Best Places78578, TX Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 78578, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. The coast is close, and the measures below put a number on how close. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
78578 ranks 29,638th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on the weather by a wide margin, and summer heat is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 78578
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.
78578's strengths and weaknesses
Where 78578 ranks high
- Nice weatherabout 185 pleasant days a year, better than 96% of zip codes
- Short commute17.2 minutes each way, better than 93% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 91% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than 88% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than 83% of zip codes
Where 78578 ranks low
- Heat safetyBetter than only 1% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 1% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than only 2% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 10% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 78578
A household needs to earn about $66,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 78578 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $53,318, 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 78578's effective rate of 1.29%, 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 78578
78578 runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 78578.
Who works in 78578, and how
Work in 78578 centers on hospitality & food and admin & support services. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 84%
- Work from home 14%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in 78578
78578 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 87% of zip codes. The coast is about 9 minutes away. That concentrates in some parts of 78578 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 78578, month by month
78578 sees roughly 185 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 93 degrees. January highs sit near 71, with lows near 53. The comfortable stretch runs November through April.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 71° | 61° | 53° |
| April | 83° | 75° | 69° |
| July | 93° | 85° | 78° |
| October | 86° | 77° | 69° |
Flying in and out of 78578
The nearest airport, Brownsville/South Padre Island International, is about 16 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is San Antonio International, about 250 miles away.
The best schools in and around 78578
Schools across 78578 average a D+, better than 13% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Rancho Verde ElB+ · 51% proficient
- Palmer-laakso ElC+ · 37% proficient
- Lopez-riggins ElC+ · 35% proficient
Top middle schools
- Resaca MiddleB− · 43% proficient
- Los Cuates MiddleC+ · 36% proficient
- Garcia MiddleC− · 28% proficient
Top high schools
- Brownsville Early College H SA · 73% proficient
- Los Fresnos H SB · 50% proficient
- Rivera Early College H SC− · 27% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 78578 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
78578 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 78578 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 78578
Is 78578 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 78578 ranks 29,638th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on the weather, short commutes, and low taxes, and lowest on summer heat and disaster risk. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 78578 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $236,818. The overall cost of living runs about 16% below the national average. Set against a $53,318 median income, cost of living beats 22% of zip codes.
Is 78578 safe?
78578 is safer than 18% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $627 per resident a year.
Compare 78578 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 78578. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 78578 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.
78578 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 78578: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 78578: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 78578: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 78578: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
78578 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.