Best Places22124, VA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 22124, 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.
22124 ranks 7th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on low crime by a wide margin, and childcare costs are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 22124
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.
22124's strengths and weaknesses
Where 22124 ranks high
- Crime safetyBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Household income$211,528 median, better than 99% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than 98% of zip codes
Where 22124 ranks low
- Cheap childcare$1,512 a month, better than only 5% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 62 pleasant days a year, better than only 11% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 16% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than only 19% of zip codes
- Short commute29.8 minutes each way, better than only 29% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 22124
A household needs to earn about $256,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 22124 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $211,528, 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 22124's effective rate of 0.96%, 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 22124
22124 runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 22124.
Who works in 22124, and how
Work in 22124 centers on professional & technical and public administration. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 55%
- Work from home 38%
- Transit, walk, or bike 7%
Life in 22124
22124 has fewer places to eat and drink per resident than most zip codes and more parkland per resident than 70% of zip codes. The coast is about 25 minutes away. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 22124 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 22124, month by month
22124 sees roughly 62 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 91 degrees. January highs sit near 47, with lows near 25. The comfortable stretch runs April through June, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 47° | 36° | 25° |
| April | 71° | 57° | 44° |
| July | 91° | 79° | 67° |
| October | 73° | 60° | 47° |
Flying in and out of 22124
Washington Dulles International sits about 9 miles away. It is a large hub and boarded 13.9 million passengers in 2025, with 200 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around 22124
Schools across 22124 average an A+, better than 97% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Flint Hill ElementaryA+ · 81% proficient
- Oakton ElementaryA+ · 77% proficient
- Waples Mill ElementaryA · 64% proficient
Top middle schools
- Thoreau MiddleA+ · 82% proficient
- Franklin MiddleA+ · 78% proficient
- Johnson MiddleA+ · 72% proficient
Top high schools
- Oakton HighA+ · 81% proficient
- Madison HighA+ · 80% proficient
- Fairfax HighA− · 64% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 22124 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
22124 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 22124 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 22124
Is 22124 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 22124 ranks 7th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on low crime, an educated workforce, and high incomes, and lowest on childcare costs and the weather. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 22124 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $957,641. The overall cost of living runs about 31% above the national average. Set against a $211,528 median income, cost of living beats 99% of zip codes.
Is 22124 safe?
Yes, 22124 is safer than 100% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $115 per resident a year.
Compare 22124 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 22124. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 22124 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.
22124 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 22124: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 22124: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 22124: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 22124: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
22124 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.