Best Places78256, TX Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 78256, 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.
78256 ranks 3,130th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on a strong job market by a wide margin, and property taxes are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 78256
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.
78256's strengths and weaknesses
Where 78256 ranks high
- Local economyBetter than 97% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than 94% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than 93% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 91% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 151 pleasant days a year, better than 90% of zip codes
Where 78256 ranks low
- Low property taxBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 11% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than only 12% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 16% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 18% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 78256
A household needs to earn about $156,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 78256 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $97,315, so buying stretches a typical household.
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 78256's effective rate of 1.79%, 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 78256
78256 runs younger 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 78256.
Who works in 78256, and how
Work in 78256 centers on retail trade 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 12%
- Transit, walk, or bike 9%
Life in 78256
78256 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 87% of zip codes and more parkland per resident than 99% of zip codes. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 78256 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 78256, month by month
78256 sees roughly 151 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 98 degrees. January highs sit near 67, with lows near 40. The comfortable stretch runs February through April and October through December.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 67° | 53° | 40° |
| April | 84° | 70° | 58° |
| July | 98° | 85° | 76° |
| October | 86° | 72° | 61° |
Flying in and out of 78256
San Antonio International sits about 11 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 78256
Schools across 78256 average a B+, better than 74% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Leon Springs ElB · 48% proficient
- Ellison ElB− · 43% proficient
- May ElC− · 27% proficient
Top middle schools
- Garcia MiddleA · 60% proficient
- Rawlinson MiddleB · 46% proficient
Top high schools
- Brandeis H SA− · 60% proficient
- Clark H SB+ · 54% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 78256 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
78256 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 78256 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 78256
Is 78256 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 78256 ranks 3,130th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on a strong job market, population health, and an educated workforce, and lowest on property taxes and thin health care access. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 78256 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $527,271. The overall cost of living runs about 12% below the national average. Set against a $97,315 median income, cost of living beats 88% of zip codes.
Is 78256 safe?
Yes, 78256 is safer than 73% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $351 per resident a year.
Compare 78256 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 78256. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 78256 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.
78256 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 78256: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 78256: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 78256: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 78256: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
78256 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.