What is the median rent in Key Center, WA?

Name: Median rent in Key Center, WA, 2020–2024
Creator: US Census Bureau
License: https://www.census.gov/data/developers/about/terms-of-service.html

The median gross rent in Key Center, WA is $1,705 (±$719) a month, according to the US Census Bureau’s 2020–2024 American Community Survey.

That is across 108 rented homes; gross rent is the contract rent plus the utilities and fuels a renter pays separately.

In Key Center, the median gross rent went from $1,168 in 2015–2019 to $1,705 in 2020–2024 (+46.0%).

Prices (CPI-U) rose 22.7% over the same years; the change is not measurably different from the rise in prices.

Figures last updated on November 12, 2026.

Median gross rent: $1,705 (±$719)
Rented homes: 108 (±68)
$2,000 or more: 28.7%
Since 2015–2019: +46.0%

How much rent costs in Key Center

Share of rented homes in each gross-rent range, 2020–2024
Monthly gross rent	Key Center	Pierce County	Washington	United States
Less than $500	9.3% (±15.9 points)	3.1%	4.6%	6.3%
$500 to $999	19.4% (±25.8 points)	5.9%	10.4%	20.2%
$1,000 to $1,499	6.5% (±14.0 points)	21.7%	21.4%	28.1%
$1,500 to $1,999	36.1% (±31.9 points)	31.6%	26.2%	21.1%
$2,000 to $2,499	22.2% (±31.3 points)	22.2%	18.7%	12.0%
$2,500 to $2,999	0.0% (±30.0 points)	8.7%	9.1%	5.5%
$3,000 or more	6.5% (±11.0 points)	6.8%	9.5%	6.8%

The most common range is $1,500 to $1,999, paid by 36.1% of renting households.

28.7% of rented homes in Key Center cost $2,000 or more a month.

Key Center against Pierce County, its state and the nation

Estimate (90% margin of error)
	Key Center	Pierce County	Washington	United States
Median gross rent	$1,705 (±$719)	$1,806 (±$18)	$1,760 (±$7)	$1,413
Rented homes paying rent	108 (±68)	120,123 (±2,182)	1,070,508 (±7,137)	42,849,984

In Key Center, median gross rent is not measurably different from Pierce County ($1,806).

It is not measurably different from Washington ($1,760).

It is not measurably different from the national figure ($1,413).

In Pierce County, Key Center ranks 40 of 52 places with a published estimate, from highest to lowest median gross rent.

Statewide, it ranks 172 of 417.

Rankings use the estimates alone; where margins of error overlap, neighboring ranks may not truly differ.

How rent in Key Center has changed since 2015–2019

2015–2019 and 2020–2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates
	2015–2019	2020–2024	Amount of change	Verdict
Median gross rent	$1,168 (±$175)	$1,705 (±$719)	+46.0%	No measurable change after inflation
Households that rent	15.0% (±6.6 points)	12.3% (±5.9 points)	−2.7 percentage points	Not a measurable change
Rental vacancy rate	0.0% (±15.5 points)	9.2% (±14.9 points)	+9.2 percentage points	Not a measurable change

The Census Bureau publishes 2015–2019 dollars in 2019 dollars and 2020–2024 dollars in 2024 dollars.

Prices (the CPI-U, US Bureau of Labor Statistics) rose 22.7% between 2019 and 2024, so a dollar figure’s verdict compares the two after raising the earlier one by that much, using the Census Bureau’s test for a difference.

The two periods do not overlap, as the Census Bureau recommends for 5-year estimates.

Median gross rent in places near Key Center

Nearest places with a published estimate, compared with Key Center
Place	Distance	Median gross rent	Compared with this place
Key Center	—	$1,705 (±$719)	—
Stansberry Lake	4.1 mi	$2,167 (±$798)	Not measurably different
Artondale	5.1 mi	$2,251 (±$168)	Not measurably different
Wauna	5.4 mi	$1,602 (±$324)	Not measurably different
Rosedale	5.8 mi	$2,875 (±$1,562)	Not measurably different
Gig Harbor	7.2 mi	$2,301 (±$173)	Not measurably different
Longbranch	7.4 mi	$1,750 (±$382)	Not measurably different
Burley	7.8 mi	$1,976 (±$868)	Not measurably different
Purdy	8.4 mi	$2,584 (±$1,265)	Not measurably different

None of the nearby places differs measurably from this one on this figure.

