Melba is a small Snake River Valley farming city of roughly 600–700 residents (2026 estimate 643) in southwest Canyon County, named for opera singer Nellie Melba by an early settler. Surrounded by corn, alfalfa, sugar beets, and pasture, it's a classic one-stoplight agricultural town — homes on large lots, farm outbuildings, and small businesses along the highway — with the Snake River and Owyhee uplands nearby for fishing, hunting, and boating. A bedroom community for Nampa and Caldwell as well as a working farm town, Melba appeals to buyers who want acreage, rural schools, and quiet.
Photography of MelbaPhoto: Multiple credited photographers · See source links
Home prices in Melba
The median listing price in Melba is $847,000.
Top places in Melba
Snake River access — fishing, boating, and riverside recreation.
Owyhee uplands — hiking and wildlife viewing to the south.
Surrounding farmland — row crops and orchards in season.
Local community events (school sports, Melba Days).
Day trips to Lake Lowell, Nampa, and the Snake River Valley wineries.
Commuting from Melba
No rail transit in the Boise metro — commutes are by car; no local transit service.
Melba is southwest of Nampa on SH-45; the drive to downtown Boise is approximately 35–40 minutes (~30 miles) via SH-45/SH-69 to I-84.
Nampa is about 15–20 minutes north.
Melba FAQs
What is the housing market like in Melba, ID? The median listing price in Melba is $847,000. Median listing price (September 2026 research snapshot)
How is the commute from Melba, ID? No rail transit in the Boise metro — commutes are by car; no local transit service.
