If you’re looking to transplant to California without breaking the bank, say hello to Fresno. Located in central California, Fresno offers easy access to big cities like Los Angeles and San Francisco, but Fresno has plenty going for it in its own right. For starters, life in Fresno is much, much cheaper than California writ large.
Affordability is great and all, but you don’t want to trade away your happiness and security just to save a few bucks. Fear not — Homesnacks has looked at recent census data to determine which Fresno neighborhoods are the best of the best. These are places where home values are high and getting higher, good-paying jobs are plentiful, crime is low, and there’s plenty of stuff to do. Like catching a famous act at the Save Mart Center, checking out the eerie yet stunning Forestiere Underground Gardens, or snapping photos of all the gorgeous trees blooming along the Blossom Trail. And if you’re a raisin guy, be advidsed that 100% of U.S. raisins are produced within a 60-mile radius of Fresno.
So just where are these hubs of entertainment, beauty, and quality? It seems that Fresno’s north side has a statistical edge over the rest of the city, so it’s a smart bet to start your search in neighborhoods north of Shaw, like Woodwar Park and Bullard. That doesn’t mean you should sleep on neighborhoods in Fresno’s southeast, like South Growth Area, where the home price to income ratio is crazy low.
Wherever you end up in Fresno, you’ll be served some of the best tacos in the country, so we hope you like Tex-Mex. But what is Fresno’s best neighborhood to live in for 2026? Keep reading to find out.
$101,961 median income · $368,063 median home value
$89,000 median income · $392,800 median home value
$73,455 median income · $290,424 median home value
$69,536 median income · $292,050 median home value
$56,701 median income · $228,950 median home value
$48,271 median income · $179,668 median home value
$49,244 median income · $197,767 median home value
$66,411 median income · $201,550 median home value
$62,943 median income · $220,748 median home value
$28,279 median income · $168,436 median home value
The receipts
Compare the top ten
Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is California’s statewide median.
California statewide median: $99,122
California statewide median: $774,582
Saturday Night Science
Methodology: How we determined the best Fresno, CA neighborhoods in 2026
To rank the best neighborhoods in Fresno, we had to determine what criteria define “best” and then apply Saturday Night Science to it.
Using FBI crime, Census, and extrapolated BLS data, we arrived at the following set of criteria:
- High incomes
- Low unemployment rates
- Low crime
- High home prices
- High population densities (A proxy for things to do)
We then ranked each neighborhood with scores from 1 to 12 in each category, where 1 was the best.
Next, we averaged the rankings for each neighborhood to create a best neighborhood index.
And finally, we crowned the neighborhood with the lowest best neighborhood index, the “Best City Neighborhood In Fresno.” We’re lookin’ at you, Woodward Park.
Read on below to learn more about what it’s like to live in the best places Fresno, California has to offer. Or skip to the end to see the list of all the neighborhoods in the city, from best to worst.
We updated this article for 2026. This report is our eleventh time ranking the best neighborhoods to live in Fresno.
The full plate
Table: Best Fresno neighborhoods for 2026
Click any column to sort. Search by neighborhood name.
| Rank | Neighborhood | Population | Home Value | Median Income |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Woodward Park | 58,391 | $368,063 | $101,961 |
| 2 | North Growth Area | 2,295 | $392,800 | $89,000 |
| 3 | Bullard | 105,413 | $290,424 | $73,455 |
| 4 | Southeast Growth Area | 6,677 | $292,050 | $69,536 |
| 5 | Hoover | 56,561 | $228,950 | $56,701 |
| 6 | Roosevelt | 123,984 | $179,668 | $48,271 |
| 7 | Mclane | 57,728 | $197,767 | $49,244 |
| 8 | South Growth Area | 3,848 | $201,550 | $66,411 |
| 9 | West | 39,506 | $220,748 | $62,943 |
| 10 | Central | 14,713 | $168,436 | $28,279 |
| 11 | Fresno-High | 56,759 | $127,194 | $35,850 |
| 12 | Edison | 23,773 | $165,716 | $32,395 |
Source: U.S. Census ACS 2020-2024. All 12 Fresno neighborhoods.
Summary
Summary: Putting a bow on our analysis of the best neighborhoods in Fresno
If you’re measuring the neighborhoods in Fresno where crime is low and everyone wants to live, this is an accurate list.
The best neighborhoods in Fresno are Woodward Park, North Growth Area, Bullard, Southeast Growth Area, Hoover, Roosevelt, Mclane, South Growth Area, West, and Central.
As mentioned earlier, the neighborhoods in Fresno aren’t all good. Edison takes the title of the worst neighborhood to live in Fresno.
We ranked the neighborhoods from best to worst in the chart below. Not sold on California? Take the two-minute Find Your Place quiz and see which state actually fits you.
Questions and answers
Best Neighborhoods In Fresno FAQs
What is the best neighborhood in Fresno?
Woodward Park is the best neighborhood in Fresno for 2026, according to Saturday Night Science. North Growth Area and Bullard are next.
What are the best neighborhoods in Fresno?
The best neighborhoods in Fresno are Woodward Park, North Growth Area, Bullard, Southeast Growth Area, Hoover, Roosevelt, Mclane, South Growth Area, West, and Central. We ranked all 12 neighborhoods in the city.
How expensive is Woodward Park?
The median household income in Woodward Park is $101,961 and the median home costs $368,063. The best blocks in Fresno rarely come at a discount.
How do you rank Fresno neighborhoods?
Each neighborhood is scored on income, home values, population density, unemployment, and crime, using Census tract data. The neighborhood with the best combined score, Woodward Park, takes the top spot.
Which Fresno neighborhood ranked last?
Edison came in last of the 12 neighborhoods we scored. Every city has a bottom of the table; in Fresno the numbers put it there.
