While big cities like San Bernardino 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 San Bernardino. These burbs have all of the benefits of being near San Bernardino without actually having to be in the city.
Of course, not all suburbs of San Bernardino 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 San Bernardino area.
Table Of Contents: Top Ten | Methodology | Summary | Table
The 10 best suburbs to live around San Bernardino for 2025:
What’s the best suburb of San Bernardino? El Cerrito ranks as the best suburb of San Bernardino for 2025 based on the most recent Census and FBI data. If you happen to be a resident of El Cerrito, you’re probably not too surprised to find it on the top our list.
We’ll tell you what makes each of these 10 San Bernardino ‘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 San Bernardino Suburbs To Live For 2025
/10
Population: 25,781
Median Income: $127,475
Unemployment Rate: 4.9%
Poverty Rate: 7.5%
More on El Cerrito: Data
El Cerrito is always mentioned as one of the best suburbs in the San Bernardino area. We’ll tell you the good about “Awesome El Cerrito.”
Everyone here is rich; families average $127,475 a year, which is the 2nd highest in the San Bernardino region. And only 4.87% are out of work. Homes average more than $1,107,500 each.
/10
Population: 70,179
Median Income: $161,322
Unemployment Rate: 4.7%
Poverty Rate: 3.6%
More on Eastvale: Data
Eastvale is the second best ‘burb we looked at near San Bernardino for 2025.
It ranks 1st for incomes in the area and only 4.04% of residents lack insurance, good for 4th best.
/10
Population: 36,553
Median Income: $122,127
Unemployment Rate: 5.8%
Poverty Rate: 5.9%
More on Claremont: Data
Here in Claremont, it’s really safe, and residents are just about as rich as you’ll see in the San Bernardino 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 Claremont.
/10
Population: 174,693
Median Income: $109,511
Unemployment Rate: 5.8%
Poverty Rate: 8.0%
More on Rancho Cucamonga: Data
Rancho Cucamonga ranks as the 4th best suburb of San Bernardino for 2025.
You won’t find many better places to raise your kids in the region than in Rancho Cucamonga and the schools are some of the best around.
Car theft, GTA, schools inferior
easy to get to fwy if you are a thief or car thief
not enough cops for the crime!
/10
Population: 25,211
Median Income: $125,117
Unemployment Rate: 4.1%
Poverty Rate: 5.7%
More on Norco: Data
Coming in as the fifth best is Norco.
Norco gets kudos for having the 7th most expensive homes in the San Bernardino area, where houses sell for an average of $731,900. However, the cost of living here is among the highest in the area.
hey i lived in Norco for 30 years and Im not a redneck…Oh… wait, maybe I am. lol
/10
Population: 78,024
Median Income: $122,600
Unemployment Rate: 6.3%
Poverty Rate: 6.9%
More on Chino Hills: Data
Chino Hills 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 6.33%.
According to online reports, Chino Hills is quickly becoming one of the more affluent suburbs in the San Bernardino area, meaning you need to get in soon.
/10
Population: 30,804
Median Income: $104,565
Unemployment Rate: 6.9%
Poverty Rate: 8.2%
More on La Verne: Data
The 7th best suburb on our list goes to La Verne.
La Verne 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 27.3 miles to downtown, which is a good thing.
/10
Population: 78,940
Median Income: $101,407
Unemployment Rate: 5.3%
Poverty Rate: 9.0%
More on Upland: Data
Upland 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 6.33% of people lack insurance, good for 13th in the area.
/10
Population: 34,099
Median Income: $105,833
Unemployment Rate: 4.9%
Poverty Rate: 9.2%
More on San Dimas: Data
Is ‘Everything Better In San Dimas?’
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: 72,985
Median Income: $99,158
Unemployment Rate: 6.2%
Poverty Rate: 7.4%
More on Redlands: Data
And rounding out the top ten for 2025 is Redlands.
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 San Bernardino for 2025
Figuring out the best suburbs around San Bernardino 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 2019-2023 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 San Bernardino.
Additionally, we limited the analysis to places that have over 5,000 people. This left us with a grand total of 34 suburbs to evaluate around San Bernardino.
We ranked each place with scores from 1 to 34 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 San Bernardino.” We’re lookin’ at you, El Cerrito.
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 2025. This report is our tenth time ranking the best San Bernardino suburbs. Skip to the end to see the list of all the suburbs ranked from best to worst.
Summary: Welcome to the Best San Bernardino ‘Burbs of 2025
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 San Bernardino are .
So if you’re craving the amenities of a larger city like San Bernardino 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 San Bernardino Suburbs
| Rank | City | Population | Median Income | Average Home Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | El Cerrito, CA | 25,781 | $127,475 | $1,107,500 |
| 2 | Eastvale, CA | 70,179 | $161,322 | $752,000 |
| 3 | Claremont, CA | 36,553 | $122,127 | $870,800 |
| 4 | Rancho Cucamonga, CA | 174,693 | $109,511 | $694,400 |
| 5 | Norco, CA | 25,211 | $125,117 | $731,900 |
| 6 | Chino Hills, CA | 78,024 | $122,600 | $830,000 |
| 7 | La Verne, CA | 30,804 | $104,565 | $793,900 |
| 8 | Upland, CA | 78,940 | $101,407 | $688,800 |
| 9 | San Dimas, CA | 34,099 | $105,833 | $756,200 |
| 10 | Redlands, CA | 72,985 | $99,158 | $583,000 |
| 11 | Corona, CA | 158,839 | $106,438 | $656,500 |
| 12 | Chino, CA | 91,775 | $103,845 | $641,500 |
| 13 | Calimesa, CA | 10,680 | $90,313 | $423,300 |
| 14 | Beaumont, CA | 54,817 | $105,164 | $464,000 |
| 15 | Grand Terrace, CA | 13,069 | $83,668 | $465,800 |
| 16 | Loma Linda, CA | 25,021 | $82,824 | $557,800 |
| 17 | Fontana, CA | 211,921 | $98,187 | $558,500 |
| 18 | Yucaipa, CA | 54,348 | $92,401 | $466,000 |
| 19 | Riverside, CA | 316,241 | $88,575 | $542,100 |
| 20 | Ontario, CA | 178,347 | $82,806 | $568,000 |
| 21 | Pomona, CA | 148,391 | $78,869 | $569,600 |
| 22 | Montclair, CA | 37,809 | $76,338 | $549,600 |
| 23 | Big Bear Lake, CA | 5,038 | $74,728 | $517,900 |
| 24 | Highland, CA | 56,690 | $77,979 | $455,200 |
| 25 | Moreno Valley, CA | 210,378 | $87,477 | $461,400 |
| 26 | Jurupa Valley, CA | 106,244 | $96,190 | $538,700 |
| 27 | Rialto, CA | 103,866 | $85,521 | $454,400 |
| 28 | Colton, CA | 53,798 | $69,581 | $411,100 |
| 29 | Apple Valley, CA | 75,478 | $65,926 | $377,300 |
| 30 | San Jacinto, CA | 54,756 | $78,281 | $391,600 |
| 31 | Banning, CA | 30,680 | $57,699 | $322,900 |
| 32 | Perris, CA | 79,349 | $82,523 | $431,900 |
| 33 | Victorville, CA | 135,983 | $70,663 | $342,500 |
| 34 | Hesperia, CA | 100,141 | $68,971 | $366,800 |