The 10 Worst Neighborhoods In Long Beach For 2022


We used data and science to identify the neighborhoods in Long Beach that are the real pits.

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Long Beach's neighborhoods conjure up too many stereotypes to count. You've got hipster areas, preppy places, neighborhoods where college kids thrive, and of course, ghettos.

It seems as if there's a neighborhood for everyone in Long Beach.

And while the city consistently ranks as one of the best places to live in the country thanks in part to a strong economy and tons of entertainment, it's not all rainbows and sunshine in Long Beach. Some neighborhoods aren't as great as others.

So the question arises, which Long Beach neighborhoods are the worst, and which are the best?

Today, we'll use science and data to determine which Long Beach hoods need a little tender loving care - the sore thumbs of the Long Beach area if you will. Realistically, you can't expect all the neighborhoods to be amazing, although Park Estates ranks way above the rest.

We examined 27 of Long Beach's neighborhoods to find out the worst places to live. These places don't quite measure up to Long Beach's reputation.

So what's the worst neighborhood to live in Long Beach for 2022? According to the most recent census data, Wilmington looks to be the worst neighborhood in Long Beach.

Read on to see how we determined the places around Long Beach that need a pick-me-up. And remember, don't blame the messenger.

Once you're done, you can look at the bottom of the story for a complete chart of every neighborhood we looked at from worst to best. Looking for places to avoid outside of the city? You can also check out the worst suburbs of Long Beach.

For more California reading, check out:

Worst Neighborhoods In Long Beach

The 10 Worst Neighborhoods In Long Beach For 2022

Overall SnackAbility

3
/10

Population: 2,146
Rank Last Year: 1 (No Change)
Median Home Value: $103,800 (worst)
Median Income: $36,858 (worst)
More on Wilmington:  Data

Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 416
Rank Last Year: 2 (No Change)
Median Home Value: $132,750 (2nd worst)
Median Income: $52,282 (5th worst)
More on Airport Area:  Data

Overall SnackAbility

8.5
/10

Population: 72,348
Rank Last Year: 3 (No Change)
Median Home Value: $245,927 (3rd worst)
Median Income: $40,620 (3rd worst)
More on Downtown:  Data

Overall SnackAbility

8
/10

Population: 31,628
Rank Last Year: 4 (No Change)
Median Home Value: $297,411 (8th worst)
Median Income: $39,432 (2nd worst)
More on Poly High District:  Data

Overall SnackAbility

8.5
/10

Population: 37,908
Rank Last Year: 5 (No Change)
Median Home Value: $247,317 (4th worst)
Median Income: $53,128 (6th worst)
More on Wrigley:  Data

Overall SnackAbility

8.5
/10

Population: 25,143
Rank Last Year: 6 (No Change)
Median Home Value: $273,829 (5th worst)
Median Income: $54,794 (8th worst)
More on West Side:  Data

Overall SnackAbility

8.5
/10

Population: 82,907
Rank Last Year: 7 (No Change)
Median Home Value: $285,992 (6th worst)
Median Income: $52,199 (4th worst)
More on North Long Beach:  Data

Overall SnackAbility

8.5
/10

Population: 10,728
Rank Last Year: 7 (No Change)
Median Home Value: $317,288 (9th worst)
Median Income: $55,268 (9th worst)
More on North West Long Beach:  Data

Overall SnackAbility

8.5
/10

Population: 363
Rank Last Year: 9 (No Change)
Median Home Value: $353,200 (10th worst)
Median Income: $87,500 (18th worst)
More on Dominguez:  Data

Overall SnackAbility

8.5
/10

Population: 10,207
Rank Last Year: 9 (Down 1)
Median Home Value: $295,029 (7th worst)
Median Income: $63,499 (11th worst)
More on City Of Signal Hill:  Data

Methodology: How we determined the worst Long Beach neighborhoods in 2022

To figure out how bad a place is to live in, we only needed to know what kinds of things people like and then decide what places have the least amount of those things. We threw the following criteria into this analysis in order to get the best, most complete results possible. We used this set of criteria for each neighborhood in Long Beach:

  • High unemployment (Less jobs)
  • Low median income (Less pay)
  • Low population density (No things to do)
  • Low home values (No one's willing to pay to live here)
  • High crime (Estimated)

Then, we ranked each neighborhood in Long Beach, California for each of these criteria from worst to best.

Next, we averaged the individual rankings for each criteria into a "Worst Score".

The neighborhood with the lowest "Worst Score" ranks as the worst neighborhood of Long Beach.

Read on below to learn more about these terrible places around Long Beach to live. Or skip to the end to see the list of all 27 neighborhoods ranked from worst to best.

This list is a scientific analysis based on real data and is completely unbiased. Hold on to your pants.

Summary: The Worst Neighborhoods Around Long Beach

Well there you have it -- the worst of the neighborhoods in Long Beach with Wilmington landing at the bottom of the pack.

As we mentioned earlier, the neighborhoods in Long Beach aren't all bad. Park Estates takes the cake as the best place to live in Long Beach.

We ranked the neighborhoods from worst to best in the chart below.

For more California reading, check out:

Where Are The Worst Neighborhoods To Live In Long Beach For 2022?

Rank Neighborhood Population Home Value Median Income
1 Wilmington 2,146 $103,800 $36,858
2 Airport Area 416 $132,750 $52,282
3 Downtown 72,348 $245,927 $40,620
4 Poly High District 31,628 $297,411 $39,432
5 Wrigley 37,908 $247,317 $53,128
6 West Side 25,143 $273,829 $54,794
7 North Long Beach 82,907 $285,992 $52,199
8 North West Long Beach 10,728 $317,288 $55,268
9 Dominguez 363 $353,200 $87,500
10 City Of Signal Hill 10,207 $295,029 $63,499
11 Circle Area 28,815 $377,553 $54,626
12 Bixby Area 14,916 $428,209 $71,633
13 East Side 36,317 $485,122 $57,436
14 Belmont Shore 7,093 $562,827 $81,361
15 Belmont Heights 10,797 $642,092 $72,825
16 Californial Heights 6,988 $466,250 $74,520
17 State College Area 9,427 $460,222 $94,105
18 El Dorado Park 5,378 $458,325 $112,662
19 Naples-Marina Area 8,881 $896,633 $96,927
20 Los Cerritos Area 7,391 $508,075 $91,663
21 Bixby Knolls 4,610 $695,625 $77,510
22 Los Altos 13,766 $531,288 $92,172
23 Alamitos Heights 2,873 $673,967 $90,102
24 Lakewood Village 7,774 $591,314 $76,252
25 City College Area 10,097 $483,400 $102,980
26 The Plaza 21,865 $553,678 $101,520
27 Park Estates 2,646 $759,767 $91,803

Editor's Note: This article is an opinion based on facts and is meant as infotainment. Don't freak out we updated this article for 2022. This is our time ranking the worst neighborhoods to live in Long Beach.

About Nick Johnson

Nick Johnson earned his masters in Business Administration from the Drucker School At Claremont Graduate University. He has written for 39 publications across the country and ran the media relations department at Movoto, a real estate portal based in San Francisco. He has been featured in over 500 publications as an expert in real estate and as an authority on real estate trends.

Nick's the creator of the HomeSnacks YouTube channel that now has over 260,000 subscribers and is an excellent source to learn about different parts of the country.