Best Places To Live on the Coast 2025

When it comes to beaches, local life, climate resilience, and straight-up beauty, we've located the 10 best places to cozy up to the water's edge, from East Coast to West, the Great Lakes to the Gulf

- By Tracey Minkin

ARTFUL GREAT LAKES LIVING

Local life: Here on the Art Coast of Michigan, this close-knit community that's well known (and loved) as a haven for artists, makers, and free spirits has a fantastic blend of cultural life, outdoor activities on the lake and Kalamazoo River, and year-round events that span its buzzy summers and cozy winters.

Beaches: Marvel at 12 miles of tawny Lake Michigan beachfront in and around Saugatuck (including Saugatuck Dunes State Park), but the freshwater star of the show is Oval Beach, which is right in town. Beauty: Rolling dunes meet broad shorelines with a historic downtown right on the water. Bonus points: dune-top tree lines that glow with bold colors in the fall.

Resilience: Projects underway focus on dune stabilization and shoreline erosion to combat rising lake levels and more frequent storms. Future plans target green spaces and renewable energy.

POPULATION: 873 JANUARY LOW/JULY HIGH: 24/75 MEDIAN HOME SALE PRICE: $699,500

THE GULF'S BEST-KEPT SECRET

Navarre + Navarre Beach, Florida

Local life: Named "Florida's Most Relaxing Place," Navarre and Navarre Beach are all about slowing down. In addition to soaking up life on those beautiful beaches, year-round residents love biking scenic trails, fishing and kayaking, and patronizing their farmers' markets and mom-and-pop restaurants. Bonus points: relative affordability compared to its neighboring towns.

Beaches: World-class, powdery white sands and crystal waters, plus the longest pier on the Gulf of Mexico (pictured at left), are beachy bragging rights. The nearby Gulf Islands National Seashore offers access to protected, pristine beaches and coastal marshes.