Portland/Compare
Laurelhurst vs Sellwood
Laurelhurst and Sellwood are two official neighborhood associations in Portland. Laurelhurst is the calmer Part I map (95 vs 47). Sellwood wins the errand count. Laurelhurst has the lower ACS median ($1,385).
Data period. ACS 2024 5-year (2020-2024) · PPB May 2025 – Apr 2026 · OSM Sep 2026. ACS and PPB retrieved 2026-09-23; OSM retrieved 2026-09-23. Editorial copy last revised Sep 2026.
Scores
Fit axes among official Portland neighborhood associations.
| Axis | Laurelhurst | Sellwood |
|---|---|---|
| Safety | 95 | 47 |
| Schools | 50 | 50 |
| Walk | 4 | 18 |
| Cost fit | 100 | 100 |
| Vibe | 0 | 23 |
| Median rent | $1,385 | $1,561 |
| Median home | $913,500 | $658,627 |
| Population | 4,929 | 10,569 |
| Commute to Downtown | 16 min | 20 min |
| Commute to OHSU | 18 min | 16 min |
| Commute to Lloyd | 12 min | 22 min |
Living numbers
Who rents, how old, how much crime, how many shops — beside the scores.
| Fact | Laurelhurst | Sellwood |
|---|---|---|
| Renters | 13% | 55% |
| Median age | 46.1 | 37.8 |
| Median income | $199K | $86K |
| Part I per 1k | 20.1 | 63.9 |
| Groceries / 800m | 2 | 8 |
| Transit stops / 800m | 51 | 38 |
| Parks / 800m | 7 | 22 |
| 311 last 14 days | — | — |
Rent
Rent since 2014
ACS 5-year median gross rent for Portland city. Up 75% since 2014. Laurelhurst is 16% below the 2024 city median. Sellwood is 6% below the 2024 city median.
Overlapping 5-year ACS windows (B25064), not asking rent. Census does not publish a rent series for each official neighborhood, so the line is the city place. Dashed marks are each area’s ACS 2024 median.
Which to pick
The same numbers as the table, in sentences. Nobody wins the city.
Pick Laurelhurst if the quieter map matters more than the scene and the rent gap is the point. Safety is 95 vs 47. ACS median rent is $1,385 vs $1,561. Read both pages before you decide.
Pick Sellwood if you want the cafes and the night and you want the errands on foot. Vibe is 23 vs 0. Walk is 18 vs 4. Read both pages before you decide.
Laurelhurst
The park and the houses. ACS median rent looks low because most households own, so it is not the cheap neighborhood the rent number suggests. The home value is the tell. Sunnyside is Hawthorne, west of here.
$1,385 median rent · safety 95 · walk 4
Sellwood
Sellwood and Westmoreland, one association: the bridge, the antique row, more house than Hawthorne. Search Moreland or Westmoreland and you land here. It is not a west-side neighborhood.
$1,561 median rent · safety 47 · walk 18
Common questions
Same pair, said in questions. The numbers are in the tables.
Which is cheaper, Laurelhurst or Sellwood?
Laurelhurst is the lower ACS median: $1,385 vs $1,561. About 13% rent in Laurelhurst vs 55% in Sellwood. Survey medians, not a listing you can message tonight.
Is Laurelhurst more walkable than Sellwood?
Sellwood wins the errand count (walk 4 vs 18). Groceries inside 800 meters: 2 vs 8. Not a Walk Score license.
Which is safer on this map, Laurelhurst or Sellwood?
Laurelhurst is the calmer Part I read (95 vs 47). Combined rate 20.1 vs 63.9 per 1,000. Visitors count in those numbers.
Which scores higher for families, Laurelhurst or Sellwood?
Laurelhurst leads the school axis (50 vs 50). Nearby rating is thin vs thin. Median age 46.1 vs 37.8. Sellwood has more of the night. Neither number is a school assignment.
Which has the shorter commute to Downtown?
16 minutes from Laurelhurst to Downtown, 20 from Sellwood. Laurelhurst is the shorter weekday. Not this hour's traffic.
If you drop both
Closest official neighborhood association that is not Laurelhurst or Sellwood: Hollywood. The theater and Sandy Boulevard. More errand than scene. The ACS rent is one of the lower reads here — a survey median, not this week’s listing. Irvington is west. Laurelhurst is south.
Scores are relative among official Portland neighborhood associations with the same editorial weights. Read the method.