Best Places21742, MD Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 21742, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. This page is for people who live here or already know they want to. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
21742 ranks 10,475th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. Taxes pulls hardest against it, while it scores best on big-city access.
The best neighborhoods in 21742
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.
21742's strengths and weaknesses
Where 21742 ranks high
- Big-city accessBetter than 83% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than 83% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 79% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than 78% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than 75% of zip codes
Where 21742 ranks low
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 2% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 68 pleasant days a year, better than only 21% of zip codes
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than only 31% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 21742
A household needs to earn about $85,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 21742 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $91,271, 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 21742's effective rate of 0.89%, 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 10 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 21742
21742's age mix sits close to the national median.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 21742.
Who works in 21742, and how
Work in 21742 centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 81%
- Work from home 16%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in 21742
21742 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 71% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 21742 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 21742, month by month
21742 sees roughly 68 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 90 degrees. January highs sit near 43, with lows near 25. The comfortable stretch runs April through June, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 43° | 34° | 25° |
| April | 68° | 55° | 43° |
| July | 90° | 79° | 68° |
| October | 71° | 59° | 48° |
Flying in and out of 21742
The nearest airport, Hagerstown Regional/Richard A Henson Field, is about 4 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Washington Dulles International, about 51 miles away.
The best schools in and around 21742
Schools across 21742 average a C+, better than 50% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Fountaindale ElementaryB− · 40% proficient
- Paramount ElementaryC− · 30% proficient
- Old Forge ElementaryD+ · 25% proficient
Top middle schools
- Boonsboro MiddleC · 33% proficient
- Smithsburg MiddleC− · 30% proficient
- E. Russell Hicks MiddleD · 23% proficient
Top high schools
- Barbara Ingram School For The ArtsA · 70% proficient
- North Hagerstown HighB · 46% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 21742 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
21742 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 21742 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 21742 suits
Families
Schools land around the 50th percentile and crime safety beats 62%.
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 79% of zip codes, internet is fast and widely advertised, and 16% already work from home.
Common questions about living in 21742
Is 21742 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 21742 ranks 10,475th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on big-city access, few empty homes, and what local pay buys, and lowest on taxes and state infrastructure. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 21742 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $320,404. The overall cost of living runs about 11% below the national average. Set against a $91,271 median income, cost of living beats 79% of zip codes.
Is 21742 safe?
Yes, 21742 is safer than 62% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $270 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 21742?
July highs average about 90 degrees, and January highs near 43 with lows near 25. That works out to about 68 pleasant days a year, more than 21% of zip codes.
Is 21742 good for families?
Schools beat 50% of zip codes, crime safety beats 62%, and childcare runs $973 a month.
Compare 21742 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 21742. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 21742 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.
21742 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 21742: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 21742: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 21742: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 21742: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
21742 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.