Best Places93454, CA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 93454, 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.
93454 ranks 14,486th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on the weather by a wide margin, and education levels rank lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 93454
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.
93454's strengths and weaknesses
Where 93454 ranks high
- Nice weatherabout 219 pleasant days a year, better than 98% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than 95% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than 93% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than 90% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than 90% of zip codes
Where 93454 ranks low
- Educational attainmentBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$1,612 a month, better than only 4% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than only 9% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 93454
A household needs to earn about $129,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 93454 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $83,286, 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 93454'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, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 9 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 93454
93454 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 93454.
Who works in 93454, and how
Work in 93454 centers on agriculture & forestry 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 89%
- Work from home 6%
- Transit, walk, or bike 6%
Life in 93454
93454 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 75% of zip codes. The coast is about 19 minutes away. That concentrates in some parts of 93454 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 93454, month by month
93454 sees roughly 219 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 75 degrees. January highs sit near 66, with lows near 40. The comfortable stretch runs April through November.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 66° | 52° | 40° |
| April | 70° | 56° | 45° |
| July | 75° | 62° | 54° |
| October | 79° | 61° | 49° |
Flying in and out of 93454
The nearest airport, Santa Maria Public/Capt G Allan Hancock Field, is about 4 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Bob Hope, about 128 miles away.
The best schools in and around 93454
Schools across 93454 average a C+, better than 55% 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 93454 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
93454 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 93454 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 93454 suits
Remote workers
Internet is fast and widely advertised and 6% already work from home.
Common questions about living in 93454
Is 93454 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 93454 ranks 14,486th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on the weather, biking, and walkability, and lowest on education levels and childcare costs. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 93454 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $504,712. The overall cost of living runs about 9% above the national average. Set against a $83,286 median income, cost of living beats 32% of zip codes.
Is 93454 safe?
93454 is safer than 22% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $496 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 93454?
July highs average about 75 degrees, and January highs near 66 with lows near 40. That works out to about 219 pleasant days a year, more than 98% of zip codes.
Is 93454 good for families?
Schools beat 55% of zip codes, crime safety beats 22%, and childcare runs $1,612 a month.
Compare 93454 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 93454. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 93454 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.
93454 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 93454: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 93454: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 93454: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 93454: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
93454 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.