Best Places32541, FL Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 32541, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Costs and crime both read low, and the nearest big city is a drive away. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
32541 ranks 10,044th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on state infrastructure by a wide margin, and disaster risk is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 32541
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.
32541's strengths and weaknesses
Where 32541 ranks high
- State infrastructureBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 95% of zip codes
- School gradeA, better than 94% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than 90% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than 87% of zip codes
Where 32541 ranks low
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 2% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than only 9% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 32541
A household needs to earn about $167,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 32541 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $94,162, so buying stretches a typical household.
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 32541's effective rate of 0.55%, 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 32541
32541 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 32541.
Who works in 32541, and how
Work in 32541 centers on hospitality & food and professional & technical. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 76%
- Work from home 19%
- Transit, walk, or bike 5%
Life in 32541
32541 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 94% of zip codes and more parkland per resident than 94% of zip codes. The coast is about 2 minutes away. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 32541 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 32541, month by month
32541 sees roughly 136 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 91 degrees. January highs sit near 64, with lows near 48. The comfortable stretch runs October through April.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 64° | 55° | 48° |
| April | 77° | 70° | 63° |
| July | 91° | 84° | 78° |
| October | 83° | 74° | 67° |
Flying in and out of 32541
The nearest airport, Eglin AFB/Destin-Ft Walton Beach, is about 7 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Louis Armstrong New Orleans International, about 228 miles away.
The best schools in and around 32541
Schools across 32541 average an A, better than 94% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Bluewater Elementary SchoolA+ · 84% proficient
- Destin Elementary SchoolA+ · 75% proficient
- Addie R. Lewis SchoolA · 63% proficient
Top middle schools
- Destin Middle SchoolA · 65% proficient
- Clifford Meigs Middle SchoolA− · 54% proficient
Top high schools
- Niceville Senior High SchoolA · 76% proficient
- Fort Walton Beach High SchoolA− · 60% proficient
- Choctawhatchee Senior High SchoolB+ · 52% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 32541 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
32541 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 32541 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 32541
Is 32541 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 32541 ranks 10,044th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on state infrastructure, low taxes, and good schools, and lowest on disaster risk and summer heat. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 32541 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $662,561. The overall cost of living runs about 10% above the national average. Set against a $94,162 median income, cost of living beats 68% of zip codes.
Is 32541 safe?
Yes, 32541 is safer than 76% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $164 per resident a year.
Compare 32541 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 32541. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 32541 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.
32541 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 32541: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 32541: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 32541: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 32541: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
32541 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.