Best Places63038, MO Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 63038, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Local pay runs high here, and housing takes the biggest bite out of it. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
63038 ranks 2,058th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on what local pay buys by a wide margin, and childcare costs are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 63038
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.
63038's strengths and weaknesses
Where 63038 ranks high
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Household income$204,765 median, better than 99% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than 90% of zip codes
Where 63038 ranks low
- Cheap childcare$1,131 a month, better than only 22% of zip codes
- Short commute31.3 minutes each way, better than only 23% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 70 pleasant days a year, better than only 24% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than only 26% of zip codes
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than only 27% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 63038
A household needs to earn about $166,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 63038 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $204,765, 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 63038's effective rate of 1.17%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices and rents, renting stays cheaper than buying across the first 10 years here, so the case for buying rests on staying much longer or on prices rising faster than assumed. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 63038
63038 runs older than the country, and households here run larger than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 63038.
Who works in 63038, and how
Work in 63038 centers on professional & technical and retail trade. Unemployment is low, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 71%
- Work from home 24%
- Transit, walk, or bike 5%
Life in 63038
63038 has more parkland per resident than 91% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 63038 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 63038, month by month
63038 sees roughly 70 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 90 degrees. January highs sit near 42, with lows near 24. The comfortable stretch runs April, May, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 42° | 32° | 24° |
| April | 70° | 57° | 45° |
| July | 90° | 79° | 69° |
| October | 71° | 58° | 47° |
Flying in and out of 63038
St Louis Lambert International sits about 19 miles away. It is a medium hub and boarded 7.5 million passengers in 2025, with 114 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around 63038
Schools across 63038 average an A−, better than 85% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Chesterfield Elem.A+ · 74% proficient
- Ridge Meadows Elem.A · 63% proficient
- Green Pines Elem.A− · 60% proficient
Top middle schools
- Rockwood Valley MiddleA · 64% proficient
- Wildwood MiddleA · 62% proficient
- Lasalle Springs MiddleB+ · 52% proficient
Top high schools
- Lafayette Sr. HighA− · 59% proficient
- Eureka Sr. HighB · 50% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 63038 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
63038 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 63038 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 63038
Is 63038 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 63038 ranks 2,058th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on what local pay buys, high incomes, and an educated workforce, and lowest on childcare costs and long commutes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 63038 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $605,094. The overall cost of living runs about 10% below the national average. Set against a $204,765 median income, cost of living beats 100% of zip codes.
Is 63038 safe?
63038 is safer than 48% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $377 per resident a year.
Compare 63038 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 63038. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 63038 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.
63038 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 63038: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 63038: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 63038: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 63038: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
63038 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.