Best Places93117, CA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 93117, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. The coast is close, and the measures below put a number on how close. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
93117 ranks 7,164th 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 93117
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.
93117's strengths and weaknesses
Where 93117 ranks high
- Nice weatherabout 255 pleasant days a year, better than 99% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than 98% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than 95% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than 95% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than 95% of zip codes
Where 93117 ranks low
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 3% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$1,613 a month, better than only 4% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 14% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 93117
A household needs to earn about $287,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 93117 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $99,387, 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 93117'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 93117
93117 runs younger than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 93117.
Who works in 93117, and how
Work in 93117 centers on education and hospitality & food. Unemployment sits above the national rate, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 61%
- Work from home 16%
- Transit, walk, or bike 23%
Life in 93117
93117 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 65% of zip codes and more parkland per resident than 88% of zip codes. The coast is about 2 minutes away. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 93117 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 93117, month by month
93117 sees roughly 255 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 72 degrees. January highs sit near 64, with lows near 44. The comfortable stretch runs March through November.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 64° | 53° | 44° |
| April | 67° | 57° | 49° |
| July | 72° | 64° | 58° |
| October | 73° | 62° | 52° |
Flying in and out of 93117
The nearest airport, Santa Barbara Municipal, is about 1 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Bob Hope, about 87 miles away.
The best schools in and around 93117
Schools across 93117 average a B−, better than 50% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Vista De Las CrucesA+ · 75% proficient
- Solvang ElementaryB+ · 55% proficient
- Santa Ynez ElementaryC · 32% proficient
Top middle schools
- Goleta Valley Junior HighD+ · 25% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 93117 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
93117 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 93117 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 93117 suits
Remote workers
Internet is fast and widely advertised and 16% already work from home.
Common questions about living in 93117
Is 93117 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 93117 ranks 7,164th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on the weather, biking, and transit, 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 93117 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $1,122,234. The overall cost of living runs about 37% above the national average. Set against a $99,387 median income, cost of living beats 27% of zip codes.
Is 93117 safe?
93117 is safer than 35% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $408 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 93117?
July highs average about 72 degrees, and January highs near 64 with lows near 44. That works out to about 255 pleasant days a year, more than 99% of zip codes.
Is 93117 good for families?
Schools beat 50% of zip codes, crime safety beats 35%, and childcare runs $1,613 a month.
Compare 93117 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 93117. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 93117 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.
93117 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 93117: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 93117: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 93117: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 93117: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
93117 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.