Best Places26260, WV Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 26260, 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.
26260 ranks 10,906th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on quiet by a wide margin, and state infrastructure ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 26260
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.
26260's strengths and weaknesses
Where 26260 ranks high
- QuietBetter than 97% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than 96% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than 94% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than 90% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than 88% of zip codes
Where 26260 ranks low
- State infrastructureBetter than only 3% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than only 19% of zip codes
- School gradeC, better than only 32% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 26260
A household needs to earn about $61,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 26260 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $69,678, 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 26260's effective rate of 0.42%, 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 26260
26260 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 26260.
Who works in 26260, and how
Work in 26260 centers on other services and arts & entertainment. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 65%
- Work from home 21%
- Transit, walk, or bike 14%
Life in 26260
26260 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 94% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 26260 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 26260, month by month
26260 sees roughly 99 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 76 degrees. January highs sit near 34, with lows near 20. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 34° | 26° | 20° |
| April | 59° | 47° | 38° |
| July | 76° | 66° | 59° |
| October | 61° | 50° | 42° |
Flying in and out of 26260
The nearest airport, North Central West Virginia, is about 44 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Pittsburgh International, about 105 miles away.
The best schools in and around 26260
Schools across 26260 average a C, better than 32% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Maysville Elementary SchoolB− · 40% proficient
- Petersburg Elementary SchoolC+ · 36% proficient
- Davis Thomas Elementary Middle SchoolC · 35% proficient
Top high schools
- Petersburg High SchoolC · 32% proficient
- Tucker County High SchoolC− · 30% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 26260 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
26260 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 26260 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 26260
Is 26260 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 26260 ranks 10,906th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on quiet, a strong job market, and low disaster risk, and lowest on state infrastructure and empty homes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 26260 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $248,196. The overall cost of living runs about 2% below the national average. Set against a $69,678 median income, cost of living beats 39% of zip codes.
Is 26260 safe?
Yes, 26260 is safer than 59% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $261 per resident a year.
Compare 26260 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 26260. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 26260 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.
26260 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 26260: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 26260: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 26260: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 26260: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
26260 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.