Best Places34203, FL Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 34203, 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.
34203 ranks 15,031st of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on state infrastructure by a wide margin, and summer heat is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 34203
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.
34203's strengths and weaknesses
Where 34203 ranks high
- State infrastructureBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 95% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than 93% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 158 pleasant days a year, better than 91% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than 86% of zip codes
Where 34203 ranks low
- Heat safetyBetter than only 1% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than only 7% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 19% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than only 32% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 34203
A household needs to earn about $80,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 34203 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is only a little above the area's median income of $75,084; the gap is small, which keeps homes within reach of local pay.
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 34203's effective rate of 0.65%, 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 34203
34203 runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 34203.
Who works in 34203, and how
Work in 34203 centers on health care & social and construction. Unemployment sits above the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 84%
- Work from home 13%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in 34203
34203 has more parkland per resident than 66% of zip codes. The coast is about 16 minutes away. That concentrates in some parts of 34203 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 34203, month by month
34203 sees roughly 158 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 92 degrees. January highs sit near 74, with lows near 51. The comfortable stretch runs November through April.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 74° | 62° | 51° |
| April | 85° | 74° | 64° |
| July | 92° | 83° | 76° |
| October | 88° | 77° | 70° |
Flying in and out of 34203
The nearest airport, Sarasota/Bradenton International, is about 4 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Tampa International, about 37 miles away.
The best schools in and around 34203
Schools across 34203 average a B, better than 68% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Robert Willis Elementary SchoolA+ · 77% proficient
- Southside Elementary SchoolA+ · 77% proficient
- Phillippi Shores Elementary SchoolA+ · 75% proficient
Top middle schools
- Brookside Middle SchoolA · 60% proficient
- Braden River Middle SchoolB · 47% proficient
- Booker Middle SchoolB− · 42% proficient
Top high schools
- Lakewood Ranch High SchoolA− · 64% proficient
- Sarasota High SchoolA− · 63% proficient
- Braden River High SchoolB+ · 56% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 34203 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
34203 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 34203 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 34203 suits
Remote workers
Internet is fast and widely advertised and 13% already work from home.
Common questions about living in 34203
Is 34203 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 34203 ranks 15,031st of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on state infrastructure, low taxes, and fast internet, and lowest on summer heat and disaster risk. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 34203 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $310,769. The overall cost of living runs about 8% below the national average. Set against a $75,084 median income, cost of living beats 55% of zip codes.
Is 34203 safe?
Yes, 34203 is safer than 67% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $190 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 34203?
July highs average about 92 degrees, and January highs near 74 with lows near 51. That works out to about 158 pleasant days a year, more than 91% of zip codes.
Is 34203 good for families?
Schools beat 68% of zip codes, crime safety beats 67%, and childcare runs $916 a month.
Compare 34203 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 34203. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 34203 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.
34203 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 34203: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 34203: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 34203: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 34203: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
34203 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.