Best Places06820, CT Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 06820, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Local pay runs high here, and housing takes the biggest bite out of it. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
06820 ranks 889th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on an educated workforce by a wide margin, and childcare costs are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 06820
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
06820's strengths and weaknesses
Where 06820 ranks high
- Educational attainmentBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Household income$242,610 median, better than 99% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than 99% of zip codes
Where 06820 ranks low
- Cheap childcare$1,858 a month, better than only 2% of zip codes
- Short commute38.3 minutes each way, better than only 6% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 7% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than only 13% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 06820
A household needs to earn about $450,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 06820 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $242,610, so buying stretches a typical household.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses 06820's effective rate of 0.95%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices and rents, renting stays cheaper than buying across the first 10 years here, so the case for buying rests on staying much longer or on prices rising faster than assumed. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 06820
06820's age mix sits close to the national median, and households here run larger than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 06820.
Who works in 06820, and how
Work in 06820 centers on finance & insurance and professional & technical. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 43%
- Work from home 35%
- Transit, walk, or bike 22%
Life in 06820
06820 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 71% of zip codes and more parkland per resident than 91% of zip codes. The coast is about 5 minutes away. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 06820 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 06820, month by month
06820 sees roughly 65 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 86 degrees. January highs sit near 41, with lows near 24. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, and August through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 41° | 32° | 24° |
| April | 62° | 50° | 40° |
| July | 86° | 76° | 66° |
| October | 68° | 57° | 47° |
Flying in and out of 06820
The nearest airport, Westchester County, is about 12 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Laguardia, about 29 miles away.
The best schools in and around 06820
Schools across 06820 average an A+, better than 97% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Ox Ridge Elementary SchoolA+ · 86% proficient
- Tokeneke Elementary SchoolA+ · 82% proficient
- Hindley Elementary SchoolA+ · 79% proficient
Top middle schools
- Middlesex Middle SchoolA+ · 76% proficient
- Dolan SchoolC+ · 36% proficient
Top high schools
- Darien High SchoolA · 78% proficient
- Stamford High SchoolB− · 42% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 06820 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
06820 measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare 06820 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 06820 suits
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 100% of zip codes, internet is fast and widely advertised, and 35% already work from home.
Common questions about living in 06820
Is 06820 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 06820 ranks 889th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on an educated workforce, civic engagement, and what local pay buys, and lowest on childcare costs and long commutes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 06820 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $1,686,125. The overall cost of living runs about 51% above the national average. Set against a $242,610 median income, cost of living beats 100% of zip codes.
Is 06820 safe?
06820 is safer than 39% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $273 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 06820?
July highs average about 86 degrees, and January highs near 41 with lows near 24. That works out to about 65 pleasant days a year, more than 16% of zip codes.
Is 06820 good for families?
Schools beat 97% of zip codes, crime safety beats 39%, and childcare runs $1,858 a month.
Compare 06820 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 06820. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 06820 represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
06820 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 06820: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 06820: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 06820: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 06820: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
06820 detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.