Distance is measured in a straight line between the Census Bureau’s internal points for each place.

Median gross rent across Pierce County, place by place

Rank	Place	Median gross rent
34	Spanaway	$1,813 (±$73)
35	Puyallup	$1,812 (±$43)
36	Carbonado	$1,809 (±$306)
37	Waller	$1,787 (±$158)
38	University Place	$1,762 (±$57)
39	Longbranch	$1,750 (±$382)
40	Key Center	$1,705 (±$719)
41	Clear Lake (Pierce County)	$1,699 (±$385)
42	Tacoma	$1,676 (±$28)
43	Parkland	$1,663 (±$38)
44	Alderton	$1,633 (±$297)
45	Wauna	$1,602 (±$324)
46	Wilkeson	$1,594 (±$249)

Showing 13 of 52 places in Pierce County, ranked from highest to lowest.

Key Center is a census-designated place: an unincorporated community the Census Bureau draws for statistics, with no municipal government of its own.

Survey years: 2020–2024 (American Community Survey 5-year estimates), compared with 2015–2019.

Margins of error are at the 90% confidence level.

What you can do on Seayora in Key Center

One account for renting, owning, managing and fixing homes, with these figures beside you.

Looking for a place to rent?

Browse homes for rent near Key Center, save the ones you like and apply online.

Browse rentals · Create a renter account

Own or manage a rental?

List it, sign the lease and collect rent online, with the figures for Key Center beside you.

Create a landlord account · See what landlords get

Do repairs, renovations or maintenance?

Get found by owners and renters near Key Center, and send estimates and invoices from your phone.

Join as a pro · Find a pro

Questions about Key Center

What is the average rent in Key Center, WA?

The Census Bureau publishes the median rather than the average: the median gross rent in Key Center is $1,705 (±$719) a month (2020–2024 American Community Survey), so half of renting households pay less and half pay more.

How much has rent gone up in Key Center?

In Key Center, the median gross rent went from $1,168 in 2015–2019 to $1,705 in 2020–2024 (+46.0%).

Prices (CPI-U) rose 22.7% over the same years; the change is not measurably different from the rise in prices.

How many rentals in Key Center cost more than $2,000 a month?

28.7% of rented homes in Key Center have a gross rent of $2,000 or more a month, and 9.3% cost less than $500.

Is rent in Key Center higher than in Pierce County?

In Key Center, median gross rent is not measurably different from Pierce County ($1,806).

It is not measurably different from Washington ($1,760).

It is not measurably different from the national figure ($1,413).

Is this the rent for an apartment listed today?

No: these are rents households reported paying across 2020–2024, not asking rents for vacant homes, which usually run higher.

Sources

To check these figures in the Census Bureau’s own API, request the variables below from the 2024 ACS 5-year data profile (acs/acs5/profile) for Key Center CDP, Washington (place:35555, in state:53).

Each estimate (E or PE) has a margin of error beside it (M or PM).

The 2015–2019 figures are B25064_001E, B25064_001M, DP04_0047PE, DP04_0047PM, DP04_0005E, DP04_0005M from the 2019 release.

The API needs a free key.

Request a Census API key.

DP04_0134E, DP04_0134M, DP04_0126E, DP04_0126M, DP04_0127PE, DP04_0127PM, DP04_0128PE, DP04_0128PM, DP04_0129PE, DP04_0129PM, DP04_0130PE, DP04_0130PM, DP04_0131PE, DP04_0131PM, DP04_0132PE, DP04_0132PM, DP04_0133PE, DP04_0133PM

This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.

Figures are published by the US Census Bureau, HUD, the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the FBI; Seayora reproduces them and does not adjust them, except where a sentence says it compares dollar figures after inflation. They describe the whole place, not any one building or street, and are not an appraisal, a rent determination, a tax bill, a safety rating or legal advice.