While big cities like Santa Clarita 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 Santa Clarita. These burbs have all of the benefits of being near Santa Clarita without actually having to be in the city.
Of course, not all suburbs of Santa Clarita 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 Santa Clarita area.
Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table
The 10 best suburbs to live around Santa Clarita for 2024:
What’s the best suburb of Santa Clarita? South Pasadena ranks as the best suburb of Santa Clarita for 2024 based on the most recent Census and FBI data. If you happen to be a resident of South Pasadena, you’re probably not too surprised to find it on the top our list.
We’ll tell you what makes each of these 10 Santa Clarita ‘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 Santa Clarita Suburbs To Live For 2024
/10
Population: 26,583
Median Income: $127,882
Unemployment Rate: 5.2%
Poverty Rate: 4.8%
More on South Pasadena: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
South Pasadena is always mentioned as one of the best suburbs in the Santa Clarita area. We’ll tell you the good about “Awesome South Pasadena.”
Everyone here is rich; families average $127,882 a year, which is the 7th highest in the Santa Clarita region. And only 5.19% are out of work. Homes average more than $1,650,214 each.
/10
Population: 12,442
Median Income: $174,253
Unemployment Rate: 4.4%
Poverty Rate: 9.0%
More on San Marino: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
San Marino is the second best ‘burb we looked at near Santa Clarita for 2024.
It ranks 3rd for incomes in the area and only 4.06% of residents lack insurance, good for 7th best.
/10
Population: 20,088
Median Income: $157,930
Unemployment Rate: 5.4%
Poverty Rate: 5.0%
More on Agoura Hills: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
Here in Agoura Hills, it’s really safe, and residents are just about as rich as you’ll see in the Santa Clarita 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 Agoura Hills.
4. Hidden Hills, CA
/10
Population: 2,107
Median Income: $250,001
Unemployment Rate: 4.7%
Poverty Rate: 9.6%
More on Hidden Hills: Real Estate
Hidden Hills ranks as the 4th best suburb of Santa Clarita for 2024.
You won’t find many better places to raise your kids in the region than in Hidden Hills and the schools are some of the best around.
/10
Population: 10,698
Median Income: $186,905
Unemployment Rate: 5.5%
Poverty Rate: 8.5%
More on Malibu: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
Coming in as the fifth best is Malibu.
Malibu gets kudos for having the 3rd most expensive homes in the Santa Clarita area, where houses sell for an average of $3,392,502. However, the cost of living here is among the highest in the area.
/10
Population: 23,106
Median Income: $154,079
Unemployment Rate: 9.4%
Poverty Rate: 9.0%
More on Calabasas: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
Calabasas 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 9.45%.
According to online reports, Calabasas is quickly becoming one of the more affluent suburbs in the Santa Clarita area, meaning you need to get in soon.
Stuck up ppl with nothing to do. High school kids are superficial with lots of drug activity
Many ppl badmouth Calabasas
/10
Population: 36,073
Median Income: $143,218
Unemployment Rate: 5.1%
Poverty Rate: 4.0%
More on Moorpark: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
The 7th best suburb on our list goes to Moorpark.
Moorpark 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 22.7 miles to downtown, which is a good thing.
/10
Population: 32,406
Median Income: $116,771
Unemployment Rate: 8.6%
Poverty Rate: 10.2%
More on Beverly Hills: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
Beverly Hills 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 4.21% of people lack insurance, good for 8th in the area.
/10
Population: 92,168
Median Income: $106,797
Unemployment Rate: 6.2%
Poverty Rate: 11.6%
More on Santa Monica: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
Is ‘Everything Better In Santa Monica?’
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: 126,532
Median Income: $125,399
Unemployment Rate: 4.8%
Poverty Rate: 7.9%
More on Thousand Oaks: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate
And rounding out the top ten for 2024 is Thousand Oaks.
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 Santa Clarita for 2024
Figuring out the best suburbs around Santa Clarita 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 Santa Clarita.
Additionally, we limited the analysis to places that have over 2,000 people. This left us with a grand total of 21 suburbs to evaluate around Santa Clarita.
We ranked each place with scores from 1 to 21 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 Santa Clarita.” We’re lookin’ at you, South Pasadena.
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 Santa Clarita suburbs. Skip to the end to see the list of all the suburbs ranked from best to worst.
Summary: Welcome to the Best Santa Clarita ‘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 Santa Clarita are .
So if you’re craving the amenities of a larger city like Santa Clarita 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 Santa Clarita Suburbs
| Rank | City | Population | Median Income | Average Home Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | South Pasadena, CA | 26,583 | $127,882 | $1,650,214 |
| 2 | San Marino, CA | 12,442 | $174,253 | $2,524,471 |
| 3 | Agoura Hills, CA | 20,088 | $157,930 | $1,186,593 |
| 4 | Hidden Hills, CA | 2,107 | $250,001 | $5,035,856 |
| 5 | Malibu, CA | 10,698 | $186,905 | $3,392,502 |
| 6 | Calabasas, CA | 23,106 | $154,079 | $1,667,987 |
| 7 | Moorpark, CA | 36,073 | $143,218 | $905,462 |
| 8 | Beverly Hills, CA | 32,406 | $116,771 | $3,641,358 |
| 9 | Santa Monica, CA | 92,168 | $106,797 | $1,685,607 |
| 10 | Thousand Oaks, CA | 126,532 | $125,399 | $1,001,691 |
| 11 | Simi Valley, CA | 126,153 | $112,144 | $801,530 |
| 12 | Burbank, CA | 106,389 | $91,455 | $1,128,292 |
| 13 | West Hollywood, CA | 35,358 | $89,034 | $1,048,481 |
| 14 | Fillmore, CA | 16,455 | $85,255 | $641,359 |
| 15 | Pasadena, CA | 137,554 | $97,818 | $1,092,011 |
| 16 | Westlake, CA | 4,847 | $63,841 | $166,993 |
| 17 | Glendale, CA | 194,512 | $81,219 | $1,134,103 |
| 18 | San Fernando, CA | 23,958 | $70,950 | $685,472 |
| 19 | Los Angeles, CA | 3,881,041 | $76,244 | $926,593 |
| 20 | Lancaster, CA | 171,465 | $71,367 | $449,018 |
| 21 | Palmdale, CA | 166,895 | $78,414 | $486,827 |
