Best PlacesSan Bernardino County, CA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in San Bernardino County, 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.
San Bernardino County ranks 1,877th of 3,144 U.S. counties on the BestNeighborhood index. The coast is about 54 minutes away. Its strengths are the weather and big-city access. The cost shows up in air quality, civic engagement, and disaster risk.
The best neighborhoods in San Bernardino County
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 San Bernardino County
The parts of San Bernardino County, ranked by the BestNeighborhood standard score across every neighborhood, highest scoring first. Each note says how that part differs from the rest of the county.
Alta Loma
Local pay stretches further, incomes run higher, and more adults hold degrees.
Fontana, Ontario & Rancho Cucamonga
Fewer homes sit empty, though homes cost more.
Yucaipa & Yucca Valley
It is quieter, though heat risk is higher.
Redlands, Rialto & Colton
Biking is better and commutes are shorter.
Victorville & Apple Valley
Disaster risk is lower and more households have young kids.
Twentynine Palms & Big Bear City
Big-city amenities are further off and prices have run up more.
San Bernardino & Hesperia
Scores close to Twentynine Palms & Big Bear City, except that health care is harder to reach here.
Adelanto & Phelan
Streets are more car-dependent and transit reaches fewer jobs.
Barstow
Fewer residents vote and schools score lower.
San Bernardino County shows why a single number is not enough. Some neighborhoods score in the bottom 2% of the country and others in the top 6%. Pick the area first, then the home.
San Bernardino County's strengths and weaknesses
San Bernardino County lands in the middle because its strengths and weaknesses roughly balance. The weather is the standout, in the top 1% of counties. Big-city access and cell coverage follow.
The one real hole is air quality, near the bottom of the country. Civic engagement and disaster risk also cost it ground. That varies block to block rather than evenly, and the map below shows where.
Where San Bernardino County ranks high
- Nice weatherabout 208 pleasant days a year, better than 99% of counties
- Big-city accessBetter than 99% of counties
- Cell coverageBetter than 97% of counties
- TransitBetter than 95% of counties
- BikingBetter than 95% of counties
Where San Bernardino County ranks low
- Air qualityBetter than only 1% of counties
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 2% of counties
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 5% of counties
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 6% of counties
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 6% of counties
What it costs to buy a home in San Bernardino County
A household needs to earn about $134,000 a year to comfortably buy the median San Bernardino County home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $93,034, 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 San Bernardino County's effective rate of 0.72%, 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 10 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in San Bernardino County
San Bernardino County runs younger than the country, and households here run larger than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for San Bernardino County.
Who works in San Bernardino County, and how
Work in San Bernardino County centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 85%
- Work from home 11%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in San Bernardino County
San Bernardino County has more restaurants and bars per resident than 85% of counties and less parkland per resident than most counties. The coast is about 54 minutes away. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of San Bernardino County and thins out in others, which the map shows.
Is San Bernardino County growing, and who is moving in?
San Bernardino County has grown about 6% over the last decade. The largest inbound stream comes from Los Angeles, CA.
Where new residents come from
Where people leaving San Bernardino County go
Move counts are the latest county-to-county migration flows, each county grouped into its metro.
What the weather is like in San Bernardino County, month by month
San Bernardino County sees roughly 208 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 99 degrees. January highs sit near 67, with lows near 44. The comfortable stretch runs February through June and October through December.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 67° | 54° | 44° |
| April | 79° | 64° | 52° |
| July | 99° | 82° | 68° |
| October | 86° | 70° | 57° |
Flying in and out of San Bernardino County
The nearest airport, San Bernardino International, is about 10 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Ontario International, about 17 miles away.
The best schools in and around San Bernardino County
Schools across San Bernardino County average a C, better than 43% of counties.
Top elementary schools
- Landers ElementaryA+ · 75% proficient
- FallsvaleA · 65% proficient
- Inland Leaders CharterA · 64% proficient
Top middle schools
- Webb Del E MsA− · 53% proficient
- Barstow Stem AcademyC+ · 36% proficient
- Riverview MiddleC · 33% proficient
Top high schools
- Henry J. Kaiser HighA+ · 95% proficient
- Claremont HighA · 78% proficient
- Summit HighA · 75% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every San Bernardino County school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
San Bernardino County 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 San Bernardino County against the other 3,143 counties.
Who San Bernardino County suits
Remote workers
Internet is fast and widely advertised and 11% already work from home.
Common questions about living in San Bernardino County
Is San Bernardino County a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, San Bernardino County ranks 1,877th of 3,144 counties. It scores highest on the weather, big-city access, and cell coverage, and lowest on air quality and civic engagement. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is San Bernardino County expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $519,241. The overall cost of living runs about 16% above the national average. Set against a $93,034 median income, cost of living beats 39% of counties.
Is San Bernardino County safe?
San Bernardino County is safer than 31% of counties. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $435 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in San Bernardino County?
July highs average about 99 degrees, and January highs near 67 with lows near 44. That works out to about 208 pleasant days a year, more than 100% of counties.
What are the best neighborhoods in San Bernardino County?
Using the default rankings, the highest-scoring areas are Alta Loma, Fontana, Ontario & Rancho Cucamonga, and Yucaipa & Yucca Valley. The ranked list and the re-weightable map above let you re-sort them for your own priorities.
Is San Bernardino County good for families?
Schools beat 43% of counties, crime safety beats 31%, and childcare runs $1,252 a month.
Is San Bernardino County good for remote workers?
Cost of living against local pay beats 39% of counties, and the fastest advertised internet here beats 93% of counties. About 11% of workers already work from home.
Compare San Bernardino County with other counties
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to San Bernardino County. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in San Bernardino County 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.
San Bernardino County detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for San Bernardino County: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in San Bernardino County: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of San Bernardino County: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in San Bernardino County: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
San Bernardino County 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.
- U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program: population growth and net migration behind the population-change section.
- 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.