Best Places95138, CA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 95138, 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.
95138 ranks 1,640th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on high incomes by a wide margin, and childcare costs are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 95138
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.
95138's strengths and weaknesses
Where 95138 ranks high
- Household income$188,607 median, better than 99% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 225 pleasant days a year, better than 98% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than 94% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than 92% of zip codes
Where 95138 ranks low
- Cheap childcare$2,106 a month, better than only 1% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 9% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than only 13% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 15% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 95138
A household needs to earn about $354,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 95138 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $188,607, 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 95138's effective rate of 0.80%, 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 95138
95138's age mix sits close to the national median, 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 95138.
Who works in 95138, and how
Work in 95138 centers on manufacturing and professional & technical. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 73%
- Work from home 23%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in 95138
95138 has fewer places to eat and drink per resident than most zip codes. The coast is about 34 minutes away. That concentrates in some parts of 95138 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 95138, month by month
95138 sees roughly 225 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 85 degrees. January highs sit near 61, with lows near 44. The comfortable stretch runs February through November.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 61° | 54° | 44° |
| April | 71° | 62° | 50° |
| July | 85° | 75° | 60° |
| October | 78° | 68° | 54° |
Flying in and out of 95138
Norman Y Mineta San Jose International sits about 11 miles away. It is a medium hub and boarded 5.3 million passengers in 2025, with 67 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around 95138
Schools across 95138 average an A−, better than 85% of zip codes.
Top high schools
- Ann Sobrato HighA+ · 90% proficient
- Evergreen Valley HighA · 80% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 95138 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
95138 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 95138 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 95138
Is 95138 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 95138 ranks 1,640th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on high incomes, population health, 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 95138 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $1,355,326. The overall cost of living runs about 64% above the national average. Set against a $188,607 median income, cost of living beats 88% of zip codes.
Is 95138 safe?
Yes, 95138 is safer than 79% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $235 per resident a year.
Compare 95138 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 95138. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 95138 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.
95138 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 95138: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 95138: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 95138: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 95138: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
95138 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.