Living in Provo, Utah: The 2026 Guide

Is Provo, Utah a good place to live?

For a lot of people, yes. Provo has a real downtown, two universities, the mouth of Provo Canyon, and an airport, all within a few minutes of each other. It is also a settled city: its population was 115,193 in 2020 and an estimated 114,527 in 2025, nearly flat while Utah County grew about 15%.

• Everything close: about 7 minutes from City Hall to BYU, 9 to the airport, 10 to UVU, and 24 to Lehi without traffic.
• Its own school district: Provo City School District, separate from the Alpine and Nebo districts.
• The outdoors next door: Provo Canyon, Bridal Veil Falls, Rock Canyon, and the Provo River Trail.
• Crime, honestly: Provo reported 42.11 offenses per 1,000 residents in 2024, higher than the Utah County rate of 30.81 but below the statewide rate of 49.44. As in most cities, it varies a lot by neighborhood.

The tradeoffs: higher crime than the smaller towns to the south, student-area traffic and parking near BYU, and most homes water their yards with metered city water rather than secondary water.

What airlines fly out of Provo Airport?

Provo is the only city in Utah County with commercial airline service. The airport calls itself Utah's second-busiest airport, and its new terminal opened in July 2022.

• Airlines: Allegiant, Breeze, and American Airlines. Southwest and Delta do not fly from Provo.
• Where you can fly: the airport's current route map shows 17 nonstop airports, including Phoenix, Las Vegas, Dallas–Fort Worth, Burbank, Orange County, San Francisco, Austin, Houston, Nashville, Orlando, Raleigh-Durham, Portland, and Washington Dulles. Some routes are seasonal, so check the airline.
• Parking: $12 a day, with the first two hours free.
• What is next: the airport is expanding with six more gates and customs facilities for international flights.

What are the rental and occupancy rules in Provo?

Provo has some of the most specific rental rules in Utah, mostly because of the student housing market. If you are buying a home to rent out, or buying one with a basement apartment, know these first:

• Occupancy limit: under city code section 14.06.020, a household can be one family plus up to two unrelated people, or up to three unrelated adults and their children.
• Rental dwelling license: every long-term rental needs one, $20 a year for a single unit or $60 for more than one, under chapter 6.26.
• Parking: each rental needs one off-street parking space for each tenant's vehicle, and the landlord must give tenants a rental disclosure that lists their vehicles.
• Short-term rentals like Airbnb are not allowed in most residential and agricultural zones.

Can you have an ADU or basement apartment in Provo?

Yes, in many areas, under chapter 14.30, last updated in 2025:

• Accessory apartments are broadly allowed west of I-15. East of I-15, they are mostly not allowed in the smaller-lot zones (R1.6 through R1.10) except inside the city's mapped ADU overlay areas.
• Since May 2026, a state law allows detached units on lots of at least 11,000 square feet. The city publishes an eligibility map.
• The owner must live on the property, the apartment can house up to three adults, and the home needs four parking spaces.
• The apartment needs a yearly rental license, and that license ends when the home sells. If you are buying a home because of its apartment, plan to apply for a new license in your name.

Who is the power company in Provo?

Provo Power, the city's own electric utility and the largest city-owned power company in Utah. It began in 1940, and Provo homes are not served by Rocky Mountain Power.

To report an outage, call (801) 852-6888. The city bills power with water, sewer, storm water, and garbage on one utility bill.

Provo has very little secondary water for homes. The city's 2025 water plan lists it only at five parks, BYU, the treatment plant, and Timpanogos Golf Course, so most yards are watered with metered drinking water.

What are the neighborhoods in Provo?

Provo has an official neighborhood program: every resident lives in one of 33 neighborhoods, grouped into five districts that hold regular meetings about proposed development.

Look up any address on the city's neighborhood map.

How much do homes cost in Provo?

Provo home prices rose from a median of $312,000 in 2019 to $524,900 in 2022, dipped to $505,000 in 2023, and have climbed to $558,600 so far in 2026. Over the last 12 months (October 2025 through September 2026), the median single-family home sold for $556,450, or $240 per square foot, and 9.3% of sales were $1 million or more.

Median sold price of single-family homes in Provo by year. *2026 is January through September. Based on UtahRealEstate.com sales data, pulled October 15, 2026.

What your budget buys in Provo

Provo is mostly a resale market: only 36 of the 450 single-family homes sold in the last 12 months were built in 2025 or later. Older resale homes sold for a median of $544,000, took a median of 35 days to sell, and closed at about 99% of their list price. Provo also has a big townhome and condo market: 230 townhomes and condos sold over the same 12 months at a median of $350,000, with townhomes at about $400,000 and condos at about $310,000. As of October 15, 2026, 131 single-family homes were for sale in Provo, with a median list price of about $609,900. Building lots of an acre or less sold for a median of about $336,000 (about three-tenths of an acre) over the last two years, across 35 sales, and 6 larger parcels over an acre also sold.

First-time buyer? Provo's Home Purchase Plus program offers up to $60,000 at 0% interest toward a home priced up to $495,000. See the city's down payment assistance page.

What are property taxes in Provo, Utah?

Most of Provo is in Utah County tax district 110, with a 2026 total property tax rate of 0.009999. Every part of the city pays the Provo City School District levy.

Utah taxes a primary home on only 55% of its market value, because of the state's 45% residential exemption.

Second homes and rentals are taxed on full market value, which matters in a city with this many rentals.

What are the zoning and lot size rules in Provo?

Provo's single-family zones are named for their minimum lot size in thousands of square feet, from city code chapter 14.10:

What does it cost to build a new home in Provo?

The city's impact fees for a typical new home total about $18,900, covering power, parks, roads, sewer, water, and public safety, plus a storm water fee based on lot size.

What is there to do in Provo?

• America's Freedom Festival: Provo's Fourth of July celebration, with the Grand Parade, the balloon festival, and the Stadium of Fire.
• Provo Canyon and Bridal Veil Falls, minutes from the city. Check UDOT for canyon closures before you go.
• Rock Canyon and the Y trail on the east bench, and the Provo River Trail along the river.
• Downtown Center Street, the Covey Center for the Arts, and the Provo City Center Temple, rebuilt from the historic tabernacle and dedicated in 2016.
• The Provo Utah Rock Canyon Temple (formerly the Provo Temple) closed in February 2024 for reconstruction. No reopening date has been announced.

What schools serve Provo?

Provo has its own school district, Provo City School District:

• Elementary: Amelia Earhart, Canyon Crest, Edgemont, Franklin, Lakeview, Provost, Provo Peaks, Rock Canyon, Spring Creek, Sunset View, Timpanogos, Wasatch, and Westridge
• Middle school: Centennial Middle and Shoreline Middle
• High school: Provo High and Timpview High, plus Independence High

The district has been reviewing its schools as enrollment changes, so confirm a home's assigned schools directly with Provo City School District before you buy.