Best Places34488, FL Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 34488, 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.
34488 ranks 24,237th 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 34488
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.
34488's strengths and weaknesses
Where 34488 ranks high
- State infrastructureBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 95% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than 82% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than 81% of zip codes
- Crime safetyBetter than 79% of zip codes
Where 34488 ranks low
- Heat safetyBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 9% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than only 16% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 34488
A household needs to earn about $31,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 34488 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $55,357, 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 34488's effective rate of 0.57%, 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 3 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 34488
34488 runs older 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 34488.
Who works in 34488, and how
Work in 34488 centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 84%
- Work from home 12%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in 34488
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 34488.
What the weather is like in 34488, month by month
34488 sees roughly 126 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 92 degrees. January highs sit near 70, with lows near 45. The comfortable stretch runs October through April.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 70° | 56° | 45° |
| April | 84° | 71° | 58° |
| July | 92° | 81° | 73° |
| October | 85° | 73° | 64° |
Flying in and out of 34488
The nearest airport, Gainesville Regional, is about 39 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Orlando International, about 66 miles away.
The best schools in and around 34488
Schools across 34488 average a C+, better than 39% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Ocala Springs Elementary SchoolB · 47% proficient
- Fort Mccoy SchoolC · 34% proficient
- East Marion Elementary SchoolC · 34% proficient
Top middle schools
- Fort King Middle SchoolC+ · 35% proficient
- North Marion Middle SchoolC · 32% proficient
Top high schools
- Vanguard High SchoolB− · 41% proficient
- North Marion High SchoolC · 31% proficient
- Lake Weir High SchoolC · 31% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 34488 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
34488 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 34488 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 34488
Is 34488 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 34488 ranks 24,237th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on state infrastructure, low taxes, and tree cover, and lowest on summer heat and empty homes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 34488 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $122,163. The overall cost of living runs about 18% below the national average. Set against a $55,357 median income, cost of living beats 24% of zip codes.
Is 34488 safe?
Yes, 34488 is safer than 79% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $149 per resident a year.
Compare 34488 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 34488. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 34488 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.
34488 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 34488: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 34488: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 34488: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 34488: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
34488 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.