Best Places96114, CA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 96114, 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.
96114 ranks 18,937th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on the weather by a wide margin, and disaster risk is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 96114
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.
96114's strengths and weaknesses
Where 96114 ranks high
- Nice weatherabout 165 pleasant days a year, better than 93% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than 85% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than 82% of zip codes
- Crime safetyBetter than 80% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 76% of zip codes
Where 96114 ranks low
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- School gradeD+, better than only 16% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than only 18% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 20% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 96114
A household needs to earn about $89,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 96114 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is only a little above the area's median income of $84,627; 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 96114's effective rate of 0.75%, 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 96114
96114 runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 96114.
Who works in 96114, and how
Work in 96114 centers on construction and public administration. Unemployment is low, 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 3%
Life in 96114
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 96114.
What the weather is like in 96114, month by month
96114 sees roughly 165 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 93 degrees. January highs sit near 46, with lows near 27. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 46° | 35° | 27° |
| April | 65° | 50° | 36° |
| July | 93° | 75° | 54° |
| October | 68° | 48° | 34° |
Flying in and out of 96114
The nearest airport, Reno/Tahoe International, is about 68 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Sacramento International, about 124 miles away.
The best schools in and around 96114
Schools across 96114 average a D+, better than 16% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Richmond ElementaryB+ · 52% proficient
- Johnstonville ElementaryC · 32% proficient
- Janesville ElementaryD+ · 23% proficient
Top high schools
- Lassen HighC− · 28% proficient
- Herlong HighD+ · 25% proficient
- Greenville Junior/senior HighD− · 16% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 96114 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
96114 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 96114 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 96114
Is 96114 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 96114 ranks 18,937th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on the weather, quiet, and fast internet, and lowest on disaster risk and taxes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 96114 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $342,269. The overall cost of living runs about 4% above the national average. Set against a $84,627 median income, cost of living beats 44% of zip codes.
Is 96114 safe?
Yes, 96114 is safer than 80% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $240 per resident a year.
Compare 96114 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 96114. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 96114 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.
96114 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 96114: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 96114: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 96114: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 96114: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
96114 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.