Best Places16836, PA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 16836, 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.
16836 ranks 25,045th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on low disaster risk by a wide margin, and empty homes are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 16836
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.
16836's strengths and weaknesses
Where 16836 ranks high
- Disaster safetyBetter than 94% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than 93% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 90% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than 85% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than 84% of zip codes
Where 16836 ranks low
- Low vacancyBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Short commute35.4 minutes each way, better than only 10% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than only 12% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 12% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 16836
A household needs to earn about $37,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 16836 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $61,300, 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 16836's effective rate of 0.93%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 6 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 16836
16836 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 16836.
Who works in 16836, and how
Work in 16836 centers on public administration and manufacturing. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 92%
- Work from home 6%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in 16836
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 16836.
What the weather is like in 16836, month by month
16836 sees roughly 69 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 85 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° | 27° | 19° |
| April | 63° | 49° | 36° |
| July | 85° | 72° | 60° |
| October | 66° | 52° | 41° |
Flying in and out of 16836
The nearest airport, State College Regional, is about 27 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Pittsburgh International, about 113 miles away.
The best schools in and around 16836
Schools across 16836 average a B−, better than 62% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Bennetts Valley El SchA+ · 75% proficient
- West Branch Area El SchA · 70% proficient
- Clearfield Area El SchC+ · 40% proficient
Top middle schools
- West Branch MsA− · 55% proficient
- St Marys Area MsB+ · 50% proficient
Top high schools
- West Branch Area HsA+ · 95% proficient
- St Marys Area ShsA+ · 80% proficient
- Clearfield Area JshsC+ · 36% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 16836 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
16836 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 16836 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 16836
Is 16836 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 16836 ranks 25,045th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on low disaster risk, tree cover, and a stable housing market, and lowest on empty homes and long commutes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 16836 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $138,578. The overall cost of living runs about 5% below the national average. Set against a $61,300 median income, cost of living beats 18% of zip codes.
Is 16836 safe?
16836 is safer than 43% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $288 per resident a year.
Compare 16836 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 16836. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 16836 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.
16836 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 16836: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 16836: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 16836: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 16836: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
16836 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.