Best Places23602, VA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 23602, 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.
23602 ranks 13,171st of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. Noise pulls hardest against it, while it scores best on transit.
The best neighborhoods in 23602
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.
23602's strengths and weaknesses
Where 23602 ranks high
- TransitBetter than 86% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than 83% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than 82% of zip codes
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 82% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 81% of zip codes
Where 23602 ranks low
- QuietBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- Crime safetyBetter than only 12% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 16% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 20% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 72 pleasant days a year, better than only 29% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 23602
A household needs to earn about $74,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 23602 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $84,170, 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 23602's effective rate of 0.93%, 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 23602
23602 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 23602.
Who works in 23602, and how
Work in 23602 centers on manufacturing and health care & social. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 86%
- Work from home 11%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in 23602
23602 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 71% of zip codes and more late-night spots per resident than 87% of zip codes. The coast is about 12 minutes away. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 23602 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 23602, month by month
23602 sees roughly 72 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 91 degrees. January highs sit near 52, with lows near 30. The comfortable stretch runs April through June, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 52° | 40° | 30° |
| April | 73° | 59° | 47° |
| July | 91° | 80° | 71° |
| October | 75° | 63° | 52° |
Flying in and out of 23602
The nearest airport, Newport News/Williamsburg International, is about 2 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Richmond International, about 52 miles away.
The best schools in and around 23602
Schools across 23602 average a B−, better than 60% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Grafton Bethel ElementaryA+ · 77% proficient
- Knollwood Meadows ElementaryB · 49% proficient
- B.c. Charles ElementaryC+ · 39% proficient
Top middle schools
- Grafton MiddleA+ · 82% proficient
- Ethel M. Gildersleeve MiddleB+ · 50% proficient
- Ella J. Fitzgerald MiddleB · 47% proficient
Top high schools
- Grafton HighA+ · 83% proficient
- Woodside HighA− · 66% proficient
- Menchville HighA− · 60% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 23602 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
23602 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 23602 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 23602 suits
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 81% of zip codes, internet is fast and widely advertised, and 11% already work from home.
Retirees
Set weather, quiet, and health care weights on the map to test the fit.
Common questions about living in 23602
Is 23602 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 23602 ranks 13,171st of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on transit, few empty homes, and biking, and lowest on noise and crime. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 23602 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $278,835. The overall cost of living runs about 16% below the national average. Set against a $84,170 median income, cost of living beats 81% of zip codes.
Is 23602 safe?
23602 is safer than 12% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $601 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 23602?
July highs average about 91 degrees, and January highs near 52 with lows near 30. That works out to about 72 pleasant days a year, more than 29% of zip codes.
Is 23602 good for families?
Schools beat 60% of zip codes, crime safety beats 12%, and childcare runs $872 a month.
Compare 23602 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 23602. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 23602 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.
23602 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 23602: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 23602: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 23602: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 23602: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
23602 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.