Best Places21890, MD Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 21890, 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.
21890 ranks 32,594th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on few empty homes by a wide margin, and biking ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 21890
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.
21890's strengths and weaknesses
Where 21890 ranks high
- Low vacancyBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than 77% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than 74% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than 74% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than 68% of zip codes
Where 21890 ranks low
- BikingBetter than only 1% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 1% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than only 1% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than only 3% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 5% of zip codes
Who lives in 21890
21890 runs younger 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 21890.
Who works in 21890, and how
Work in 21890 centers on public administration and admin & support services. Unemployment runs well above the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 87%
- Work from home 10%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in 21890
The coast is about 22 minutes away. Distance to the water changes a lot across 21890, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 21890, month by month
21890 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 21890
The nearest airport, Salisbury-Ocean City Wicomico Regional, is about 16 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Ronald Reagan Washington Ntl, about 87 miles away.
The best schools in and around 21890
Schools across 21890 average a D, better than 9% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Greenwood Elementary SchoolD− · 11% 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 21890 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
21890 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 21890 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 21890
Is 21890 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 21890 ranks 32,594th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on few empty homes, low property taxes, and fast internet, and lowest on biking and taxes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 21890 safe?
21890 is safer than 15% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $507 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 21890?
July highs average about 90 degrees, and January highs near 49 with lows near 28. That works out to about 59 pleasant days a year, more than 7% of zip codes.
Compare 21890 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 21890. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 21890 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.
21890 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 21890: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 21890: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 21890: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 21890: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
21890 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.
- 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.