Best Places93254, CA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 93254, 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.
93254 ranks 25,751st of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on quiet by a wide margin, and childcare costs are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 93254
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.
93254's strengths and weaknesses
Where 93254 ranks high
- QuietBetter than 97% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than 96% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 146 pleasant days a year, better than 88% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than 83% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than 80% of zip codes
Where 93254 ranks low
- Cheap childcare$1,611 a month, better than only 4% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than only 10% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 93254
A household needs to earn about $67,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 93254 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is only a little above the area's median income of $66,060; the gap is small, which keeps homes within reach of local pay.
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 93254's effective rate of 0.49%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 10 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 93254
93254 runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 93254.
Who works in 93254, and how
Work in 93254 centers on education and construction. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 71%
- Work from home 21%
- Transit, walk, or bike 8%
Life in 93254
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 93254.
What the weather is like in 93254, month by month
93254 sees roughly 146 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 87 degrees. January highs sit near 65, with lows near 39. The comfortable stretch runs April through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 65° | 50° | 39° |
| April | 72° | 56° | 45° |
| July | 87° | 67° | 54° |
| October | 81° | 61° | 47° |
Flying in and out of 93254
The nearest airport, Santa Barbara Municipal, is about 36 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Bob Hope, about 91 miles away.
The best schools in and around 93254
Schools across 93254 average a D+, better than 12% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Los Olivos ElementaryA · 70% proficient
- Cuyama ElementaryD− · 14% proficient
Top middle schools
- Mesa MiddleD+ · 25% proficient
Top high schools
- Cuyama Valley HighD+ · 25% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 93254 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
93254 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 93254 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 93254
Is 93254 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 93254 ranks 25,751st of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on quiet, a strong job market, and the weather, and lowest on childcare costs and disaster risk. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 93254 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $266,584. The overall cost of living runs about 16% above the national average. Set against a $66,060 median income, cost of living beats 10% of zip codes.
Is 93254 safe?
93254 is safer than 13% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $565 per resident a year.
Compare 93254 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 93254. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 93254 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.
93254 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 93254: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 93254: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 93254: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 93254: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
93254 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.