By Rui Xu, Founder of MyHomeScout
Short answer: NeighborhoodScout costs $30 a report (subscriptions from $112.50 a month) and tells you about the neighborhood, anywhere in the U.S. MyHomeScout is free for 3 searches a day (Pro is $6.99 a month) and tells you about the address, in the Bay Area, Greater Los Angeles and San Diego. If you are choosing where to live, start with NeighborhoodScout. If you already have a California address, start with MyHomeScout.
I build MyHomeScout, so weigh this accordingly. Every NeighborhoodScout figure below comes from its own website and help center, checked November 11, 2026.
The numbers side by side
NeighborhoodScout — MyHomeScout
Price for one report — $30 (pay as you go) — Free (3 a day, 10 with an account)
Subscription — From $112.50/month; plans of 5, 10 or 20 report credits a month — Pro $6.99/month: no daily limit, every finding shown
Coverage — All 50 states — Bay Area, Greater Los Angeles, San Diego
Unit it describes — Census tract (1,200–8,000 residents, typically about 4,000) plus block group for address reports — The address itself, layer by layer
Size of the dataset — 600+ data elements in 6 report categories — 40+ public data layers
Crime source — Data from 18,000 U.S. law enforcement agencies, modeled to neighborhoods — Local police incident records near the address, scaled to city totals from the FBI and California DOJ; marked as an estimate where a city publishes only totals
School data — School Quality Index 1–100; assigned schools where zones exist (86% coverage) — CAASPP test results for nearby schools
Forecasts — Yes: home value trend, 3-year appreciation outlook, crime trend — No: it reports records, not predictions
What $30 buys you, and what free buys you
NeighborhoodScout sells depth about an area. Its address report combines the census tract, which the Census Bureau draws to hold 1,200 to 8,000 people (about 4,000 is the target), with the smaller block group of 600 to 3,000 people. For that area you get home values against the state and nation, median property tax, years of rent it would take to buy, a crime index and crime forecast, a school quality index, population growth, and its "Scout Vision" estimate of 3-year appreciation. That is strong material for comparing places and for investors modeling returns.
MyHomeScout checks the specific spot. A search runs the address against the layers that change from one parcel to the next:
- Flood: the FEMA flood zone the parcel falls in (A, AE, VE, X).
- Fire: the CAL FIRE fire hazard severity zone.
- Earthquake: Alquist-Priolo fault zones and California Geological Survey liquefaction zones.
- Noise: freeway, rail and airport noise at that location.
- Environment: distance to power lines, substations and Superfund sites.
- Crime: reported incidents near the address by type, and the area's rate as a multiple of the national rate.
- Schools and permits: CAASPP results for nearby schools and the building permits on file.
Each finding shows its source and the date it was checked, so you can hand it to an inspector or insurer.
Why the unit matters more than the price
An average of 4,000 people cannot tell you about one house. Hazard lines cut straight through tracts:
- Flood: a FEMA zone boundary can run down the middle of a block. One house is in Zone AE, where federally backed lenders require flood insurance; the house behind it is in Zone X, where they usually do not. FEMA reports that from 2014 to 2024, almost one-third of National Flood Insurance Program claims came from outside high-risk areas, so even Zone X is not "no risk".
- Fire: a state fire hazard zone can end at a street. Homes on one side are Very High, homes across the street are not, and insurers notice.
- Noise: a home backing onto Highway 101 lives with a level of noise the tract average smooths away.
A tract can score well on safety, schools and appreciation while one house in it sits in a flood zone next to a freeway. Neither score is wrong. They measure different things.
How each one counts crime
This is where the two differ most, and it is worth understanding before trusting either number.
NeighborhoodScout starts from agency reports. Crime is reported by police departments, not by neighborhood, so it uses its own model to assign incidents from 18,000 agencies to local areas. When agencies stop reporting, it fills the gap. NeighborhoodScout itself points out that agencies covering only 65% of the U.S. population sent 2021 data to the FBI, down from over 90% in earlier years. For those areas it estimates rates from past reports and state trends. The result is a smooth, comparable index for every neighborhood in the country, and part of it is modeled rather than counted.
MyHomeScout starts from local incident records. Where a city publishes where incidents happen, the report counts them for the home's Census block or block group, by type, then scales them to the city's reported totals to give a multiple of the national rate, such as 0.71x. Where a city publishes only totals, the report estimates too, and says so: the finding reads "likely lower than most of" the city, carries no rate of its own and never counts toward the score. Areas with fewer than 600 residents get no rating. You get fewer places covered, and you can always tell a counted figure from an estimate.
If you need to compare Austin with Atlanta, the national index is the right tool. If you want to know what has actually been reported on the blocks around one house, local incident records are.
What it costs for real situations
Your situation — NeighborhoodScout — MyHomeScout
Comparing 3 cities before a move — $90 for 3 reports — Not the right tool outside its 3 metros
Checking 1 home you plan to offer on — $30 — Free
Touring 10 homes over a month — $300 pay as you go, or a subscription from $112.50 — Free at 3 a day, or $6.99 for a month of Pro
An agent checking 40 listings a month — 40 credits: double the largest monthly plan (20 credits) — $6.99/month Pro
Prices are from each company's site on November 11, 2026, and can change. NeighborhoodScout's help center shows its plans have changed before.
Use both, in this order
- Pick the area with an area tool. NeighborhoodScout is built for this, especially across states.
- Shortlist homes.
- Check every shortlisted address before you pay for an inspection. Flood zone, fire zone, fault and liquefaction zones, noise and nearby incidents take a minute to check and can rule a house out on the spot.
- Verify what matters with the source: the FEMA map, the CAL FIRE map, the school district's own address lookup, an insurance quote.
A ten-minute test before you pay anyone
Run an address you know well, like your own home, through both. Then check:
- Did it put you in the right place?
- Can you see where each number came from and when?
- Is it describing your house or the area around it?
- Did it tell you something true that you did not know?
The tool that gets your own home right is the one to trust on a home you don't know.
Have a California address? Check it free on MyHomeScout. The free plan gives you 3 searches a day, or 10 a day with an account.
Sources: NeighborhoodScout home page and pricing, plans, neighborhood vs address reports, crime data sources; U.S. Census Bureau geography glossary; FEMA FloodSmart: flood risk; MyHomeScout pricing.
Disclaimer：This article is for general information only and is not legal, tax, insurance, or other professional advice. Confirm official records and consult the appropriate professional before you decide.