Best Places32579, FL Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 32579, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Local pay runs high here, and housing takes the biggest bite out of it. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
32579 ranks 6,281st 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 32579
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.
32579's strengths and weaknesses
Where 32579 ranks high
- State infrastructureBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 95% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 94% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than 90% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than 90% of zip codes
Where 32579 ranks low
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 2% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than only 11% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than only 25% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than only 26% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 32579
A household needs to earn about $109,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 32579 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $112,791, 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 32579's effective rate of 0.65%, 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 8 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 32579
32579 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 32579.
Who works in 32579, and how
Work in 32579 centers on professional & technical and public administration. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 84%
- Work from home 12%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in 32579
32579 has fewer places to eat and drink per resident than most zip codes. The coast is about 12 minutes away. That concentrates in some parts of 32579 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 32579, month by month
32579 sees roughly 102 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 90 degrees. January highs sit near 63, with lows near 43. The comfortable stretch runs February through May and October through December.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 63° | 52° | 43° |
| April | 77° | 68° | 58° |
| July | 90° | 83° | 75° |
| October | 82° | 72° | 62° |
Flying in and out of 32579
The nearest airport, Eglin AFB/Destin-Ft Walton Beach, is about 4 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Louis Armstrong New Orleans International, about 222 miles away.
The best schools in and around 32579
Schools across 32579 average a B+, better than 74% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Destin Elementary SchoolA+ · 75% proficient
- Eglin Elementary SchoolA+ · 73% proficient
- Lula J. Edge Elementary SchoolA+ · 72% proficient
Top middle schools
- Okaloosa Stemm CenterA+ · 97% proficient
- Clifford Meigs Middle SchoolA− · 54% proficient
- W. C. Pryor Middle SchoolB+ · 49% proficient
Top high schools
- Niceville Senior High SchoolA · 76% proficient
- Choctawhatchee Senior High SchoolB+ · 52% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 32579 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
32579 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 32579 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 32579
Is 32579 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 32579 ranks 6,281st of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on state infrastructure, low taxes, and what local pay buys, 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 32579 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $427,157. The overall cost of living runs about 11% below the national average. Set against a $112,791 median income, cost of living beats 94% of zip codes.
Is 32579 safe?
Yes, 32579 is safer than 62% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $177 per resident a year.
Compare 32579 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 32579. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 32579 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.
32579 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 32579: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 32579: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 32579: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 32579: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
32579 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.