Best Places95311, CA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 95311, 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.
95311 ranks 29,149th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on quiet by a wide margin, and long commutes are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 95311
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.
95311's strengths and weaknesses
Where 95311 ranks high
- QuietBetter than 94% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 169 pleasant days a year, better than 94% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than 90% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than 75% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than 71% of zip codes
Where 95311 ranks low
- Short commute45.5 minutes each way, better than only 1% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 3% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than only 3% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than only 10% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 95311
A household needs to earn about $83,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 95311 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is only a little above the area's median income of $78,470; 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 95311's effective rate of 0.42%, 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 5 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 95311
95311 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 95311.
Who works in 95311, and how
Work in 95311 centers on construction 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 89%
- Work from home 8%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in 95311
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 95311.
What the weather is like in 95311, month by month
95311 sees roughly 169 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 78 degrees. January highs sit near 44, with lows near 32. The comfortable stretch runs June through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 44° | 37° | 32° |
| April | 53° | 44° | 38° |
| July | 78° | 69° | 63° |
| October | 62° | 53° | 47° |
Flying in and out of 95311
The nearest airport, Merced Yosemite Regional, is about 35 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Norman Y Mineta San Jose International, about 98 miles away.
The best schools in and around 95311
Schools across 95311 average a D+, better than 13% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Mariposa ElementaryC− · 30% proficient
- Yosemite National Park El PortalC− · 28% proficient
- Lake Don Pedro ElementaryD+ · 25% proficient
Top high schools
- Mariposa County HighB · 50% proficient
- Don Pedro HighD+ · 25% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 95311 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
95311 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 95311 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 95311
Is 95311 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 95311 ranks 29,149th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on quiet, the weather, and low property taxes, and lowest on long commutes and disaster risk. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 95311 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $336,436. The overall cost of living runs about 2% above the national average. Set against a $78,470 median income, cost of living beats 39% of zip codes.
Is 95311 safe?
95311 is safer than 39% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $385 per resident a year.
Compare 95311 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 95311. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 95311 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.
95311 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 95311: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 95311: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 95311: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 95311: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
95311 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.