Best Places96103, CA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 96103, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. This page is for people who live here or already know they want to. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
96103 ranks 21,179th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on fast internet by a wide margin, and air quality ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 96103
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.
96103's strengths and weaknesses
Where 96103 ranks high
- Internet speedBetter than 93% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than 93% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 143 pleasant days a year, better than 87% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than 86% of zip codes
- Short commute20.8 minutes each way, better than 82% of zip codes
Where 96103 ranks low
- Air qualityBetter than only 7% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 9% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 20% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 96103
A household needs to earn about $120,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 96103 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $83,048, 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 96103's effective rate of 0.73%, 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 8 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 96103
96103 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 96103.
Who works in 96103, and how
Work in 96103 centers on health care & social and hospitality & food. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 74%
- Work from home 18%
- Transit, walk, or bike 8%
Life in 96103
96103 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 93% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 96103 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 96103, month by month
96103 sees roughly 143 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 81 degrees. January highs sit near 48, with lows near 33. The comfortable stretch runs June through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 48° | 39° | 33° |
| April | 57° | 47° | 38° |
| July | 81° | 72° | 64° |
| October | 66° | 56° | 48° |
Flying in and out of 96103
The nearest airport, Reno/Tahoe International, is about 50 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Sacramento International, about 91 miles away.
The best schools in and around 96103
Schools across 96103 average a C−, better than 28% of zip codes.
Top high schools
- Quincy Junior/senior HighC · 33% proficient
- Loyalton HighC− · 27% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 96103 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
96103 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 96103 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 96103
Is 96103 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 96103 ranks 21,179th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on fast internet, health care access, and the weather, and lowest on air quality and empty homes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 96103 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $463,956. The overall cost of living runs about 8% above the national average. Set against a $83,048 median income, cost of living beats 47% of zip codes.
Is 96103 safe?
96103 is safer than 35% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $389 per resident a year.
Compare 96103 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 96103. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 96103 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.
96103 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 96103: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 96103: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 96103: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 96103: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
96103 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.