Best PlacesPalm Heights, San Antonio, TX Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Palm Heights, San Antonio, 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.
Palm Heights, San Antonio ranks 5,038th of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on a stable housing market by a wide margin, and summer heat is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in Palm Heights, San Antonio
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.
Palm Heights, San Antonio's strengths and weaknesses
Where Palm Heights, San Antonio ranks high
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 99% of neighborhoods
- Cheap childcare$783 a month, better than 90% of neighborhoods
- State fiscal healthBetter than 88% of neighborhoods
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 88% of neighborhoods
- Internet speedBetter than 77% of neighborhoods
Where Palm Heights, San Antonio ranks low
- Heat safetyBetter than only 6% of neighborhoods
- School gradeD−, better than only 7% of neighborhoods
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 9% of neighborhoods
- Educational attainmentBetter than only 12% of neighborhoods
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 14% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in Palm Heights, San Antonio
A household needs to earn about $38,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Palm Heights, San Antonio home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $51,037, so a typical household can afford the median home outright.
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 Palm Heights, San Antonio's effective rate of 1.29%, 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 3 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Palm Heights, San Antonio
Palm Heights, San Antonio'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 Palm Heights, San Antonio.
Who works in Palm Heights, San Antonio, and how
Work in Palm Heights, San Antonio centers on construction and health care & social. Unemployment sits above the national rate, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 88%
- Work from home 7%
- Transit, walk, or bike 5%
Life in Palm Heights, San Antonio
Palm Heights, San Antonio has more restaurants and bars per resident than 71% of neighborhoods. That concentrates in some parts of Palm Heights, San Antonio and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in Palm Heights, San Antonio, month by month
Palm Heights, San Antonio sees roughly 143 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 97 degrees. January highs sit near 66, with lows near 42. The comfortable stretch runs February through April and October through December.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 66° | 53° | 42° |
| April | 83° | 71° | 61° |
| July | 97° | 85° | 75° |
| October | 85° | 72° | 62° |
Flying in and out of Palm Heights, San Antonio
San Antonio International sits about 11 miles away. It is a medium hub and boarded 5.3 million passengers in 2025, with 87 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around Palm Heights, San Antonio
Schools across Palm Heights, San Antonio average a D−, better than 7% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- George E Kelly ElD− · 15% proficient
- Stonewall/flanders ElD− · 13% proficient
- Columbia Heights ElD− · 12% proficient
Top middle schools
- A Leal Jr MiddleD · 20% proficient
- Dwight MiddleD− · 18% proficient
- Harris MiddleD− · 16% proficient
Top high schools
- South San Antonio H SC · 35% proficient
- Harlandale H SC− · 26% proficient
- Burbank H SD− · 17% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Palm Heights, San Antonio school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Palm Heights, San Antonio 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 Palm Heights, San Antonio against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Common questions about living in Palm Heights, San Antonio
Is Palm Heights, San Antonio a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Palm Heights, San Antonio ranks 5,038th of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on a stable housing market, affordable childcare, and state finances, and lowest on summer heat and the schools. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Palm Heights, San Antonio expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $135,069. The overall cost of living runs about 18% below the national average. Set against a $51,037 median income, cost of living beats 24% of neighborhoods.
Is Palm Heights, San Antonio safe?
Palm Heights, San Antonio is safer than 45% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $609 per resident a year.
Compare Palm Heights, San Antonio with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Palm Heights, San Antonio. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Palm Heights, San Antonio 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.
Palm Heights, San Antonio detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Palm Heights, San Antonio: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Palm Heights, San Antonio: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Palm Heights, San Antonio: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Palm Heights, San Antonio: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Palm Heights, San Antonio 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.