CA Communities Ranked Among 2023 Best Places To Live In America

CALIFORNIA — Four communities in California are among the Best Places To Live in America, according to the review site Niche, which recently released its 2023 rankings.

The list, now in its ninth year, is intended to help everyone from young professionals to retirees decide where they want to live. Niche used Census Bureau and FBI data to compile the list.

Neighborhoods in the Golden State ranked high on this year's list, with four awarded A+ grades. Three separate neighborhoods in the City of Santa Monica made Niche's list as well as the University South neighborhood in Palo Alto.

Philadelphia suburbs occupied three of the top five spots nationwide: Chesterbrook ranked first, Ardmore ranked third and Penn Wynne ranked fifth. Others in the top tier are No. 2 Colonial Village, a neighborhood in Arlington, Virginia, and No. 4 Hyde Park-Spanishtown, a neighborhood in Tampa, Florida.

The four California neighborhoods that cracked the top 100 are:

University South in Palo Alto

• Overall Niche grade: A+
• Public schools grade: A+
• Population: 3,045

City Center in Santa Monica

• Overall Niche grade: A+
• Public schools grade: A+
• Population: 4,103

Mid-City in Santa Monica

• Overall Niche grade: A+
• Public schools grade: A+
• Population: 15,959

Wilshire/Montana in Santa Monica

• Overall Niche grade: A+
• Public schools grade: A+
• Population: 14,856