The 10 Best Pomona Suburbs To Live In For 2023


The best Pomona suburbs are San Marino and South Pasadena for 2023 based on Saturday Night Science.

While big cities like Pomona 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 Pomona. These burbs have all of the benefits of being near Pomona without actually having to be in the city.

Of course, not all suburbs of Pomona 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 Pomona area.

Here are the 10 best suburbs to live around Pomona for 2023:

  1. San Marino
  2. South Pasadena
  3. Yorba Linda
  4. La Palma
  5. Sierra Madre
  6. Villa Park
  7. Eastvale
  8. El Cerrito
  9. La Habra Heights
  10. Cerritos

What’s the best suburb of Pomona? San Marino ranks as the best suburb of Pomona for 2023 based on the most recent Census and FBI data. If you happen to be a resident of San Marino, you’re probably not too surprised to find it on the top our list.

We’ll tell you what makes each of these 10 Pomona ‘burbs better than the rest–but first, a bit about our methodology.

Feel free to check out some more reading about California:


Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table


The 10 Best Pomona Suburbs To Live For 2023

San Marino, CA

Source: Wikipedia User Los Angeles | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

9.5
/10

Population: 12,620
Median Income: $174,722
Unemployment Rate: 3.5%
Poverty Rate: 6.1%
More on San Marino: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

San Marino is always mentioned as one of the best suburbs in the Pomona area. We’ll tell you the good about “Awesome San Marino.”

Everyone here is rich; families average $174,722 a year, which is the 2nd highest in the Pomona region. And only 3.51% are out of work. Homes average more than $2,000,001 each.

South Pasadena, CA

Source: Wikipedia User The original uploader was Geographer at English Wikipedia | CC BY 2.5
Overall SnackAbility

9.5
/10

Population: 26,837
Median Income: $115,088
Unemployment Rate: 5.0%
Poverty Rate: 6.1%
More on South Pasadena: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

South Pasadena is the second best ‘burb we looked at near Pomona for 2023.

It ranks 12th for incomes in the area and only 3.96% of residents lack insurance, good for 12th best.

Yorba Linda, CA

Source: Wikipedia User Orange County Archives from Orange County, California, United States of America | CC BY 2.0
Overall SnackAbility

10
/10

Population: 68,319
Median Income: $137,011
Unemployment Rate: 4.3%
Poverty Rate: 5.3%
More on Yorba Linda: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Here in Yorba Linda, it’s really safe, and residents are just about as rich as you’ll see in the Pomona 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 Yorba Linda.

La Palma, CA

Source: Wikipedia User Mike Greene | CC BY-SA 2.0
Overall SnackAbility

9.5
/10

Population: 15,650
Median Income: $106,473
Unemployment Rate: 3.8%
Poverty Rate: 6.4%
More on La Palma: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

La Palma ranks as the 4th best suburb of Pomona for 2023.

You won’t find many better places to raise your kids in the region than in La Palma and the schools are some of the best around.

Sierra Madre, CA

Source: Wikipedia User Telecineguy | GFDL
Overall SnackAbility

9.5
/10

Population: 11,253
Median Income: $116,884
Unemployment Rate: 4.7%
Poverty Rate: 5.7%
More on Sierra Madre: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Coming in as the fifth best is Sierra Madre.

Sierra Madre gets kudos for having the 5th most expensive homes in the Pomona area, where houses sell for an average of $1,048,300. However, the cost of living here is among the highest in the area.

Villa Park, CA

Source: Wikipedia User Jeaniac | CC BY-SA 3.0
Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 5,864
Median Income: $172,375
Unemployment Rate: 1.3%
Poverty Rate: 7.6%
More on Villa Park: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Villa Park 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 1.29% which is 2nd best in the area.

According to online reports, Villa Park is quickly becoming one of the more affluent suburbs in the Pomona area, meaning you need to get in soon.

Eastvale, CA

Source: Wikipedia User Photograph by Brien Clark | CC BY-SA 2.5
Overall SnackAbility

9
/10

Population: 68,539
Median Income: $141,827
Unemployment Rate: 4.4%
Poverty Rate: 4.3%
More on Eastvale: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

The 7th best suburb on our list goes to Eastvale.

Eastvale 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 12.2 miles to downtown, which is a good thing.

El Cerrito, CA

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

8.5
/10

Population: 25,898
Median Income: $116,875
Unemployment Rate: 5.5%
Poverty Rate: 6.8%
More on El Cerrito: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

El Cerrito 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 3.73% of people lack insurance, good for 10th in the area.

La Habra Heights, CA

Source: Flickr User sergei.gussev | CC BY 2.0
Overall SnackAbility

9
/10

Population: 5,651
Median Income: $181,591
Unemployment Rate: 2.8%
Poverty Rate: 2.4%
More on La Habra Heights: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

Is ‘Everything Better In La Habra Heights?’

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.

Cerritos, CA

Source: Wikipedia User The original uploader was AllyUnion at English Wikipedia | Attribution
Overall SnackAbility

9
/10

Population: 49,630
Median Income: $115,600
Unemployment Rate: 6.0%
Poverty Rate: 4.8%
More on Cerritos: Data | Crime | Cost Of Living | Real Estate

And rounding out the top ten for 2023 is Cerritos.

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 Pomona for 2023

Figuring out the best suburbs around Pomona 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 2017-2021 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 Pomona.

Additionally, we limited the analysis to places that have over 3,000 people. This left us with a grand total of 93 suburbs to evaluate around Pomona.

We ranked each place with scores from 1 to 93 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 Pomona.” We’re lookin’ at you, San Marino.

