Brooklyn is a great place with plenty of amazing neighborhoods. It’s full of activity all over while offering plenty of good opportunities to kick back and relax.
Whatever your lifestyle, you’re guaranteed to find something that works well for you in some corner of Brooklyn. If you don’t know where to begin your search, here are our suggestions for the best neighborhoods in Brooklyn.
10 Best Neighborhoods in Brooklyn
- Dumbo
- Bay Ridge
- Park Slope
- Williamsburg
- Bushwick
- Carroll Gardens
- Greenpoint
- Clinton Hill
- Prospect Heights
- Brooklyn Heights
DUMBO
DUMBO is the best neighborhood in Brooklyn due to its fantastic location, incredible vibe, and low crime rate. It’s also one of the safest neighborhoods in Brooklyn. DUMBO’s peculiar name makes it an interesting neighborhood right out the door. It’s an acronym for Down Under Manhattan Bridge Overpass, and the neighborhood fully lives up to that name. There’s a wonderful view of the famous bridge when you’re walking down the main street, and you can see it in the background in many places around DUMBO in general.
Living in DUMBO is not cheap, so it’s mostly suitable for commuters with high-paying jobs. But if you can afford it, the place offers a fantastic mix of different cultures, cuisines, art styles, and anything else you can think of. DUMBO has been going through a lot of active development over the years, and it’s currently one of the most progressive neighborhoods of Brooklyn.
Park Slope
Park Slope is another place that attracts a lot of attention. It can be challenging to find a place to rent here on short notice, but if you manage to get in, you might never want to move to another area of the town. Park Slope offers plenty of green landscapes and authentic old architecture while still enjoying the benefits of progressive development.
This neighborhood is particularly popular with professionals in the tech industry. Whether you’re working for a major company or a smaller startup, you’ll find plenty of like-minded individuals to share your time with. Park Slope’s residents have a bit of a reputation for being perpetually busy, so don’t be surprised if you find it hard to make new connections at first.
Bay Ridge
With a good blend of authentic style and new developments, Bay Ridge is a great neighborhood that enjoys popularity among locals and newcomers to Brooklyn alike. It’s one of the older neighborhoods around here, and it’s evolved into a diverse area featuring people from various backgrounds. Whether you’re relocating for work, looking for good social connections, or want a place you can take a stroll around in the evening and take your mind off things, Bay Ridge has something for everyone.
The only downside to living in Bay Ridge is the cost. It’s one of the more expensive neighborhoods of Brooklyn. While it’s still not as expensive as Park Slope or a few other areas, it’s not cheap either.
Williamsburg
It’s impossible to make a list like that without mentioning Williamsburg. It’s another highly desirable place to live in Brooklyn that features something for everyone under the sun. You’ve got a good mix between townhouses and condos, so whether you like to live alone or be surrounded by many neighbors, Williamsburg’s got you covered.
This is a particularly good place to live in if you’re artistic and enjoy life’s colorful side. The local art scene is huge and is constantly growing. Some claim to find that aspect of Williamsburg somewhat annoying due to its prevalence in daily life. But if that doesn’t bother you, definitely check out what this neighborhood has to offer.
Bushwick
Bushwick is one of the hottest neighborhoods in Brooklyn. While it didn’t enjoy much popularity in the past, a revival and new residential development in the last decade have made it a very attractive location for many. Nowadays, Bushwick is a hip neighborhood with a vibrant arts scene and plenty of trendy bars and lounges.
Bushwick has a large share of homeowners, so finding a rental place can be tricky. It’s not impossible, though, especially if you have a more flexible budget, although prices have risen a lot lately.
Carroll Gardens
Another neighborhood that’s perfect for history lovers and those who appreciate authentic architecture. It also has some strong Italian vibes, and if you like the idea of having good pizza and pasta places around every corner, Carrol Gardens might just be the place for you.
Carroll Gardens also offers plenty of opportunities for practicing sports and enjoying its beautiful, diverse scenery. Love taking a walk after work? You’re going to like what Carroll Gardens has to offer.
Greenpoint
Greenpoint is another artsy neighborhood with a diverse culture and people from lots of different backgrounds and walks of life. You will find a good number of places for relaxing, grabbing a quick bite, or enjoying a cultural event and sharing it with others. Most residents of Greenpoint are on the younger side, and the neighborhood doesn’t offer much variety in this regard. If you don’t see that as a problem, Greenpoint can be a great place to live.
Clinton Hill
Clinton Hill managed to stay relatively untouched by the massive development projects that took Brooklyn – and New York City as a whole – by storm over the last couple of decades. The neighborhood has retained its original style without replacing most of its architecture. At the same time, it does offer a good number of relatively new buildings that spice up the landscape nicely.
Rent is relatively expensive across the board, so be prepared to take some time searching until you’ve managed to find a good place to live. It’s not just about the price, either – the popularity of this neighborhood makes its rental market very competitive. As a result, you will face lots of other candidates everywhere you apply.
Prospect Heights
With many cultural sites and parks to explore, Prospect Heights is often seen as one of the best neighborhoods in Brooklyn by local residents. Many newcomers to the area initially don’t appreciate what Prospect Heights has to offer, but after experimenting with different neighborhoods, you’ll probably gravitate towards this one for many reasons.
There is a good balance between affordable and expensive places around here, but lately, the scales have been tipping in the latter direction. The neighborhood has attracted the attention of property developers who’ve been actively transforming it over the last few years. Be prepared to see lots of changes unfolding right in front of your eyes.
Brooklyn Heights
Lastly, Brooklyn Heights is a very attractive neighborhood for professionals in certain industries, particularly tech and finance. At the same time, the place mostly revolves around authentic, classic architecture, and it doesn’t have a skyline dotted with skyscrapers as you might expect from a neighborhood like this.
There have been ongoing problems with rent prices in this part of Brooklyn, so once again, be prepared for a difficult search if you’re on a limited budget. If you manage to get in, though, living in Brooklyn Heights can open the doors to various attractive opportunities on the job market due to its proximity to other parts of the town. Living so close to like-minded professionals will also come in handy, so try to take advantage of the networking opportunities this neighborhood presents if you’re planning to move in here.