Two growing Ada County suburbs compared: price, commute and schools
By J&H Digital Services LLCChecked Oct 23, 20266 sources
Choose Eagle for a small walkable downtown, larger lots and a shorter drive to Boise (about 20 to 25 minutes), and accept the valley's highest prices: a typical home is about $785,000. Choose Star for a newer home at a lower price, about $583,000, and accept a longer commute (27.5 minutes on average), fewer shops and services in town, and a city still growing fast (Zillow, Sept 2026).
| Topic | Eagle | Star |
|---|---|---|
| Typical home value | $785,000 | $583,000 |
| Typical rent | $2,200 | $2,450 |
| Home value change over 1 year | +0.3% | -0.2% |
| County | Ada | Mostly Ada; parts extend into Canyon |
| School district | West Ada | West Ada; some west Star addresses are Middleton |
| Housing | Mostly larger single-family homes, many on bigger lots, plus some acreage and gated communities | Mostly new single-family homes in subdivisions with HOAs, plus some older homes and acreage |
| Downtown and shopping | A small, walkable downtown around State Street and Eagle Road; big-box stores are in Meridian or west Boise | A small downtown along State Street; most shopping is in Eagle, Meridian or Nampa |
| Parks and outdoors | City parks such as Reid W. Merrill Sr. Community Park, plus the river, foothills trails and Eagle Island State Park nearby | Newer, smaller city parks; the Boise River runs along the south side and subdivisions often have their own pools |
| Police and utilities | Ada County Sheriff under contract; water from the City of Eagle or Veolia, sewer from the Eagle Sewer District | Ada County Sheriff under contract; water and sewer from the Star Sewer and Water District |
| Trash hauler | Hardin Sanitation | Republic Services |
Home values: Zillow ZHVI, Sept 2026. Rents: Zillow Observed Rent Index, all rentals, Sept 2026. Population: July 2025 Census estimate. Income and commute: 2020 to 2024 average, the newest data published for cities this size. Source: U.S. Census QuickFacts and Zillow
| Choose Eagle if you… | Choose Star if you… |
|---|---|
| want a small walkable downtown and the river and foothills nearby | want a newer home and more space for the price |
| want the shorter drive to Boise and Meridian | like a small town that is still close to open land |
| can pay the valley's highest prices | can live with long drives and roads still catching up |
| will check insurance costs in the foothills, where wildfire risk is higher | will check the school district, because some west Star addresses are Middleton |
Star, on home prices. Typical home values are about $583,000 in Star and $785,000 in Eagle (Zillow, Sept 2026). Rents are close, about $2,450 in Star and $2,200 in Eagle a month, because most Star rentals are newer homes. Check the table, because both change every month.
Eagle. Its average commute is 23.7 minutes and Star's is 27.5 (2020 to 2024 average). Downtown Boise is about 20 to 25 minutes from Eagle and 30 to 35 from Star off-peak, and State Street and Chinden back up at rush hour in both.
It is the main trade-off. Star grew about 85% from April 2020 to July 2025, against about 11% for Eagle. Roads and schools are still catching up: Independence Elementary opened in Star in August 2026, and new boundaries moved about 574 students for 2026-27.
Both contract with the Ada County Sheriff and have no city police department. For non-emergencies call Ada County dispatch at (208) 377-6790. For emergencies call 911.
Mostly. Eagle is served by West Ada. Most of Star is too, but some west Star addresses are in the Middleton School District. Confirm the district for the exact address before you rent or buy.
Fees, rules and providers change. Confirm with the official source before you go.
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