people do seem to like Superstition Springs area. I go to a church right by there so I drive around in that area and it seems nice enough. Mesa in general does seem to have a dustier vibe than Gilbert overall.

Gilbert, Arizona

Kindness?

Looklyloo Score: 89

Reviews

What's it like to live in Gilbert?