Santa Clarita has plenty to offer, but the price of admission usually comes with traffic, sky-high rent, and a calendar that fills itself.
If you want the upside of Santa Clarita without the daily grind, the answer is almost always a good suburb. The catch: not every suburb is worth the move.
So we ranked them. Using Saturday Night Science, we pulled the numbers on every place within commuting distance of Santa Clarita: incomes, home prices, unemployment, schools, the works. The result is a no-nonsense ranking of where you actually want to live.
$250,001 median income · $5,059,063 median home price
Hidden Hills is always mentioned as one of the best suburbs in the Santa Clarita area. We’ll tell you the good about “Awesome Hidden Hills.”
Everyone here is rich; families average $250,001 a year, which is the highest in the Santa Clarita region. And only 2.5% are out of work. Homes average more than $5,059,063 each.
$127,175 median income · $1,692,678 median home price
Located in
Los Angeles County, California
South Pasadena is the second best ‘burb we looked at near Santa Clarita for 2026.
It ranks 9th for incomes in the area and only 2.8% of residents lack insurance, good for 5th best.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$214,167 median income · $2,837,216 median home price
Located in
Los Angeles County, California
Here in San Marino, 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 San Marino.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$171,302 median income · $1,259,726 median home price
Located in
Los Angeles County, California
Agoura Hills ranks as the 4th best suburb of Santa Clarita for 2026.
You won’t find many better places to raise your kids in the region than in Agoura Hills and the schools are some of the best around.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$194,421 median income · $3,142,247 median home price
Located in
Los Angeles County, California
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 $3,142,247. However, the cost of living here is among the highest in the area.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$165,288 median income · $1,722,904 median home price
Located in
Los Angeles County, California
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 10.6%.
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.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$114,885 median income · $1,703,948 median home price
Located in
Los Angeles County, California
The 7th best suburb on our list goes to Santa Monica.
Santa Monica 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 26.2 miles to downtown, which is a good thing.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers | Compare
$132,977 median income · $3,662,756 median home price
Located in
Los Angeles County, California
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 4.6% of people lack insurance, good for 12th in the area.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$148,480 median income · $939,094 median home price
Located in
Ventura County, California
Is ‘Everything Better In Moorpark?’
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.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
$122,081 median income · $844,909 median home price
Located in
Ventura County, California
And rounding out the top ten for 2026 is Simi Valley.
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.
Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers
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
California statewide median: 6.6%
California statewide median: 12.0%
On the map
Where the best Santa Clarita suburbs are
Saturday Night Science
Methodology: How we determined the best suburbs around Santa Clarita for 2026
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 2020-2024 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 20 suburbs to evaluate around Santa Clarita.
We ranked each place with scores from 1 to 20 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, Hidden Hills.
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 2026. This report is our eleventh time ranking the best Santa Clarita suburbs. Skip to the end to see the list of all the suburbs ranked from best to worst.
The full plate
Table: Best Santa Clarita Suburbs
Click any column to sort. Search by city name.
| Rank | City | Suburb Score | Population | Median Income | Median Home Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hidden Hills | 5.07 | 2,150 | $250,001 | $5,059,063 |
| 2 | South Pasadena | 5.71 | 26,068 | $127,175 | $1,692,678 |
| 3 | San Marino | 5.86 | 12,216 | $214,167 | $2,837,216 |
| 4 | Agoura Hills | 6.00 | 19,721 | $171,302 | $1,259,726 |
| 5 | Malibu | 8.07 | 10,421 | $194,421 | $3,142,247 |
| 6 | Calabasas | 8.21 | 22,669 | $165,288 | $1,722,904 |
| 7 | Santa Monica | 8.43 | 91,169 | $114,885 | $1,703,948 |
| 8 | Beverly Hills | 8.64 | 31,624 | $132,977 | $3,662,756 |
| 9 | Moorpark | 8.86 | 35,854 | $148,480 | $939,094 |
| 10 | Simi Valley | 9.43 | 125,634 | $122,081 | $844,909 |
| 11 | Thousand Oaks | 10.43 | 125,205 | $135,603 | $1,049,634 |
| 12 | West Hollywood | 10.86 | 34,884 | $96,995 | $1,019,551 |
| 13 | Fillmore | 11.93 | 16,816 | $92,931 | $690,119 |
| 14 | Pasadena | 12.00 | 136,969 | $105,192 | $1,209,228 |
| 15 | Glendale | 12.86 | 190,748 | $88,393 | $1,201,880 |
| 16 | San Fernando | 13.86 | 23,632 | $83,024 | $753,549 |
| 17 | Westlake | 14.29 | 4,743 | $68,381 | $174,865 |
| 18 | Los Angeles | 15.21 | 3,857,263 | $81,939 | $952,183 |
| 19 | Lancaster | 16.00 | 169,169 | $81,511 | $465,847 |
| 20 | Palmdale | 18.29 | 164,634 | $81,770 | $501,257 |
Source: U.S. Census ACS 2020-2024. 20 suburbs within 30 miles of Santa Clarita.
Summary
Summary: Welcome to the Best Santa Clarita ‘Burbs of 2026
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 Hidden Hills, South Pasadena, San Marino, Agoura Hills, Malibu, Calabasas, Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, Moorpark, and Simi Valley.
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. Not sold on California? Take the two-minute Find Your Place quiz and see which state actually fits you.
Questions and answers
Best Suburbs Of Santa Clarita FAQs
What is the best suburb of Santa Clarita?
Hidden Hills is the best suburb of Santa Clarita for 2026, according to Saturday Night Science. South Pasadena and San Marino are next.
What are the best suburbs of Santa Clarita?
The best suburbs of Santa Clarita are Hidden Hills, South Pasadena, San Marino, Agoura Hills, Malibu, Calabasas, Santa Monica, Beverly Hills, Moorpark, and Simi Valley. We ranked all 20 places within commuting range.
How expensive is Hidden Hills?
The median household income in Hidden Hills is $250,001 and the median home costs $5,059,063. Top suburbs rarely come cheap; that is part of how they got there.
What counts as a suburb of Santa Clarita?
Any place within 30 miles of Santa Clarita qualifies. 20 towns fit that circle, and every one of them got scored.
How do you rank Santa Clarita suburbs?
Each suburb is scored on income, home values, density, unemployment, education, insurance coverage, and poverty, using Census American Community Survey data. The best combined score, Hidden Hills, takes the crown.
