Best PlacesOakland, Pittsburgh, PA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Oakland, Pittsburgh, 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.
Oakland, Pittsburgh ranks 4,662nd of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on low disaster risk by a wide margin, and empty homes are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in Oakland, Pittsburgh
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.
Oakland, Pittsburgh's strengths and weaknesses
Where Oakland, Pittsburgh ranks high
- Disaster safetyBetter than 99% of neighborhoods
- Heat safetyBetter than 99% of neighborhoods
- TransitBetter than 95% of neighborhoods
- Health outlookBetter than 91% of neighborhoods
- Short commute18.2 minutes each way, better than 88% of neighborhoods
Where Oakland, Pittsburgh ranks low
- Low vacancyBetter than only 2% of neighborhoods
- Household income$24,184 median, better than only 5% of neighborhoods
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than only 6% of neighborhoods
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 6% of neighborhoods
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 6% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in Oakland, Pittsburgh
A household needs to earn about $59,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Oakland, Pittsburgh home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $24,184, 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 Oakland, Pittsburgh's effective rate of 1.36%, 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 Oakland, Pittsburgh
Oakland, Pittsburgh runs younger than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Oakland, Pittsburgh.
Who works in Oakland, Pittsburgh, and how
Work in Oakland, Pittsburgh centers on health care & social and education. Unemployment sits above the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 37%
- Work from home 11%
- Transit, walk, or bike 52%
Life in Oakland, Pittsburgh
Oakland, Pittsburgh has more restaurants and bars per resident than 81% of neighborhoods. That concentrates in some parts of Oakland, Pittsburgh and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in Oakland, Pittsburgh, month by month
Oakland, Pittsburgh sees roughly 73 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 86 degrees. January highs sit near 40, with lows near 23. The comfortable stretch runs May through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 40° | 31° | 23° |
| April | 66° | 53° | 41° |
| July | 86° | 75° | 65° |
| October | 68° | 57° | 46° |
Flying in and out of Oakland, Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh International sits about 15 miles away. It is a medium hub and boarded 4.8 million passengers in 2025, with 104 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around Oakland, Pittsburgh
Schools across Oakland, Pittsburgh average a C+, better than 57% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- Pittsburgh Linden K-5B · 50% proficient
Top middle schools
- Pittsburgh Classical 6-8D · 20% proficient
Top high schools
- Pittsburgh Allderdice HsB · 48% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Oakland, Pittsburgh school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Oakland, Pittsburgh 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 Oakland, Pittsburgh against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Common questions about living in Oakland, Pittsburgh
Is Oakland, Pittsburgh a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Oakland, Pittsburgh ranks 4,662nd of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on low disaster risk, heat safety, and transit, and lowest on empty homes and low incomes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Oakland, Pittsburgh expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $211,307. The overall cost of living runs about 6% below the national average. Set against a $24,184 median income, cost of living beats 6% of neighborhoods.
Is Oakland, Pittsburgh safe?
Oakland, Pittsburgh is safer than 20% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $595 per resident a year.
Compare Oakland, Pittsburgh with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Oakland, Pittsburgh. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Oakland, Pittsburgh 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.
Oakland, Pittsburgh detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Oakland, Pittsburgh: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Oakland, Pittsburgh: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Oakland, Pittsburgh: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Oakland, Pittsburgh: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Oakland, Pittsburgh 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.