Best Places06262, CT Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 06262, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Several measures below read low, and the ranked lists name which ones. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
06262 ranks 8,872nd of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on few empty homes by a wide margin, and education levels rank lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 06262
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.
06262's strengths and weaknesses
Where 06262 ranks high
- Low vacancyBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than 94% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than 87% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 87% of zip codes
Where 06262 ranks low
- Educational attainmentBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 7% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$1,310 a month, better than only 14% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than only 18% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 20% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 06262
A household needs to earn about $65,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 06262 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $105,181, so a typical household can afford the median home outright.
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 06262's effective rate of 1.12%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Who lives in 06262
06262 runs older than the country, and households here run smaller than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 06262.
Who works in 06262, and how
Work in 06262 centers on professional & technical and utilities. Unemployment runs well above the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 75%
- Work from home 23%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in 06262
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 06262.
What the weather is like in 06262, month by month
06262 sees roughly 78 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 83 degrees. January highs sit near 37, with lows near 19. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 37° | 28° | 19° |
| April | 58° | 46° | 36° |
| July | 83° | 72° | 63° |
| October | 64° | 53° | 44° |
Flying in and out of 06262
The nearest airport, Worcester Regional, is about 17 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Bradley International, about 38 miles away.
The best schools in and around 06262
Schools across 06262 average a C, better than 31% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Mary R. Fisher Elementary SchoolC · 33% proficient
Top middle schools
- Thompson Middle SchoolC · 32% proficient
Top high schools
- Tourtellotte Memorial High SchoolC · 30% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 06262 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
06262 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 06262 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 06262
Is 06262 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 06262 ranks 8,872nd of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on few empty homes, civic engagement, and fast internet, and lowest on education levels and state finances. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 06262 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $237,800. The overall cost of living runs about 8% below the national average. Set against a $105,181 median income, cost of living beats 87% of zip codes.
Is 06262 safe?
Yes, 06262 is safer than 64% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $204 per resident a year.
Compare 06262 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 06262. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 06262 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.
06262 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 06262: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 06262: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 06262: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 06262: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
06262 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.