Best Places95249, CA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 95249, 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.
95249 ranks 26,079th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on a strong job market by a wide margin, and summer heat is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 95249
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.
95249's strengths and weaknesses
Where 95249 ranks high
- Local economyBetter than 91% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 139 pleasant days a year, better than 85% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than 80% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than 74% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than 72% of zip codes
Where 95249 ranks low
- Heat safetyBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 11% of zip codes
- School gradeD+, better than only 17% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 18% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 95249
A household needs to earn about $104,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 95249 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $67,501, 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 95249's effective rate of 0.69%, 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 95249
95249 runs older than the country, and households here run smaller than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 95249.
Who works in 95249, and how
Work in 95249 centers on retail trade and health care & social. Unemployment runs well above the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 77%
- Work from home 18%
- Transit, walk, or bike 5%
Life in 95249
95249 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 78% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 95249 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 95249, month by month
95249 sees roughly 139 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 97 degrees. January highs sit near 58, with lows near 37. The comfortable stretch runs April through June, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 58° | 46° | 37° |
| April | 71° | 57° | 43° |
| July | 97° | 80° | 61° |
| October | 79° | 63° | 49° |
Flying in and out of 95249
The nearest airport, Stockton Metro, is about 37 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Sacramento International, about 61 miles away.
The best schools in and around 95249
Schools across 95249 average a D+, better than 17% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Mokelumne Hill ElementaryD · 20% proficient
- San Andreas ElementaryD− · 13% proficient
Top middle schools
- Toyon MiddleD · 22% proficient
Top high schools
- Calaveras HighC+ · 38% proficient
- Gold Strike HighD+ · 25% proficient
- Rite Of PassageD+ · 25% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 95249 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
95249 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 95249 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 95249
Is 95249 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 95249 ranks 26,079th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on a strong job market, the weather, and big-city access, and lowest on summer heat and taxes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 95249 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $405,495. The overall cost of living runs about 3% above the national average. Set against a $67,501 median income, cost of living beats 19% of zip codes.
Is 95249 safe?
95249 is safer than 25% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $468 per resident a year.
Compare 95249 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 95249. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 95249 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.
95249 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 95249: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 95249: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 95249: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 95249: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
95249 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.