Best Places78608, TX Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 78608, 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.
78608 ranks 17,671st of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on quiet by a wide margin, and summer heat is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 78608
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.
78608's strengths and weaknesses
Where 78608 ranks high
- QuietBetter than 92% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 91% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than 83% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than 82% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than 72% of zip codes
Where 78608 ranks low
- Heat safetyBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than only 18% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than only 19% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than only 24% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 78608
A household needs to earn about $151,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 78608 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $81,130, 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 78608's effective rate of 0.60%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Who lives in 78608
78608 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 78608.
Who works in 78608, and how
Work in 78608 centers on education and admin & support services. Unemployment is low, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 62%
- Work from home 37%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in 78608
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 78608.
What the weather is like in 78608, month by month
78608 sees roughly 84 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 96 degrees. January highs sit near 61, with lows near 39. The comfortable stretch runs March through May, October, and November.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 61° | 49° | 39° |
| April | 79° | 67° | 57° |
| July | 96° | 85° | 74° |
| October | 82° | 69° | 59° |
Flying in and out of 78608
The nearest airport, Robert Gray AAF, is about 11 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Austin-Bergstrom International, about 53 miles away.
The best schools in and around 78608
Schools across 78608 average a C+, better than 46% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Kline Whitis ElB− · 43% proficient
- Hanna Springs ElB− · 40% proficient
- Florence ElC+ · 35% proficient
Top middle schools
- Lampasas MiddleB+ · 50% proficient
- Florence MiddleC− · 30% proficient
Top high schools
- Lampasas H SB+ · 54% proficient
- Florence H SC · 33% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 78608 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
78608 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 78608 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 78608
Is 78608 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 78608 ranks 17,671st of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on quiet, low taxes, and an educated workforce, and lowest on summer heat 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 78608 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $592,365. The overall cost of living runs about 3% below the national average. Set against a $81,130 median income, cost of living beats 59% of zip codes.
Is 78608 safe?
78608 is safer than 39% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $408 per resident a year.
Compare 78608 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 78608. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 78608 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.
78608 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 78608: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 78608: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 78608: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 78608: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
78608 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.