Best PlacesSan Carlos, San Diego, CA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around San Carlos, San Diego, 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.
San Carlos, San Diego ranks 485th of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on the weather by a wide margin, and cell coverage ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in San Carlos, San Diego
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.
San Carlos, San Diego's strengths and weaknesses
Where San Carlos, San Diego ranks high
- Nice weatherabout 271 pleasant days a year, better than 95% of neighborhoods
- Voter turnoutBetter than 94% of neighborhoods
- Healthcare accessBetter than 91% of neighborhoods
- Household income$146,307 median, better than 90% of neighborhoods
- Low property taxBetter than 88% of neighborhoods
Where San Carlos, San Diego ranks low
- Cell coverageBetter than only 9% of neighborhoods
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 14% of neighborhoods
- WalkabilityBetter than only 14% of neighborhoods
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 20% of neighborhoods
- Cheap childcare$1,432 a month, better than only 25% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in San Carlos, San Diego
A household needs to earn about $251,000 a year to comfortably buy the median San Carlos, San Diego home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $146,307, 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 Carlos, San Diego's effective rate of 0.56%, 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 San Carlos, San Diego
San Carlos, San Diego'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 San Carlos, San Diego.
Who works in San Carlos, San Diego, and how
Work in San Carlos, San Diego centers on professional & technical and health care & social. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 69%
- Work from home 27%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in San Carlos, San Diego
The coast is about 14 minutes away. Distance to the water changes a lot across San Carlos, San Diego, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in San Carlos, San Diego, month by month
San Carlos, San Diego sees roughly 271 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 82 degrees. January highs sit near 69, with lows near 45. Every month averages in that range.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 69° | 56° | 45° |
| April | 73° | 61° | 53° |
| July | 82° | 71° | 65° |
| October | 82° | 68° | 58° |
Flying in and out of San Carlos, San Diego
San Diego International sits about 9 miles away. It is a large hub and boarded 12.7 million passengers in 2025, with 121 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around San Carlos, San Diego
Schools across San Carlos, San Diego average a B, better than 72% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- Maryland Avenue ElementaryC · 31% proficient
Top high schools
- Grossmont HighB− · 41% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every San Carlos, San Diego school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
San Carlos, San Diego 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 Carlos, San Diego against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Common questions about living in San Carlos, San Diego
Is San Carlos, San Diego a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, San Carlos, San Diego ranks 485th of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on the weather, civic engagement, and health care access, and lowest on cell coverage and an overheated housing market. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is San Carlos, San Diego expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $990,549. The overall cost of living runs about 37% above the national average. Set against a $146,307 median income, cost of living beats 78% of neighborhoods.
Is San Carlos, San Diego safe?
Yes, San Carlos, San Diego is safer than 82% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $296 per resident a year.
Compare San Carlos, San Diego with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to San Carlos, San Diego. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in San Carlos, San Diego 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 Carlos, San Diego detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for San Carlos, San Diego: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in San Carlos, San Diego: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of San Carlos, San Diego: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in San Carlos, San Diego: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
San Carlos, San Diego 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.