Best PlacesWest Side, Stamford, CT Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around West Side, Stamford, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. The coast is close, and the measures below put a number on how close. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
West Side, Stamford ranks 3,508th of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on civic engagement by a wide margin, and state finances rank lowest.
The best neighborhoods in West Side, Stamford
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.
West Side, Stamford's strengths and weaknesses
Where West Side, Stamford ranks high
- Voter turnoutBetter than 95% of neighborhoods
- Internet speedBetter than 95% of neighborhoods
- Big-city accessBetter than 92% of neighborhoods
- WalkabilityBetter than 85% of neighborhoods
- Cell coverageBetter than 80% of neighborhoods
Where West Side, Stamford ranks low
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 6% of neighborhoods
- Cheap childcare$1,858 a month, better than only 10% of neighborhoods
- Educational attainmentBetter than only 11% of neighborhoods
- Local economyBetter than only 14% of neighborhoods
- Nice weatherabout 65 pleasant days a year, better than only 17% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in West Side, Stamford
A household needs to earn about $172,000 a year to comfortably buy the median West Side, Stamford home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $71,127, 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 West Side, Stamford's effective rate of 1.33%, 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 West Side, Stamford
West Side, Stamford 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 West Side, Stamford.
Who works in West Side, Stamford, and how
Work in West Side, Stamford centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment runs well above the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 71%
- Work from home 9%
- Transit, walk, or bike 20%
Life in West Side, Stamford
The coast is about 4 minutes away. Distance to the water changes a lot across West Side, Stamford, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in West Side, Stamford, month by month
West Side, Stamford sees roughly 65 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 86 degrees. January highs sit near 41, with lows near 24. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, and August through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 41° | 32° | 24° |
| April | 62° | 50° | 40° |
| July | 86° | 76° | 66° |
| October | 68° | 57° | 47° |
Flying in and out of West Side, Stamford
The nearest airport, Westchester County, is about 8 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Laguardia, about 25 miles away.
The best schools in and around West Side, Stamford
Schools across West Side, Stamford average a C+, better than 47% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- International School At DundeeA+ · 75% proficient
- Stamford Charter School For ExcellenceA · 70% proficient
- Hart SchoolB+ · 51% proficient
Top middle schools
- Eastern Middle SchoolA+ · 74% proficient
- Turn Of River SchoolC · 33% proficient
- Cloonan SchoolC · 31% proficient
Top high schools
- Greenwich High SchoolA · 73% proficient
- Stamford High SchoolB− · 42% proficient
- Westhill High SchoolB− · 41% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every West Side, Stamford school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
West Side, Stamford 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 West Side, Stamford against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Common questions about living in West Side, Stamford
Is West Side, Stamford a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, West Side, Stamford ranks 3,508th of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on civic engagement, fast internet, and big-city access, and lowest on state finances and childcare costs. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is West Side, Stamford expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $613,697. The overall cost of living runs about 14% above the national average. Set against a $71,127 median income, cost of living beats 25% of neighborhoods.
Is West Side, Stamford safe?
Yes, West Side, Stamford is safer than 56% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $325 per resident a year.
Compare West Side, Stamford with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to West Side, Stamford. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in West Side, Stamford 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.
West Side, Stamford detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for West Side, Stamford: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in West Side, Stamford: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of West Side, Stamford: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in West Side, Stamford: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
West Side, Stamford 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.