Best Places92082, CA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 92082, 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.
92082 ranks 11,360th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on the weather by a wide margin, and disaster risk is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 92082
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.
92082's strengths and weaknesses
Where 92082 ranks high
- Nice weatherabout 223 pleasant days a year, better than 98% of zip codes
- Household income$139,084 median, better than 94% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than 90% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than 90% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 83% of zip codes
Where 92082 ranks low
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 1% of zip codes
- Short commute36.3 minutes each way, better than only 8% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$1,432 a month, better than only 9% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 13% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 92082
A household needs to earn about $216,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 92082 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $139,084, 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 92082's effective rate of 0.65%, 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 92082
92082 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 92082.
Who works in 92082, and how
Work in 92082 centers on construction and health care & social. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 81%
- Work from home 15%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in 92082
The coast is about 36 minutes away. Distance to the water changes a lot across 92082, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 92082, month by month
92082 sees roughly 223 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 93 degrees. January highs sit near 68, with lows near 35. The comfortable stretch runs April through November.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 68° | 51° | 35° |
| April | 76° | 58° | 42° |
| July | 93° | 74° | 56° |
| October | 85° | 64° | 47° |
Flying in and out of 92082
The nearest airport, McClellan-Palomar, is about 17 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is San Diego International, about 37 miles away.
The best schools in and around 92082
Schools across 92082 average a C−, better than 18% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Vallecitos ElementaryB− · 43% proficient
- Valley Center ElementaryD+ · 22% proficient
- LilacD+ · 21% proficient
Top middle schools
- Valley Center MiddleD− · 17% proficient
Top high schools
- Bonsall HighA · 70% proficient
- Valley Center HighC+ · 38% proficient
- Escondido HighC · 31% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 92082 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
92082 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 92082 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 92082 suits
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 83% of zip codes and 15% already work from home.
Common questions about living in 92082
Is 92082 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 92082 ranks 11,360th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on the weather, high incomes, and big-city access, and lowest on disaster risk and long commutes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 92082 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $842,257. The overall cost of living runs about 25% above the national average. Set against a $139,084 median income, cost of living beats 83% of zip codes.
Is 92082 safe?
92082 is safer than 54% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $323 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 92082?
July highs average about 93 degrees, and January highs near 68 with lows near 35. That works out to about 223 pleasant days a year, more than 98% of zip codes.
Is 92082 good for families?
Schools beat 18% of zip codes, crime safety beats 54%, and childcare runs $1,432 a month.
Compare 92082 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 92082. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 92082 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.
92082 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 92082: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 92082: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 92082: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 92082: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
92082 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.