Best PlacesDowntown San Mateo, San Mateo, CA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Local pay runs high here, and housing takes the biggest bite out of it. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo ranks 513th of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on high incomes by a wide margin, and childcare costs are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo
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.
Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo's strengths and weaknesses
Where Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo ranks high
- Household income$176,484 median, better than 96% of neighborhoods
- BikingBetter than 93% of neighborhoods
- Nice weatherabout 236 pleasant days a year, better than 93% of neighborhoods
- Air qualityBetter than 90% of neighborhoods
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 88% of neighborhoods
Where Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo ranks low
- Cheap childcare$2,233 a month, better than only 2% of neighborhoods
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 7% of neighborhoods
- QuietBetter than only 11% of neighborhoods
- Tree shadeBetter than only 19% of neighborhoods
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 20% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo
A household needs to earn about $325,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $176,484, 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 Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo's effective rate of 0.85%, 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 Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo
Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo's age mix sits close to the national median, 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 Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo.
Who works in Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo, and how
Work in Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo centers on professional & technical and health care & social. Unemployment is low, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 63%
- Work from home 25%
- Transit, walk, or bike 12%
Life in Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo
Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo has more restaurants and bars per resident than 95% of neighborhoods and more late-night spots per resident than 92% of neighborhoods. The coast is about 13 minutes away. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo, month by month
Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo sees roughly 236 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 74 degrees. January highs sit near 60, with lows near 46. The comfortable stretch runs April through November.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 60° | 53° | 46° |
| April | 68° | 57° | 49° |
| July | 74° | 62° | 56° |
| October | 75° | 62° | 54° |
Flying in and out of Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo
San Francisco International sits about 5 miles away. It is a large hub and boarded 26.5 million passengers in 2025, with 193 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo
Schools across Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo average a B+, better than 79% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- College Park ElementaryA+ · 85% proficient
- South HillsboroughA · 72% proficient
- North Shoreview MontessoriA · 63% proficient
Top middle schools
- Borel MiddleB+ · 52% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo 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 Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Common questions about living in Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo
Is Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo ranks 513th of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on high incomes, biking, and the weather, and lowest on childcare costs and disaster risk. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $1,233,971. The overall cost of living runs about 49% above the national average. Set against a $176,484 median income, cost of living beats 88% of neighborhoods.
Is Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo safe?
Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo is safer than 35% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $647 per resident a year.
Compare Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo 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.
Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Downtown San Mateo, San Mateo 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.