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 2023. This report is our tenth time ranking the best Pomona suburbs. Skip to the end to see the list of all the suburbs ranked from best to worst.

Summary: Welcome to the Best Pomona ‘Burbs of 2023

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.

So if you’re craving the amenities of a larger city like Pomona but don’t want to deal with the drawbacks, one of these suburbs might be for you.

For more California reading, check out:

Detailed List Of The Best Pomona Suburbs

Rank City Population Median Income
1 San Marino, CA 12,620 $174,722
2 South Pasadena, CA 26,837 $115,088
3 Yorba Linda, CA 68,319 $137,011
4 La Palma, CA 15,650 $106,473
5 Sierra Madre, CA 11,253 $116,884
6 Villa Park, CA 5,864 $172,375
7 Eastvale, CA 68,539 $141,827
8 El Cerrito, CA 25,898 $116,875
9 La Habra Heights, CA 5,651 $181,591
10 Cerritos, CA 49,630 $115,600
11 Cypress, CA 50,279 $109,180
12 Walnut, CA 28,641 $121,882
13 Huntington Beach, CA 198,735 $104,728
14 Arcadia, CA 56,697 $99,588
15 Lakewood, CA 82,419 $102,163
16 La Mirada, CA 47,957 $97,672
17 Placentia, CA 51,951 $103,041
18 Lake Forest, CA 85,516 $117,374
19 Diamond Bar, CA 55,339 $100,776
20 Claremont, CA 36,312 $111,937
21 Fountain Valley, CA 57,139 $92,765
22 Brea, CA 46,912 $108,721
23 Irvine, CA 297,868 $114,027
24 San Dimas, CA 34,775 $101,144
25 Norco, CA 26,176 $115,619
26 Rancho Cucamonga, CA 173,946 $97,046
27 Chino Hills, CA 78,229 $109,285
28 Glendora, CA 52,458 $103,159
29 Seal Beach, CA 25,216 $75,821
30 Orange, CA 139,195 $102,125
31 Tustin, CA 79,895 $93,901
32 La Verne, CA 31,423 $95,957
33 Buena Park, CA 83,974 $90,503
34 Costa Mesa, CA 112,148 $96,391
35 Alhambra, CA 83,174 $73,035
36 Pasadena, CA 138,771 $89,661
37 Whittier, CA 87,184 $80,306
38 Monrovia, CA 37,999 $87,077
39 Corona, CA 157,844 $95,268
40 West Covina, CA 109,396 $89,834
41 San Gabriel, CA 39,673 $76,918
42 Fullerton, CA 142,964 $92,718
43 Upland, CA 78,624 $82,259
44 Monterey Park, CA 61,153 $68,497
45 Norwalk, CA 103,330 $83,217
46 Artesia, CA 16,390 $83,321
47 Los Alamitos, CA 11,780 $91,051
48 Signal Hill, CA 11,780 $79,309
49 Downey, CA 114,293 $77,972
50 Covina, CA 51,061 $81,570
51 La Habra, CA 63,287 $88,002
52 Glendale, CA 196,512 $74,488
53 Pico Rivera, CA 62,383 $78,056
54 Duarte, CA 21,723 $86,903
55 Chino, CA 90,279 $91,107
56 Temple, CA 5,093 $77,509
57 Rosemead, CA 51,698 $64,224
58 Garden Grove, CA 172,708 $78,046
59 Anaheim, CA 348,204 $81,806
60 Santa Fe Springs, CA 18,817 $75,086
61 Santa Ana, CA 313,818 $77,283
62 Midway, CA 3,402 $55,947
63 Long Beach, CA 466,565 $71,150
64 Westminster, CA 91,267 $71,108
65 Grand Terrace, CA 13,079 $76,791
66 Bellflower, CA 79,070 $70,236
67 Fontana, CA 208,087 $83,468
68 Montebello, CA 62,828 $66,584
69 La Puente, CA 38,447 $73,827
70 Baldwin Park, CA 72,813 $72,554
71 Azusa, CA 49,457 $74,043
72 Paramount, CA 53,904 $60,456
73 Hawaiian Gardens, CA 14,178 $66,578
74 Riverside, CA 314,858 $76,755
75 Stanton, CA 38,167 $68,821
76 Loma Linda, CA 24,712 $63,272
77 Maywood, CA 25,477 $54,535
78 Ontario, CA 175,223 $71,908
79 El Monte, CA 110,144 $56,524
80 South El Monte, CA 19,860 $60,244
81 Jurupa Valley, CA 104,684 $83,430
82 South Gate, CA 93,308 $59,647
83 Bell, CA 33,915 $51,183
84 Bell Gardens, CA 39,870 $50,311
85 Compton, CA 96,083 $62,297
86 Lynwood, CA 67,497 $61,612
87 Colton, CA 53,894 $60,874
88 Montclair, CA 37,871 $67,483
89 Huntington Park, CA 55,439 $51,065
90 Rialto, CA 103,799 $69,934
91 Cudahy, CA 23,003 $47,050
92 Commerce, CA 12,459 $58,226
93 San Bernardino, CA 220,821 $55,372
About Chris Kolmar

Chris Kolmar has been in the real estate business for almost ten years now. He originally worked for Movoto Real Estate as the director of marketing before founding HomeSnacks.

He believes the key to finding the right place to live comes down to looking at the data, reading about things to do, and, most importantly, checking it out yourself before you move.

If you've been looking for a place to live in the past several years, you've probably stumbled upon his writing already.

You can find out more about him on LinkedIn or his website.