Surprise, Arizona

About Surprise

Surprise is a mid-size city in central Arizona counting 167,564 people who proudly call it home. It ranks as the 10th largest city in Arizona.

Officially, Surprise is an incorporated city with its own municipal government. The community covers 110.51 square miles, giving it a balanced suburban layout with room to breathe at roughly 1,516 residents per square mile.

📰 Surprise News Today

• City of Surprise Hires Nexxus on Budget Matters Legis1 · Aug 18
• Motorcyclist dies in crash in Surprise AZ Family · Aug 17
• Frustrated by inaction on ICE warehouse, activists move to dissolve Surprise altogether Arizona Mirror · Jun 17
• Cardinals WR Marvin Harrison Jr. is trending up, and it’s not by surprise Arizona Sports · Aug 17
• LIVE at Asante Outdoor Performance Series in Surprise signalsaz.com · Aug 17

Live headlines via Google News — updates through the day.

What Makes Surprise Unique

• A top-25 city in Arizona by population (#10 of 91 incorporated places).
• Unusually large footprint: 110.51 sq mi of land — bigger than many US counties' seats.
• Home to 2.8% of Arizona's city-dwelling population.

Why People Love It Here

• Full urban amenities: dining, healthcare, education, and employment in one place.
• Serious economic gravity — one of the region's employment and cultural hubs.
• Well connected: 3+ neighboring communities within 10 miles.

📍 Neighborhoods in Surprise

Click a neighborhood to see it on the map.

🍽️ Where to Eat in Surprise

• Babbo Italian Eatery — italian
• Barrio Queen — mexican
• Barro's Pizza — pizza
• Black Rock Coffee — coffee shop (café)
• Blue Sushi Sake Grill — japanese
• Buffalo Wild Wings — wings
• Cooper's Hawk — american
• Denny's — american
• Dickey's Barbecue Pit — barbecue
• Dutch Bros. Coffee — coffee shop (café)

Local spots mapped by the OpenStreetMap community.

🏞️ Parks & Outdoors in Surprise

• Speedworld R/C Flyers reviews ★
• White Tank Mountain Regional Park · Nature reserve reviews ★
• Asante Community Park reviews ★
• Asante Park reviews ★
• Bell Pointe Neighborhood Park reviews ★
• Copper Park reviews ★
• Desert Oasis of Surprise Park reviews ★
• Halifax Park reviews ★
• Heritage Farm Community Association Park reviews ★
• Limestone Park reviews ★
• North Mountainside Park reviews ★
• Sierra Montana Park reviews ★

Parks mapped by the OpenStreetMap community · "reviews" opens each park's live Google reviews.

🏫 Schools in Surprise

• American Leadership Academy West Foothills K-12
• Arizona Charter Academy
• Calibre Academy Surprise
• Imagine Prep Surprise
• Imagine Rosefield
• Imagine Surprise Middle
• Northwest Campus
• Paradise Honors Elementary School
• Paradise Honors High School
• ThrivePoint High School at Surprise
• West-MEC - Shadow Ridge High School
• West-MEC - Valley Vista High School
• West-MEC - Willow Canyon High School
• West-MEC Paradise Honors

Public schools, U.S. Dept. of Education (NCES) 2023–24 directory.

🏥 Hospitals & Healthcare

• Destiny Springs Healthcare · Psychiatric
• Avenir Behavioral Health Center · Psychiatric

Medicare-registered hospitals with official CMS star ratings.

⚡ Quick Facts

🗺️ Map of Surprise

🏘️ Nearby Communities