While big cities like Sacramento offer culture, cuisine, and charisma, they also deliver terrible traffic, towering expenses, and a taxing quality of life.
With that in mind, we wanted to uncover the best suburbs around Sacramento. These burbs have all of the benefits of being near Sacramento without actually having to be in the city.
Of course, not all suburbs of Sacramento are created equally, which is precisely why we set out to find the best ones. Using Saturday Night Science, we delve into the factors that matter most, from commutes and housing costs to community vibes, to help you uncover the perfect suburban spots in the Greater Sacramento area.
Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table
The 10 best suburbs to live around Sacramento for 2024:
What’s the best suburb of Sacramento? Rocklin ranks as the best suburb of Sacramento for 2024 based on the most recent Census and FBI data. If you happen to be a resident of Rocklin, you’re probably not too surprised to find it on the top our list.
We’ll tell you what makes each of these 10 Sacramento ‘burbs better than the rest–but first, a bit about our methodology.
Feel free to check out some more reading about California:
The 10 Best Sacramento Suburbs To Live For 2024
/10
Population: 71,676
Median Income: $116,006
Unemployment Rate: 4.9%
Poverty Rate: 4.3%
More on Rocklin: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
Rocklin is always mentioned as one of the best suburbs in the Sacramento area. We’ll tell you the good about “Awesome Rocklin.”
Everyone here is rich; families average $116,006 a year, which is the 3rd highest in the Sacramento region. And only 4.87% are out of work. Homes average more than $672,750 each.
low crime rate, beautiful area, wonderful homes, expert level schools
parks are great, roads aren’t busy, food places are decent.
/10
Population: 81,077
Median Income: $134,935
Unemployment Rate: 5.0%
Poverty Rate: 5.3%
More on Folsom: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
Folsom is the second best ‘burb we looked at near Sacramento for 2024.
It ranks 1st for incomes in the area and only 3.11% of residents lack insurance, good for 5th best.
/10
Population: 6,831
Median Income: $100,159
Unemployment Rate: 4.0%
Poverty Rate: 9.0%
More on Loomis: Data | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
Here in Loomis, it’s really safe, and residents are just about as rich as you’ll see in the Sacramento metro area.
The bad side? Schools are more crowded, and the cost of living puts a large part of the city out of reach for most families.
But price is based on demand and a lot of people want to live in Loomis.
/10
Population: 148,879
Median Income: $112,265
Unemployment Rate: 4.5%
Poverty Rate: 6.3%
More on Roseville: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
Roseville ranks as the 4th best suburb of Sacramento for 2024.
You won’t find many better places to raise your kids in the region than in Roseville and the schools are some of the best around.
/10
Population: 50,131
Median Income: $99,434
Unemployment Rate: 4.2%
Poverty Rate: 8.0%
More on Lincoln: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
Coming in as the fifth best is Lincoln.
Lincoln gets kudos for having the 5th most expensive homes in the Sacramento area, where houses sell for an average of $631,747. However, the cost of living here is among the highest in the area.
/10
Population: 176,105
Median Income: $115,864
Unemployment Rate: 6.4%
Poverty Rate: 8.8%
More on Elk Grove: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
Elk Grove is proud of its 6th place finish on this list. And here’s why.
Most residents have great jobs and the unemployment rate sits at 6.41%.
According to online reports, Elk Grove is quickly becoming one of the more affluent suburbs in the Sacramento area, meaning you need to get in soon.
/10
Population: 67,203
Median Income: $83,592
Unemployment Rate: 5.8%
Poverty Rate: 26.3%
More on Davis: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
The 7th best suburb on our list goes to Davis.
Davis schools are some of the best in the region, and crime is really low. The cost of living makes it a lot more desirable for many families, especially first-time home buyers.
And, it’s only 14.5 miles to downtown, which is a good thing.
/10
Population: 7,270
Median Income: $128,679
Unemployment Rate: 1.9%
Poverty Rate: 6.5%
More on Winters: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
Winters is growing quickly, and for a good reason. Crime is far below average, and most residents are gainfully employed. Even the cost of living is reasonable.
A solid 8.24% of people lack insurance, good for 15th in the area.
/10
Population: 19,071
Median Income: $92,138
Unemployment Rate: 3.2%
Poverty Rate: 7.2%
More on Dixon: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
Is ‘Everything Better In Dixon?’
Almost.
It placed 9th on our list thanks to the fact that it’s really expensive to live here, but the schools are great, so you get what you pay for in that regard.
/10
Population: 25,350
Median Income: $85,069
Unemployment Rate: 6.0%
Poverty Rate: 7.2%
More on Galt: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
And rounding out the top ten for 2024 is Galt.
This city is far above average in every category, and the best part? It’s far more affordable than the other cities listed above. So, you get a big bang for your buck here.
Methodology: How We Determined The Best Suburbs Around Sacramento for 2024
Figuring out the best suburbs around Sacramento was simple. We used Saturday Night Science to find things people like about living in the suburbs and then locate the suburbs with those things.
We analyzed the newest American Community Survey data for 2018-2022 to research each suburb. We decided upon the following criteria:
- Low unemployment rate
- High median household incomes
- Population density (lots of things to do)
- High home values
- A lot of college-educated people
- Low poverty
- High rate of insured families
We defined a suburb as being within 30 miles of Sacramento.
Additionally, we limited the analysis to places that have over 6,000 people. This left us with a grand total of 15 suburbs to evaluate around Sacramento.
We ranked each place with scores from 1 to 15 in each category, where 1 was the “best.
Next, we averaged the rankings for each place to create a quality-of-life index.
Finally, we crowned the city with the best quality of life index, the “Best Suburb near Sacramento.” We’re lookin’ at you, Rocklin.
This result may differ from our state-wide data as we did not include commute times and crime for this analysis to allow for a more extensive selection of suburbs.
We updated the data for 2024. This report is our tenth time ranking the best Sacramento suburbs. Skip to the end to see the list of all the suburbs ranked from best to worst.
Summary: Welcome to the Best Sacramento ‘Burbs of 2024
We said it once, and we’ll say it again–life in the big city isn’t for everyone. At least not all the time.
The best suburbs of Sacramento are .
So if you’re craving the amenities of a larger city like Sacramento but don’t want to deal with the drawbacks, one of these suburbs might be for you.
For more California reading, check out:
Table: Best Sacramento Suburbs
| Rank | City | Population | Median Income | Average Home Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rocklin, CA | 71,676 | $116,006 | $672,750 |
| 2 | Folsom, CA | 81,077 | $134,935 | $747,314 |
| 3 | Loomis, CA | 6,831 | $100,159 | $882,385 |
| 4 | Roseville, CA | 148,879 | $112,265 | $625,711 |
| 5 | Lincoln, CA | 50,131 | $99,434 | $631,747 |
| 6 | Elk Grove, CA | 176,105 | $115,864 | $627,121 |
| 7 | Davis, CA | 67,203 | $83,592 | $858,412 |
| 8 | Winters, CA | 7,270 | $128,679 | $586,928 |
| 9 | Dixon, CA | 19,071 | $92,138 | $578,864 |
| 10 | Galt, CA | 25,350 | $85,069 | $516,561 |
| 11 | Woodland, CA | 61,227 | $84,494 | $528,955 |
| 12 | Rancho Cordova, CA | 79,128 | $85,099 | $512,286 |
| 13 | West Sacramento, CA | 54,163 | $87,044 | $508,715 |
| 14 | Citrus Heights, CA | 87,127 | $75,022 | $465,791 |
| 15 | Rio Vista, CA | 10,074 | $83,538 | $475,869 |
