Best Places29108, SC Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 29108, 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.
29108 ranks 23,994th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on affordable childcare by a wide margin, and a weak job market ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 29108
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.
29108's strengths and weaknesses
Where 29108 ranks high
- Cheap childcare$552 a month, better than 90% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 78% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than 74% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than 74% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than 72% of zip codes
Where 29108 ranks low
- Local economyBetter than only 19% of zip codes
- Household income$57,998 median, better than only 21% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than only 21% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than only 23% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than only 26% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 29108
A household needs to earn about $39,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 29108 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $57,998, 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 29108's effective rate of 0.58%, 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 29108
29108 runs younger than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 29108.
Who works in 29108, and how
Work in 29108 centers on manufacturing and health care & social. Unemployment sits above the national rate, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 92%
- Work from home 4%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in 29108
29108 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 72% of zip codes and more parkland per resident than 96% of zip codes. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 29108 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 29108, month by month
29108 sees roughly 89 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 91 degrees. January highs sit near 54, with lows near 36. The comfortable stretch runs March through May, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 54° | 44° | 36° |
| April | 74° | 62° | 52° |
| July | 91° | 80° | 71° |
| October | 76° | 64° | 54° |
Flying in and out of 29108
The nearest airport, Columbia Metro, is about 37 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Charlotte/Douglas International, about 74 miles away.
The best schools in and around 29108
Schools across 29108 average a C, better than 30% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Hollywood ElementaryB+ · 55% proficient
- Whitmire Community School (elementary)B · 50% proficient
- Prosperity-rikard ElementaryB · 50% proficient
Top middle schools
- Mid-carolina MiddleA · 60% proficient
- Saluda MiddleC · 35% proficient
- Newberry MiddleC− · 30% proficient
Top high schools
- Mid-carolina HighB+ · 55% proficient
- Saluda HighB · 50% proficient
- Whitmire Community School (high)C+ · 40% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 29108 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
29108 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 29108 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 29108 suits
Remote workers
Internet is fast and widely advertised and 4% already work from home.
Retirees
Set weather, quiet, and health care weights on the map to test the fit.
Common questions about living in 29108
Is 29108 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 29108 ranks 23,994th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on affordable childcare, a stable housing market, and low property taxes, and lowest on a weak job market and low incomes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 29108 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $154,295. The overall cost of living runs about 16% below the national average. Set against a $57,998 median income, cost of living beats 23% of zip codes.
Is 29108 safe?
29108 is safer than 27% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $517 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 29108?
July highs average about 91 degrees, and January highs near 54 with lows near 36. That works out to about 89 pleasant days a year, more than 55% of zip codes.
Is 29108 good for families?
Schools beat 30% of zip codes, crime safety beats 27%, and childcare runs $552 a month.
Compare 29108 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 29108. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 29108 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.
29108 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 29108: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 29108: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 29108: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 29108: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
29108 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.