Best PlacesDeLand, FL Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around DeLand, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Distance to the water drives a lot of the difference between one part and the next. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
DeLand ranks 1,351st of 2,098 U.S. cities on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on state infrastructure by a wide margin, and summer heat is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in DeLand
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.
The best areas in DeLand
The parts of DeLand, ranked by the BestNeighborhood standard score across every neighborhood, highest scoring first.
Mallory Square
Daytona Park Estates
St. Johns River Land
Scores across DeLand run from about the 12th to the 80th percentile nationally. The map is where that becomes a choice of area.
DeLand's strengths and weaknesses
Where DeLand ranks high
- State infrastructureBetter than 96% of cities
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 95% of cities
- Nice weatherabout 148 pleasant days a year, better than 82% of cities
- Cheap childcare$821 a month, better than 79% of cities
- Air qualityBetter than 79% of cities
Where DeLand ranks low
- Heat safetyBetter than only 7% of cities
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than only 16% of cities
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 19% of cities
- Health outlookBetter than only 22% of cities
- Cell coverageBetter than only 22% of cities
What it costs to buy a home in DeLand
A household needs to earn about $79,000 a year to comfortably buy the median DeLand home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is only a little above the area's median income of $70,544; 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 DeLand's effective rate of 0.78%, 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 7 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in DeLand
DeLand's age mix sits close to the national median.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for DeLand.
Who works in DeLand, and how
Work in DeLand centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 79%
- Work from home 18%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in DeLand
DeLand has more restaurants and bars per resident than 79% of cities and more parkland per resident than 81% of cities. The coast is about 28 minutes away. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of DeLand and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in DeLand, month by month
DeLand sees roughly 148 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 92 degrees. January highs sit near 70, with lows near 49. The comfortable stretch runs October through April.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 70° | 58° | 49° |
| April | 83° | 71° | 60° |
| July | 92° | 81° | 74° |
| October | 84° | 74° | 67° |
Flying in and out of DeLand
The nearest airport, Orlando Sanford International, is about 18 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Orlando International, about 42 miles away.
The best schools in and around DeLand
Schools across DeLand average a B, better than 59% of cities.
Top elementary schools
- Cypress Creek Elementary SchoolA · 65% proficient
- Citrus Grove Elementary SchoolA · 63% proficient
- Seminole Springs Elementary SchoolA− · 59% proficient
Top middle schools
- Creekside Middle SchoolA · 63% proficient
- Umatilla Middle SchoolB+ · 50% proficient
- River Springs Middle SchoolB · 46% proficient
Top high schools
- New Smyrna Beach High SchoolB+ · 56% proficient
- University High SchoolB · 47% proficient
- Deland High SchoolB− · 45% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every DeLand school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
DeLand 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 DeLand against the other 2,097 cities.
Who DeLand suits
Common questions about living in DeLand
Is DeLand a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, DeLand ranks 1,351st of 2,098 cities. It scores highest on state infrastructure, low taxes, and the weather, and lowest on summer heat and car insurance costs. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is DeLand expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $302,023. The overall cost of living runs about 10% below the national average. Set against a $70,544 median income, cost of living beats 27% of cities.
Is DeLand safe?
Yes, DeLand is safer than 74% of cities. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $170 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in DeLand?
July highs average about 92 degrees, and January highs near 70 with lows near 49. That works out to about 148 pleasant days a year, more than 82% of cities.
What are the best neighborhoods in DeLand?
Using the default rankings, the highest-scoring areas are Mallory Square, Daytona Park Estates, and St. Johns River Land. The ranked list and the re-weightable map above let you re-sort them for your own priorities.
Compare DeLand with other cities
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to DeLand. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in DeLand 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.
DeLand detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for DeLand: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in DeLand: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of DeLand: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in DeLand: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
DeLand 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.