Best Places90603, CA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 90603, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Local pay runs high here, and housing takes the biggest bite out of it. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
90603 ranks 3,701st of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on the weather by a wide margin, and air quality ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 90603
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.
90603's strengths and weaknesses
Where 90603 ranks high
- Nice weatherabout 269 pleasant days a year, better than 99% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Household income$145,481 median, better than 95% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than 95% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than 95% of zip codes
Where 90603 ranks low
- Air qualityBetter than only 2% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than only 13% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 15% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than only 15% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 90603
A household needs to earn about $227,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 90603 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $145,481, 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 90603's effective rate of 0.64%, 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 90603
90603's age mix sits close to the national median, 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 90603.
Who works in 90603, and how
Work in 90603 centers on education and health care & social. Unemployment is low, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 82%
- Work from home 14%
- Transit, walk, or bike 5%
Life in 90603
The coast is about 20 minutes away. Distance to the water changes a lot across 90603, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 90603, month by month
90603 sees roughly 269 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 87 degrees. January highs sit near 71, with lows near 46. The comfortable stretch runs September through July.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 71° | 57° | 46° |
| April | 77° | 64° | 54° |
| July | 87° | 74° | 66° |
| October | 85° | 70° | 58° |
Flying in and out of 90603
The nearest airport, Long Beach (Daugherty Field), is about 12 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is John Wayne/Orange County, about 20 miles away.
The best schools in and around 90603
Schools across 90603 average a B−, better than 54% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Meadow Green ElementaryB · 44% proficient
- Jordan ElementaryB− · 43% proficient
- Macy ElementaryC+ · 39% proficient
Top middle schools
- Rancho-starbuck IntermediateC+ · 38% proficient
Top high schools
- La Serna HighB+ · 52% proficient
- La Habra HighB− · 45% proficient
- California HighB− · 43% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 90603 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
90603 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 90603 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 90603 suits
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 77% of zip codes, internet is fast and widely advertised, and 14% already work from home.
Common questions about living in 90603
Is 90603 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 90603 ranks 3,701st of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on the weather, big-city access, and high incomes, and lowest on air quality and taxes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 90603 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $888,569. The overall cost of living runs about 38% above the national average. Set against a $145,481 median income, cost of living beats 77% of zip codes.
Is 90603 safe?
90603 is safer than 42% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $348 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 90603?
July highs average about 87 degrees, and January highs near 71 with lows near 46. That works out to about 269 pleasant days a year, more than 99% of zip codes.
Is 90603 good for families?
Schools beat 54% of zip codes, crime safety beats 42%, and childcare runs $1,130 a month.
Compare 90603 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 90603. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 90603 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.
90603 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 90603: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 90603: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 90603: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 90603: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
90603 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.