Best Places36343, AL Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 36343, 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.
36343 ranks 30,062nd of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on low property taxes by a wide margin, and walkability ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 36343
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.
36343's strengths and weaknesses
Where 36343 ranks high
- Low property taxBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$561 a month, better than 90% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than 87% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than 84% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 80% of zip codes
Where 36343 ranks low
- WalkabilityBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than only 7% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than only 9% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than only 9% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 36343
A household needs to earn about $25,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 36343 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $51,301, 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 36343's effective rate of 0.21%, 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 4 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 36343
36343 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 36343.
Who works in 36343, and how
Work in 36343 centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment runs well above the national rate, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 89%
- Work from home 10%
- Transit, walk, or bike 1%
Life in 36343
36343 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 99% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 36343 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 36343, month by month
36343 sees roughly 103 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 93 degrees. January highs sit near 64, with lows near 42. The comfortable stretch runs February through May and October through December.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 64° | 51° | 42° |
| April | 80° | 68° | 57° |
| July | 93° | 81° | 74° |
| October | 83° | 70° | 60° |
Flying in and out of 36343
The nearest airport, Dothan Regional, is about 26 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Hartsfield/Jackson Atlanta International, about 182 miles away.
The best schools in and around 36343
Schools across 36343 average a C−, better than 22% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Webb Elementary SchoolC · 34% proficient
- Ashford Elementary SchoolC · 32% proficient
- Early County Elementary SchoolD+ · 22% proficient
Top middle schools
- Early County Middle SchoolD− · 15% proficient
Top high schools
- Cottonwood High SchoolC− · 28% proficient
- Ashford High SchoolD · 20% proficient
- Houston County High SchoolD− · 15% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 36343 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
36343 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 36343 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 36343
Is 36343 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 36343 ranks 30,062nd of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on low property taxes, affordable childcare, and state infrastructure, and lowest on walkability and a weak job market. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 36343 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $105,592. The overall cost of living runs about 22% below the national average. Set against a $51,301 median income, cost of living beats 20% of zip codes.
Is 36343 safe?
36343 is safer than 23% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $438 per resident a year.
Compare 36343 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 36343. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 36343 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.
36343 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 36343: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 36343: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 36343: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 36343: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
36343 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.