Best Places26681, WV Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 26681, 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.
26681 ranks 27,389th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on quiet by a wide margin, and the cost of living against local pay is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 26681
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.
26681's strengths and weaknesses
Where 26681 ranks high
- QuietBetter than 94% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than 93% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than 91% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than 91% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than 90% of zip codes
Where 26681 ranks low
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than only 3% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than only 3% of zip codes
- Household income$36,377 median, better than only 3% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than only 3% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than only 8% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 26681
A household needs to earn about $32,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 26681 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $36,377, 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 26681's effective rate of 0.42%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Who lives in 26681
26681 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 26681.
Who works in 26681, and how
Work in 26681 centers on health care & social and other services. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 88%
- Work from home 10%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in 26681
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 26681.
What the weather is like in 26681, month by month
26681 sees roughly 79 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 84 degrees. January highs sit near 41, with lows near 23. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 41° | 31° | 23° |
| April | 68° | 53° | 39° |
| July | 84° | 72° | 61° |
| October | 68° | 54° | 42° |
Flying in and out of 26681
The nearest airport, Greenbrier Valley, is about 31 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Pittsburgh International, about 158 miles away.
The best schools in and around 26681
Schools across 26681 average a D+, better than 17% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Panther Creek Elementary SchoolC+ · 35% proficient
- Glade Creek Elementary SchoolC · 33% proficient
Top middle schools
- Richwood Middle SchoolD · 23% proficient
- Summersville Middle SchoolD · 19% proficient
Top high schools
- Nicholas County High SchoolD+ · 25% proficient
- Richwood High SchoolD− · 17% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 26681 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
26681 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 26681 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 26681
Is 26681 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 26681 ranks 27,389th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on quiet, tree cover, and fast internet, and lowest on the cost of living against local pay and state infrastructure. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 26681 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $130,808. The overall cost of living runs about 17% below the national average. Set against a $36,377 median income, cost of living beats 3% of zip codes.
Is 26681 safe?
Yes, 26681 is safer than 71% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $230 per resident a year.
Compare 26681 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 26681. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 26681 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.
26681 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 26681: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 26681: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 26681: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 26681: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
26681 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.