Best Places21853, MD Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 21853, 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.
21853 ranks 29,238th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. Taxes pulls hardest against it, while it scores best on transit.
The best neighborhoods in 21853
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.
21853's strengths and weaknesses
Where 21853 ranks high
- TransitBetter than 79% of zip codes
- Short commute21.8 minutes each way, better than 77% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than 75% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than 75% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than 68% of zip codes
Where 21853 ranks low
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 1% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 59 pleasant days a year, better than only 7% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than only 8% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 21853
A household needs to earn about $53,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 21853 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $68,546, so a typical household can afford the median home outright.
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 21853's effective rate of 0.81%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 6 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 21853
21853 runs younger than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 21853.
Who works in 21853, and how
Work in 21853 centers on education and retail trade. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 82%
- Work from home 9%
- Transit, walk, or bike 9%
Life in 21853
The coast is about 22 minutes away. Distance to the water changes a lot across 21853, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 21853, month by month
21853 sees roughly 59 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 90 degrees. January highs sit near 49, with lows near 28. The comfortable stretch runs April through June, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 49° | 38° | 28° |
| April | 70° | 56° | 44° |
| July | 90° | 79° | 69° |
| October | 73° | 61° | 50° |
Flying in and out of 21853
The nearest airport, Salisbury-Ocean City Wicomico Regional, is about 14 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Ronald Reagan Washington Ntl, about 85 miles away.
The best schools in and around 21853
Schools across 21853 average a D, better than 10% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Fruitland IntermediateD+ · 21% proficient
- Pocomoke ElementaryD− · 15% proficient
- Deal Island SchoolD− · 14% proficient
Top middle schools
- Pocomoke MiddleD+ · 25% proficient
- Bennett MiddleD · 23% proficient
- Somerset 6/7 Intermediate SchoolD · 20% proficient
Top high schools
- Washington Academy And High SchoolD+ · 25% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 21853 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
21853 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 21853 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 21853
Is 21853 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 21853 ranks 29,238th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on transit, short commutes, and big-city access, and lowest on taxes 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 21853 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $203,366. The overall cost of living runs about 12% below the national average. Set against a $68,546 median income, cost of living beats 37% of zip codes.
Is 21853 safe?
21853 is safer than 9% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $637 per resident a year.
Compare 21853 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 21853. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 21853 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.
21853 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 21853: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 21853: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 21853: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 21853: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
21853 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.