Whittier

Los Angeles County86,165 residents3 school districts
53
C−
Suburbgrade score

41st of 60 Los Angeles suburbs. Strongest on cost of living, held back by commute & transport.

Launch-day rule. Residents is not counted for Whittier yet: no poll responses so far. The overall score of 53 is computed on the other six categories, re-normalised to 100%. Answer the poll →

What living here is actually like
Written summary in preparation This page is waiting for its written summary, and for a person to check it. Until then it is excluded from search engines.

What Whittier is like to live in, by category

Bars show Whittier against Los Angeles. Weights are published in full.

Housing & affordability

18% of the score · 39/100
D−
Median home value$822,600
Los Angeles $871,300
Median rent$1,906/mo
Los Angeles $2,063/mo
Cost-burdened households43%
Los Angeles 46%

Schools

18% of the score · 59/100
C
Within-state proficiency69th pct
Los Angeles median 63rd pct
Student–teacher ratio23.3
Los Angeles median 22.9
Graduation rate92%
Los Angeles median 92%
EDFacts SY2021–22 · NCES CCD 2024–25 · EDFacts ACGR SY2018–19Full page →

Cost of living

14% of the score · 76/100
B
Housing cost index93
Los Angeles 100
Eff. tax rate0.67%
Los Angeles 0.66%
Local sales tax10.50%
Los Angeles median 10.00%
Composed in-house · ACS 2020–24 · ACS 2020–24 · CDTFA 2026-09Full page →

Commute & transport

14% of the score · 29/100
F
Mean commute33.2 min
Los Angeles 29.5 min
Under 30 minutes46%
Los Angeles 54%
Transit stops / sq mi0.2
Los Angeles median 11 · within 2 miles

Amenities

12% of the score · 68/100
B−
Restaurants & cafés41
Los Angeles median 92 · within 2 miles
Groceries8
Los Angeles median 9 · within 2 miles
Parks54
Los Angeles median 47 · within 2 miles

Employment & income

12% of the score · 49/100
D+
Median household income$97,201
Los Angeles $95,958
Unemployment5.4%
Los Angeles 6.8%
Professional occupations40%
Los Angeles 43%

Residents

12% of the score · inactive
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No responses yet. Residents is excluded from the score until eight people answer.

Ask the people who live here

Twelve yes/no questions, one tap each. No dataset knows whether the yards are kept or whether anyone talks to their neighbours. Answers feed the Residents grade, which needs eight responses before it counts.

0 responses·Residents category: waiting for first responses·Live

Nobody has answered for Whittier yet. If you live here, you can be the first.

Is it quiet at night?
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Do you feel safe walking after dark?
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Can you walk to a grocery store?
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Is it good for young children?
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Are yards and streets well kept?
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Tap either button to answer — no account neededAll twelve questions →

Better than Whittier on commute & transport

Whittier's weakest grade is F. Six suburbs are within 25 miles and score higher on the same four inputs.

Mean commute: ACS 2020–24 · Commuting under 30 minutes: ACS 2020–24

Common questions about living in Whittier

Is Whittier, CA a good place to live?

Whittier scores 53 out of 100, 41st of 60 Los Angeles suburbs. It is strongest on cost of living and weakest on commute & transport. Every weight behind that score is published on the methodology page.

Is Whittier expensive to live in?

Cost of living grades B. The median home is $822,600, 6% below the Los Angeles median, and the effective property tax rate is 0.67%. $1,906/mo is the median gross rent.

How good are the schools in Whittier?

Schools grade C. The districts serving Whittier sit at the 69th pct within-state proficiency percentile, with a 92% graduation rate and a 23.3 student–teacher ratio. Whittier is served by Whittier Union High, East Whittier City Elementary and Whittier City. Proficiency is only ever compared inside the same state.

How long is the commute from Whittier?

The mean commute is 33.2 min, with 46% of workers travelling under 30 minutes and 12% working from home. Transit density is 0.2 stops per square mile.

Can you walk anywhere in Whittier?

Within two miles there are 8 groceries, 41 restaurants and cafés and 54 parks, which grades B− on amenities.

Are the homes in Whittier old or new?

The median home in Whittier was built in 1956 — older than the Los Angeles median of 1969. That is a median, so a town can be half post-war and half new-build and still land there. 70% of homes are houses rather than flats.

Every answer is built from the figures on this page, with their sources and as-of dates on the methodology page.