Best Places78132, TX Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 78132, 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.
78132 ranks 1,379th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on what local pay buys by a wide margin, and summer heat is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 78132
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.
78132's strengths and weaknesses
Where 78132 ranks high
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Household income$143,375 median, better than 95% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than 95% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 91% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than 91% of zip codes
Where 78132 ranks low
- Heat safetyBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- Short commute32.9 minutes each way, better than only 17% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than only 27% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than only 30% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than only 35% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 78132
A household needs to earn about $160,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 78132 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is only a little above the area's median income of $143,375; 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 78132's effective rate of 1.08%, 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 78132
78132 runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 78132.
Who works in 78132, and how
Work in 78132 centers on education and health care & social. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 78%
- Work from home 21%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in 78132
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 78132.
What the weather is like in 78132, month by month
78132 sees roughly 143 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 98 degrees. January highs sit near 66, with lows near 41. The comfortable stretch runs February through April and October through December.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 66° | 52° | 41° |
| April | 84° | 70° | 59° |
| July | 98° | 85° | 74° |
| October | 86° | 72° | 61° |
Flying in and out of 78132
San Antonio International sits about 23 miles away. It is a medium hub and boarded 5.3 million passengers in 2025, with 87 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around 78132
Schools across 78132 average a B+, better than 82% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Hoffmann Lane ElA+ · 79% proficient
- Johnson Ranch ElA · 62% proficient
- Garden Ridge ElA− · 60% proficient
Top middle schools
- Smithson Valley MiddleA+ · 68% proficient
- Church Hill MiddleA · 64% proficient
- Mt Valley MiddleA− · 58% proficient
Top high schools
- Memorial Early College H S With St Philip'sA+ · 82% proficient
- New Braunfels H SC · 34% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 78132 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
78132 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 78132 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 78132 suits
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 98% of zip codes, internet is fast and widely advertised, and 21% already work from home.
Retirees
The weather beats 87% of zip codes and health care access beats 56%.
Common questions about living in 78132
Is 78132 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 78132 ranks 1,379th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on what local pay buys, high incomes, and a strong job market, and lowest on summer heat and long commutes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 78132 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $591,260. The overall cost of living runs about 6% below the national average. Set against a $143,375 median income, cost of living beats 98% of zip codes.
Is 78132 safe?
Yes, 78132 is safer than 79% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $280 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 78132?
July highs average about 98 degrees, and January highs near 66 with lows near 41. That works out to about 143 pleasant days a year, more than 87% of zip codes.
Is 78132 good for families?
Schools beat 82% of zip codes, crime safety beats 79%, and childcare runs $783 a month.
Compare 78132 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 78132. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 78132 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.
78132 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 78132: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 78132: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 78132: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 78132: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
78132 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.