Best Places93451, CA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 93451, 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.
93451 ranks 19,912th 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 93451
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.
93451's strengths and weaknesses
Where 93451 ranks high
- Nice weatherabout 161 pleasant days a year, better than 92% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than 80% of zip codes
- Household income$98,097 median, better than 79% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than 78% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than 78% of zip codes
Where 93451 ranks low
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 7% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 9% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$1,388 a month, better than only 10% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than only 11% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 93451
A household needs to earn about $161,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 93451 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $98,097, 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 93451's effective rate of 0.66%, 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 93451
93451 runs younger 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 93451.
Who works in 93451, and how
Work in 93451 centers on agriculture & forestry and hospitality & food. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 82%
- Work from home 13%
- Transit, walk, or bike 5%
Life in 93451
93451 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 88% of zip codes. The coast is about 46 minutes away. That concentrates in some parts of 93451 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 93451, month by month
93451 sees roughly 161 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 97 degrees. January highs sit near 63, with lows near 36. The comfortable stretch runs April through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 63° | 48° | 36° |
| April | 77° | 57° | 41° |
| July | 97° | 73° | 54° |
| October | 85° | 62° | 43° |
Flying in and out of 93451
The nearest airport, San Luis Obispo County Regional, is about 36 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Norman Y Mineta San Jose International, about 131 miles away.
The best schools in and around 93451
Schools across 93451 average a C−, better than 32% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Pleasant Valley ElementaryB− · 42% proficient
- Bradley ElementaryD+ · 25% proficient
- San Lucas ElementaryD · 19% proficient
Top middle schools
- Reef Sunset MiddleF · 7% proficient
Top high schools
- Paso Robles HighB · 46% proficient
- King City HighC · 30% proficient
- Avenal HighD+ · 24% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 93451 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
93451 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 93451 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 93451
Is 93451 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 93451 ranks 19,912th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on the weather, clean air, and high incomes, and lowest on an overheated housing market and disaster risk. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 93451 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $627,643. The overall cost of living runs about 22% above the national average. Set against a $98,097 median income, cost of living beats 38% of zip codes.
Is 93451 safe?
Yes, 93451 is safer than 69% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $273 per resident a year.
Compare 93451 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 93451. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 93451 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.
93451 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 93451: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 93451: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 93451: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 93451: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
93451 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.