Best Neighborhoods in Fort Myers, FL for Renters

Fort Myers’ branding story involves a very famous man being particular about landscaping. In 1907, Thomas Edison wrote city leaders offering to line the dirt road past his winter place with royal palms. “If it is agreeable to the town,” he added, politely. The town found it agreeable. Roughly 1,800 palms later, McGregor Boulevard runs 14.6 miles under a canopy of 75-foot trunks, Fort Myers answers to “the City of Palms,” and the whole place still operates like somewhere that takes its scenery personally.  

When living in Fort Myers, you get brick streets that close to cars once a month for art, a 279-acre park with a miniature train circling a man-made lake, and enough gulf-access canal frontage that makes “do you have a boat?” count as small talk.  

If you’re looking to rent an apartment in Fort Myers, there are plenty of neighborhoods to choose from. We’ve compiled a list of the best places to rent in Fort Myers based on the following factors: 

• Rental availability 

• Average rent relative to other neighborhoods in the city 

• Proximity to points of interest like work hubs, universities, downtown areas, shopping centers, or major parks 

• Niche.com’s neighborhood report cards 

The five best neighborhoods in Fort Myers for renters are: 

1. Downtown Fort Myers 

2. McGregor 

3. Whiskey Creek 

4. Cypress Lake 

5. Page Park 

Downtown Fort Myers 

• Average 1-bedroom rent in Fort Myers: $1,505/month 

• Average 1-bedroom rent in Downtown Fort Myers: $1,700/month 

• Average 1-bedroom size in Downtown Fort Myers: 706 square feet 

Why Downtown Fort Myers is good for renters 

In Downtown Fort Myers, you can leave the car behind for exploration. The Downtown Fort Myers Art Walk closes the streets to cars on the first Friday of every month from 5 to 9 p.m. for 50-plus regional artists, and Music Walk fills a dozen-plus venues with live bands on the third Friday from 6 to 10 p.m. 

From roughly late November through April, LeeTran runs the fare-free Blue and Gold Line trolleys through the district and across the Caloosahatchee to North Fort Myers, which helps considerably, given the area’s transit score of just 30. Downtown also has one of the deepest rental pools in this group by a wide margin, with plenty of apartments and a wave of new riverfront and Midtown mixed-use construction adding to it. 

 Keep in mind 

At $1,701 for a one bedroom, downtown runs about $200 above the citywide average. You will hear the nightlife, and the city has begun a multi-year, $29.5 million streetscape and utility replacement in adjacent Midtown that means detours and construction noise for a while. 

McGregor

• Average 1-bedroom rent in Fort Myers: $1,505/month 

• Average 1-bedroom rent in McGregor: $1,588/month 

• Average 1-bedroom size in McGregor: 758 square feet 

Why McGregor is good for renters 

McGregor is the neighborhood that gave Fort Myers its nickname. Roughly 1,800 royal palms (many descended from the ones Edison paid to plant) line 14.6 miles of McGregor Boulevard, and continuous sidewalks and crosswalks run most of that length. The location splits the difference between town and water. McGregor is situated seven miles southwest of downtown, with the Edison and Ford Winter Estates, the Fort Myers Country Club, and gulf-access canals along Deep Lagoon all in easy reach. 

If you’re eyeing calling McGregor home, you’ll likely get the most apartment for your money. At 758 square feet, the average one bedroom is the largest of the five neighborhoods on this list. 

Keep in mind 

McGregor Boulevard is a busy multi-lane arterial, and driving down or riding along it are not as leisurely as the palms suggest. Expect heavy congestion during rush hours and peak winter snowbird months.  

