Best Places78252, TX Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 78252, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. This page is for people who live here or already know they want to. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
78252 ranks 9,474th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on a strong job market by a wide margin, and thin health care access ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 78252
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.
78252's strengths and weaknesses
Where 78252 ranks high
- Local economyBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Crime safetyBetter than 96% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than 95% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 91% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than 90% of zip codes
Where 78252 ranks low
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 2% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than only 14% of zip codes
- Short commute33.0 minutes each way, better than only 16% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 78252
A household needs to earn about $72,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 78252 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $84,212, 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 78252's effective rate of 1.45%, 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 78252
78252 runs younger 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 78252.
Who works in 78252, and how
Work in 78252 centers on retail trade and hospitality & food. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 86%
- Work from home 10%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in 78252
78252 has fewer places to eat and drink per resident than most zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 78252 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 78252, month by month
78252 sees roughly 141 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 97 degrees. January highs sit near 66, with lows near 42. The comfortable stretch runs February through April and October through December.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 66° | 53° | 42° |
| April | 83° | 71° | 61° |
| July | 97° | 85° | 75° |
| October | 85° | 72° | 62° |
Flying in and out of 78252
San Antonio International sits about 18 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 78252
Schools across 78252 average a C+, better than 40% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Luckey Ranch ElB− · 44% proficient
- Lackland ElB− · 43% proficient
- Lacoste ElC+ · 37% proficient
Top middle schools
- Medina Valley MiddleB+ · 51% proficient
- Francis R Scobee MiddleC− · 29% proficient
- Ronald E Mcnair MiddleC− · 29% proficient
Top high schools
- Medina Valley H SB+ · 53% proficient
- Virginia Allred Stacey Jr/sr H SB · 49% proficient
- Cast Stem H SB− · 42% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 78252 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
78252 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 78252 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 78252
Is 78252 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 78252 ranks 9,474th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on a strong job market, low crime, and cell coverage, and lowest on thin health care access and civic engagement. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 78252 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $251,336. The overall cost of living runs about 17% below the national average. Set against a $84,212 median income, cost of living beats 72% of zip codes.
Is 78252 safe?
Yes, 78252 is safer than 96% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $186 per resident a year.
Compare 78252 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 78252. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 78252 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.
78252 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 78252: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 78252: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 78252: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 78252: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
78252 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.