Best Places38134, TN Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 38134, 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.
38134 ranks 23,428th 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 38134
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.
38134's strengths and weaknesses
Where 38134 ranks high
- State fiscal healthBetter than 96% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than 86% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than 83% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 82% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than 82% of zip codes
Where 38134 ranks low
- Crime safetyBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 11% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 11% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 69 pleasant days a year, better than only 23% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 26% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 38134
A household needs to earn about $53,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 38134 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $71,021, 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 38134's effective rate of 1.00%, 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 4 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 38134
38134 runs younger than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 38134.
Who works in 38134, and how
Work in 38134 centers on retail trade and health care & social. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 89%
- Work from home 9%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in 38134
38134 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 72% of zip codes and more parkland per resident than 70% of zip codes. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 38134 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 38134, month by month
38134 sees roughly 69 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 91 degrees. January highs sit near 50, with lows near 34. The comfortable stretch runs March through May, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 50° | 41° | 34° |
| April | 72° | 62° | 52° |
| July | 91° | 82° | 73° |
| October | 75° | 64° | 54° |
Flying in and out of 38134
Memphis International sits about 12 miles away. It is a medium hub and boarded 2.4 million passengers in 2025, with 78 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around 38134
Schools across 38134 average a C, better than 35% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Richland ElementaryA− · 61% proficient
- Bartlett Elementary SchoolA− · 57% proficient
- Oak ElementaryA− · 56% proficient
Top middle schools
- White Station MiddleB+ · 50% proficient
- Elmore Park Middle SchoolB · 46% proficient
- Appling Middle SchoolB− · 42% proficient
Top high schools
- White Station HighB+ · 52% proficient
- Bartlett High SchoolB · 47% proficient
- Memphis Rise AcademyC+ · 35% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 38134 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
38134 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 38134 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 38134 suits
Remote workers
Internet is fast and widely advertised and 9% already work from home.
Retirees
Set weather, quiet, and health care weights on the map to test the fit.
Common questions about living in 38134
Is 38134 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 38134 ranks 23,428th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on state finances, transit, and cell coverage, and lowest on crime and civic engagement. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 38134 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $197,821. The overall cost of living runs about 16% below the national average. Set against a $71,021 median income, cost of living beats 50% of zip codes.
Is 38134 safe?
38134 is safer than 4% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $1,159 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 38134?
July highs average about 91 degrees, and January highs near 50 with lows near 34. That works out to about 69 pleasant days a year, more than 23% of zip codes.
Is 38134 good for families?
Schools beat 35% of zip codes, crime safety beats 4%, and childcare runs $811 a month.
Compare 38134 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 38134. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 38134 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.
38134 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 38134: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 38134: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 38134: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 38134: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
38134 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.