Whiskey Creek

• Average 1-bedroom rent in Fort Myers: $1,505/month 

• Average 1-bedroom rent in Whiskey Creek: $1,175/month 

• Average 1-bedroom size in Whiskey Creek: 707 square feet 

Why Whiskey Creek is good for renters 

Whiskey Creek is the cheapest neighborhood on this list and one of the three most affordable in all of Fort Myers, at roughly $330 under the citywide one-bedroom average. The neighborhood’s position is also ideal for renters. Whiskey Creek sits six miles from downtown, eleven from Fort Myers Beach, and immediately north of Florida SouthWestern State College. 

It is also the quietest place in the city by the numbers, with a perfect 100 out of 100 quiet score — the only neighborhood on this list to earn one. Bikeability of 60 is the highest of the five neighborhoods, helped by low-traffic residential streets where golf carts are a normal way to get to the clubhouse. That clubhouse is Whiskey Creek Country Club, a par-60 executive golf course built in 1972 that is open to the public and doubles as the neighborhood social hub, with a full restaurant and bar and a calendar of leagues, card games, and chili cook-offs. 

Keep in mind 

Errands take planning, even though this neighborhood is the most bikeable. The rental inventory is also thin compared to other neighborhoods on this list. 

Cypress Lake

• Average 1-bedroom rent in Fort Myers: $1,505/month 

• Average 1-bedroom rent in Cypress Lake: $1,377/month 

• Average 1-bedroom size in Cypress Lake: 752 square feet 

Why Cypress Lake is good for renters 

Cypress Lake is where the math is currently friendliest: one-bedroom rent has fallen 5.3% over the past year to $1,376, about $130 below the citywide average, with over 600 apartments listed. 

A highlight of this community is Lakes Regional Park; 279 acres built around 158 acres of man-made freshwater lake with three paved loops. The park earns its keep year-round: a Wednesday farmers market with 50-plus vendors runs October through April, the Railroad Museum of South Florida and a miniature train sit near lot 3, and kayak, paddleboat, and surrey-bike rentals are on site. The park is also a stop on the Great Florida Birding Trail and part of Lee County’s Tour de Parks cycling route. 

Everyday retail is convenient when living in Cypress Lake. Market Square, Cypress Trace, and Bell Tower Shops are all short drives away. 

Keep in mind 

Cypress Lake is a suburb through and through. If you want to walk out your door into something happening, you’re going to have to look downtown instead.  

Page Park

• Average 1-bedroom rent in Fort Myers: $1,505/month 

• Average 1-bedroom rent in Page Park: $1,315/month 

• Average 1-bedroom size in Page Park: 722 square feet 

Why Page Park is good for renters 

Page Park is a great value for renters. Rent has dropped 6.0% over the past year, the steepest decline of the five, and rental inventory is booming. 

The neighborhood takes its name from Page Field, the general aviation airport at its northern edge, and that central position is the real draw. Florida SouthWestern State College, the Colonial Boulevard employment corridor, Southwest Florida International Airport, and I-75 are all a short drive away. 

For green space, the John Yarbrough Linear Park runs six paved miles alongside the Ten Mile Canal with trailheads at Colonial Boulevard and Six Mile Cypress Parkway. A 1.8-mile northern extension to Hanson Street, including an overpass across Colonial, is in the planning stage. 

Keep in mind 

If you’re looking for a quiet neighborhood, Page Park may not be for you. The quiet score here is 10 out of 100 (the lowest of the five) thanks to the combination of Page Field air traffic, U.S. 41, and Colonial Boulevard.  

Ready to Make the Move?

If Fort Myers has caught your eye, take the next step with Apartments.com! Whether you’re dropping in for a short-term lease or hoping to set down roots, Apartments.com has the tools to help you find the perfect place. Navigate housing across neighborhoods with our customized search engine and use our customizable filters to narrow your search by price, amenities, and floor plan. 

Wherever you are and wherever you’re going, the options are endless with Apartments.com. 

Methodology 

Rent and cost of living data are sourced from the Apartments.com Rent Trends pages and Cost of Living Calculator. Walkability, transit, drivability, and bikeability ratings are sourced from the Apartments.com Area Guides, courtesy of Local Logic.