Best Places78873, TX Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 78873, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Several measures below read low, and the ranked lists name which ones. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
78873 ranks 28,091st 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 78873
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.
78873's strengths and weaknesses
Where 78873 ranks high
- QuietBetter than 97% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 174 pleasant days a year, better than 95% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 92% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 91% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$604 a month, better than 84% of zip codes
Where 78873 ranks low
- Heat safetyBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Household income$47,370 median, better than only 8% of zip codes
- Crime safetyBetter than only 8% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 78873
A household needs to earn about $78,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 78873 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $47,370, 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 78873's effective rate of 0.71%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Who lives in 78873
78873 runs older 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 78873.
Who works in 78873, and how
Work in 78873 centers on public administration and education. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 58%
- Work from home 38%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in 78873
78873 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 93% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 78873 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 78873, month by month
78873 sees roughly 174 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 93 degrees. January highs sit near 61, with lows near 40. The comfortable stretch runs March through May, October, and November.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 61° | 49° | 40° |
| April | 79° | 66° | 57° |
| July | 93° | 81° | 72° |
| October | 79° | 68° | 59° |
Flying in and out of 78873
The nearest airport, Del Rio International, is about 75 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is San Antonio International, about 78 miles away.
The best schools in and around 78873
Schools across 78873 average a C, better than 36% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Nueces Canyon ElC− · 30% proficient
Top high schools
- Nueces Canyon Jh/hsB+ · 53% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 78873 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
78873 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 78873 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 78873
Is 78873 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 78873 ranks 28,091st of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on quiet, the weather, and a stable housing market, and lowest on summer heat and the cost of living against local pay. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 78873 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $303,400. The overall cost of living runs about 4% below the national average. Set against a $47,370 median income, cost of living beats 6% of zip codes.
Is 78873 safe?
78873 is safer than 8% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $743 per resident a year.
Compare 78873 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 78873. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 78873 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.
78873 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 78873: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 78873: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 78873: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 78873: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
78873 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.