Best Places92120, CA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 92120, 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.
92120 ranks 1,936th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on the weather by a wide margin, and an overheated housing market is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 92120
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.
92120's strengths and weaknesses
Where 92120 ranks high
- Nice weatherabout 287 pleasant days a year, better than 99% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than 95% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than 93% of zip codes
- Household income$132,427 median, better than 93% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than 92% of zip codes
Where 92120 ranks low
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 7% 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
- QuietBetter than only 16% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 20% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 92120
A household needs to earn about $226,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 92120 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $132,427, 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 92120's effective rate of 0.61%, 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 92120
92120's age mix sits close to the national median.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 92120.
Who works in 92120, and how
Work in 92120 centers on professional & technical and health care & social. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 72%
- Work from home 23%
- Transit, walk, or bike 5%
Life in 92120
92120 has more parkland per resident than 87% of zip codes. The coast is about 12 minutes away. That concentrates in some parts of 92120 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 92120, month by month
92120 sees roughly 287 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 82 degrees. January highs sit near 69, with lows near 45. Every month averages in that range.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 69° | 56° | 45° |
| April | 73° | 61° | 53° |
| July | 82° | 71° | 65° |
| October | 82° | 68° | 58° |
Flying in and out of 92120
San Diego International sits about 8 miles away. It is a large hub and boarded 12.7 million passengers in 2025, with 121 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around 92120
Schools across 92120 average a B, better than 62% of zip codes.
Top high schools
- Crawford HighD+ · 25% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 92120 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
92120 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 92120 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 92120 suits
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 72% of zip codes, internet is fast and widely advertised, and 23% already work from home.
Retirees
The weather beats 99% of zip codes and health care access beats 64%.
Common questions about living in 92120
Is 92120 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 92120 ranks 1,936th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on the weather, population health, and an educated workforce, and lowest on an overheated housing market and childcare costs. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 92120 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $887,093. The overall cost of living runs about 37% above the national average. Set against a $132,427 median income, cost of living beats 72% of zip codes.
Is 92120 safe?
92120 is safer than 43% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $375 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 92120?
July highs average about 82 degrees, and January highs near 69 with lows near 45. That works out to about 287 pleasant days a year, more than 99% of zip codes.
Is 92120 good for families?
Schools beat 62% of zip codes, crime safety beats 43%, and childcare runs $1,432 a month.
Compare 92120 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 92120. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 92120 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.
92120 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 92120: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 92120: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 92120: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 92120: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
92120 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.