Best Places28303, NC Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 28303, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Several measures below read low, and the ranked lists name which ones. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
28303 ranks 21,181st of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on state finances by a wide margin, and crime is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 28303
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.
28303's strengths and weaknesses
Where 28303 ranks high
- State fiscal healthBetter than 91% of zip codes
- Short commute18.3 minutes each way, better than 90% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than 88% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than 87% of zip codes
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 79% of zip codes
Where 28303 ranks low
- Crime safetyBetter than only 3% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 61 pleasant days a year, better than only 10% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than only 15% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 17% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than only 21% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 28303
A household needs to earn about $53,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 28303 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $64,238, 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 28303's effective rate of 1.05%, 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 5 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 28303
28303 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 28303.
Who works in 28303, and how
Work in 28303 centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 86%
- Work from home 10%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in 28303
28303 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 89% of zip codes and more late-night spots per resident than 84% of zip codes. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 28303 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 28303, month by month
28303 sees roughly 61 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 93 degrees. January highs sit near 57, with lows near 33. The comfortable stretch runs March through May, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 57° | 44° | 33° |
| April | 78° | 64° | 51° |
| July | 93° | 81° | 72° |
| October | 79° | 65° | 53° |
Flying in and out of 28303
The nearest airport, Fayetteville Regional/Grannis Field, is about 8 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Raleigh-Durham International, about 56 miles away.
The best schools in and around 28303
Schools across 28303 average a B, better than 74% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Vanstory Hills ElementaryB+ · 50% proficient
- J W Coon ElementaryB− · 40% proficient
- Morganton Road ElementaryC · 33% proficient
Top middle schools
- Reid Ross Classical MiddleB · 43% proficient
- Westover MiddleC+ · 35% proficient
- Lewis Chapel MiddleC− · 27% proficient
Top high schools
- Cumberland International Early CollegeA+ · 83% proficient
- Cumberland PolytechnicA+ · 83% proficient
- Terry Sanford HighB · 50% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 28303 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
28303 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 28303 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 28303 suits
Remote workers
Internet is fast and widely advertised and 10% already work from home.
Retirees
Set weather, quiet, and health care weights on the map to test the fit.
Common questions about living in 28303
Is 28303 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 28303 ranks 21,181st of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on state finances, short commutes, and fast internet, and lowest on crime and the weather. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 28303 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $195,735. The overall cost of living runs about 17% below the national average. Set against a $64,238 median income, cost of living beats 44% of zip codes.
Is 28303 safe?
28303 is safer than 3% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $1,013 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 28303?
July highs average about 93 degrees, and January highs near 57 with lows near 33. That works out to about 61 pleasant days a year, more than 10% of zip codes.
Is 28303 good for families?
Schools beat 74% of zip codes, crime safety beats 3%, and childcare runs $763 a month.
Compare 28303 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 28303. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 28303 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.
28303 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 28303: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 28303: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 28303: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 28303: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
28303 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.