Best Places08406, NJ Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 08406, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. The coast is close, and the measures below put a number on how close. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
08406 ranks 24,402nd of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on cell coverage by a wide margin, and disaster risk is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 08406
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.
08406's strengths and weaknesses
Where 08406 ranks high
- Cell coverageBetter than 98% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than 96% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than 94% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than 93% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than 91% of zip codes
Where 08406 ranks low
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 1% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 1% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 1% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 58 pleasant days a year, better than only 6% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than only 8% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 08406
A household needs to earn about $120,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 08406 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $77,598, 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 08406's effective rate of 1.58%, 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 08406
08406 runs older than the country, and households here run smaller than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 08406.
Who works in 08406, and how
Work in 08406 centers on health care & social and arts & entertainment. Unemployment sits above the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 73%
- Work from home 14%
- Transit, walk, or bike 13%
Life in 08406
08406 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 83% of zip codes. The coast is about 1 minutes away. That concentrates in some parts of 08406 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 08406, month by month
08406 sees roughly 58 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 89 degrees. January highs sit near 47, with lows near 26. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 47° | 36° | 26° |
| April | 67° | 54° | 42° |
| July | 89° | 78° | 68° |
| October | 72° | 60° | 49° |
Flying in and out of 08406
The nearest airport, Atlantic City International, is about 9 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Philadelphia International, about 54 miles away.
The best schools in and around 08406
Schools across 08406 average a C−, better than 21% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- William H. Ross Iii SchoolB · 48% proficient
- Ventnor Elementary SchoolC · 33% proficient
- Richmond Avenue SchoolD+ · 22% proficient
Top middle schools
- Eugene A. Tighe Middle SchoolB · 45% proficient
- Ventnor Middle SchoolC · 32% proficient
Top high schools
- Atlantic City High SchoolD · 18% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 08406 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
08406 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 08406 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 08406
Is 08406 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 08406 ranks 24,402nd of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on cell coverage, walkability, and transit, and lowest on disaster risk and an overheated housing market. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 08406 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $413,203. The overall cost of living runs about 16% above the national average. Set against a $77,598 median income, cost of living beats 33% of zip codes.
Is 08406 safe?
08406 is safer than 16% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $380 per resident a year.
Compare 08406 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 08406. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 08406 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.
08406 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 08406: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 08406: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 08406: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 08406: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
08406 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.