Best Places03079, NH Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 03079, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Local pay runs high here, and housing takes the biggest bite out of it. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
03079 ranks 2,693rd of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on low taxes by a wide margin, and childcare costs are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 03079
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
03079's strengths and weaknesses
Where 03079 ranks high
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Crime safetyBetter than 96% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than 92% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than 90% of zip codes
- Household income$119,153 median, better than 90% of zip codes
Where 03079 ranks low
- Cheap childcare$1,375 a month, better than only 11% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 12% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 64 pleasant days a year, better than only 13% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 14% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than only 14% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 03079
A household needs to earn about $135,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 03079 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $119,153, so buying stretches a typical household.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses 03079's effective rate of 1.44%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices and rents, renting stays cheaper than buying across the first 10 years here, so the case for buying rests on staying much longer or on prices rising faster than assumed. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 03079
03079 runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 03079.
Who works in 03079, and how
Work in 03079 centers on manufacturing and health care & social. Unemployment is low, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 78%
- Work from home 17%
- Transit, walk, or bike 5%
Life in 03079
03079 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 96% of zip codes and more parkland per resident than 77% of zip codes. The coast is about 27 minutes away. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 03079 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 03079, month by month
03079 sees roughly 64 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 88 degrees. January highs sit near 40, with lows near 21. The comfortable stretch runs May through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 40° | 30° | 21° |
| April | 61° | 48° | 37° |
| July | 88° | 75° | 64° |
| October | 67° | 55° | 45° |
Flying in and out of 03079
The nearest airport, Manchester Boston Regional, is about 15 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is General Edward Lawrence Logan International, about 31 miles away.
The best schools in and around 03079
Schools across 03079 average a B, better than 66% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- The Birches Academy Of Academics - Art A Public Charter SchA · 67% proficient
- Golden Brook Elementary SchoolA · 65% proficient
- William T. Barron Elementary SchoolB · 50% proficient
Top middle schools
- Windham Middle SchoolA · 67% proficient
- Woodbury SchoolB · 47% proficient
- Timberlane Regional Middle SchoolC− · 30% proficient
Top high schools
- Windham High SchoolA− · 66% proficient
- Salem High SchoolB · 48% proficient
- Timberlane Regional High SchoolB · 47% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 03079 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
03079 measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare 03079 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 03079 suits
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 77% of zip codes, internet is fast and widely advertised, and 17% already work from home.
Common questions about living in 03079
Is 03079 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 03079 ranks 2,693rd of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on low taxes, low crime, and clean air, and lowest on childcare costs and state finances. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 03079 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $473,985. The overall cost of living runs about 19% above the national average. Set against a $119,153 median income, cost of living beats 77% of zip codes.
Is 03079 safe?
Yes, 03079 is safer than 96% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $172 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 03079?
July highs average about 88 degrees, and January highs near 40 with lows near 21. That works out to about 64 pleasant days a year, more than 13% of zip codes.
Is 03079 good for families?
Schools beat 66% of zip codes, crime safety beats 96%, and childcare runs $1,375 a month.
Compare 03079 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 03079. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 03079 represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
03079 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 03079: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 03079: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 03079: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 03079: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
03079 detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.