Whether you live in Sacramento and fancy a quieter life, or you’re new to California and just looking for a place close to the capital, these suburbs have a little something for everyone.
Here are the 10 best Sacramento suburbs to live in:
1. Folsom
2. Davis
3. Roseville
4. Fair Oaks
5. Granite Bay
6. Elk Grove
7. Rocklin (tie)
7. West Sacramento (tie)
9. La Riviera
10. Carmichael
We created this list by looking at the ‘burbs surrounding California’s capital according to the following eight criteria:
But we’ll talk more about the methodology at the very end of the post. We know you’re itching to see who made the top 10, so here they are.
Just a minute ago we listed all of the criteria we used for this post, and, in case you didn’t notice, that was a pretty long list. But this Sacramento suburb managed to rank well in every single category, from its amenities per capita right down to its low crime rate. But you can see the actual numbers in the table at the end of this post. Let’s talk about the reasons you’ll love this place, outside of the numbers. Like all of the others in our top 10, it’s an ideal place to live with a quick commute to Sacramento for work (25 minutes on average), but unique to Folsom are things like the Folsom Lake State Recreation area, a vast park for hiking, biking, fishing, swimming, and even horseback riding, and the postcard-worthy historical district, dotted with museums, restaurants and shops.
This city, appropriately located in Yolo County, is the perfect place to only live once because it pretty much has everything you could need. With a high school graduation rate of 95 percent, it’s certainly one of the best places near Sacramento for education. It also has some of the fewest violent crimes, not just in the area but in the state, and best of all—the quickest commute time in the area! As the home to UC Davis, the university area certainly feels like a college town, but the rest of the city is well suited for families with children of any age. There are tons of festivals throughout the year (literally too many to list, but check it out this events calendar), the Arboretum is a nature-lover’s dream come true, plus, it’s one of the best cities around for biking. Ditch the car—save the planet! Welcome to Davis.
Of all the places we looked at, Roseville had the most amenities per person—a fact that’s even cooler when you consider it has a population of nearly 120,000 people. That means more taco joints, more spas, more sushi (mmm UMI), more shopping, more anything you could ask for, just for you! Aside from always having plenty to do (and eat), Roseville offers plenty of other positives—mostly for families. There’s an amusement/water park (you will NEED this—Roseville gets hot!), the Roseville Utility Exploration Center for kids, and with the fourth highest high school graduation rate in the area, some really great schools.
Whether you’re a kid or just a kid at heart, Fair Oaks is the place for you. First off, the town center (Old Fair Oaks Village) is packed… with chickens. Yes, you read that correctly. There are chickens here just hanging out. Okay, if that doesn’t impress your little one, how about this: the annual Fair Oaks Fiesta? It includes a parade, games for the kids, and all kinds of crafts and booths. There’s a dog walking festival later in the year. And there’s even a festival celebrating (of course) the chickens! This quirky and charming little community is the perfect place to raise a family or just be a kid yourself.
Let’s get this out of the way first: Granite Bay is expensive. It’s the most expensive community in the area in overall cost of living, home prices, and rent. But the good news, if you’re looking to Granite Bay, you can probably afford it: residents here generally make nearly $130,000 per year. Plus, you get what you pay for, and what you’re paying for in Granite Bay is an overall high quality of life, some of the best schools in the region, and a virtual absence of crime. The homes are beautiful, the streets are lined with trees, the people are friendly. Plus, Eddie Murphy lived here, so you know it’s good.
If you’re looking for a good quality of life for your family (and who isn’t?) head to Elk Grove. It has the best quality of life in the area—a high median income, a relatively low(er) cost of living, and some of the most in-demand real estate around. And though it didn’t rank all that well for its amenities per capita, there’s still plenty to do in this city, from festivals like the GO Fest and the 4th of July Festival to just walking around Old Town. Perhaps the best part of this city, though, are its options for being active. There are, of course, fitness centers and tons of yoga, in addition to plenty of trails and parks.
Rocklin is one of California’s fastest-growing communities, and for good reason. It’s just a short drive from some of the state’s biggest attractions like Old Sacramento and Folsom Lake (plus it’s just a couple of hours from Lake Tahoe or San Francisco). But there’s also plenty to do right at home! Rocklin had some of the most amenities per capita, for children in particular. This, plus the excellent schools (a high school graduation rate of 93 percent) and the lowest crime rate in the area make Rocklin an ideal place for families. It’s no wonder it was voted one of Family Circle’s “10 Best Towns” for families in the country!
Just last year the United States Conference of Mayors named West Sacramento the Most Livable City in America (for places with fewer than 100,000 residents). Why all the fuss? Perhaps it’s because there’s always something to do or a new restaurant to try in West Sacramento, like Peace Cuisine chinese food or Wicked West Pizza & BBQ. Or maybe it’s the low crime rate. Or the short commute time. Or even the magically slightly lower than average temperature in the summers. Maybe it’s just because West Sacramento is not your typical suburb—great for raising a family, but not much else. West Sacramento is a happening little city in its own right, and if it’s not happening enough, Sacramento is just across the river.
If you’re looking for that small-town feel, without actually having to move out to the country, La Riviera might be a good place for you. This is the kind of community where people still smile and wave when they pass each other out on a walk, where there’s just one high school for the area, and where, yes, you get to know everybody pretty quickly. It may not have all the amenities and things to do that others in our top 10 have, but the average commute time is just 24 minutes—that’s 24 minutes to the excitement of Sacramento, and 24 minutes back home to your peaceful little community.
Last but certainly not least on our list is Carmichael. This community is best for either raising a family or a peaceful place to come home after a long day of work in Sacramento. What we’re getting at is, it’s not exactly a place to party. But Sacramento is just 10 minutes away for that. Here you can enjoy the outdoors at Carmichael Park, a huge 38-acre park with ballfields, tennis courts, a weekly farmers market, golf, and pretty much anything else you could ask for from a park, aside from unicorns. You can bike around this city pretty easily, and it even includes a portion of the American River Bike Trail. Plus you can even get your theater fix without having to leave the area with the Chautauqua Playhouse, which even includes a children’s theater for your little thespians to be.
Pining for a quieter lifestyle? Looking to get out of the big city? One of these 10 suburbs may be for you! And we can help you find your new home! Okay, cheese aside, these 10 places really are some of California’s finest, especially if you want the convenience of being near the capital city without actually having to be in it. We briefly touched on our methodology at the beginning of this post, but here’s a more detailed look. Just like with any of our Big Deal Lists at Movoto, we relied strictly on the facts to create this one. We used business listings and AreaVibes to research all of the largest suburbs surrounding Sacramento in terms of the following:
Once all places that didn’t have complete data were omitted, we were left with 18 places, which we ranked with scores from one to 18 in each category. We then averaged these scores out into an overall Big Deal Score for each place, where the lowest scores went to our best places. To see more than just these top 10, simply lower your eyes to the table below. Keep on looking down and you’ll see a place to leave us a comment. Let us know what you think! 
