Best Places37385, TN Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 37385, 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.
37385 ranks 24,443rd of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on tree cover by a wide margin, and health outcomes rank lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 37385
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.
37385's strengths and weaknesses
Where 37385 ranks high
- Tree shadeBetter than 98% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than 96% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than 96% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$564 a month, better than 89% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than 88% of zip codes
Where 37385 ranks low
- Health outlookBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- Short commute35.9 minutes each way, better than only 9% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than only 11% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than only 14% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than only 15% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 37385
A household needs to earn about $51,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 37385 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $61,676, 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 37385's effective rate of 0.31%, 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 37385
37385 runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 37385.
Who works in 37385, and how
Work in 37385 centers on manufacturing and education. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 90%
- Work from home 9%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in 37385
37385 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 93% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 37385 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 37385, month by month
37385 sees roughly 73 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 87 degrees. January highs sit near 51, with lows near 29. The comfortable stretch runs April through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 51° | 39° | 29° |
| April | 73° | 57° | 43° |
| July | 87° | 73° | 64° |
| October | 74° | 58° | 45° |
Flying in and out of 37385
The nearest airport, McGhee Tyson, is about 36 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Hartsfield/Jackson Atlanta International, about 119 miles away.
The best schools in and around 37385
Schools across 37385 average a C, better than 34% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Tellico Plains ElementaryB− · 40% proficient
- Madisonville Intermediate SchoolC+ · 39% proficient
- Rural Vale ElementaryC− · 30% proficient
Top middle schools
- Tellico Plains Junior High SchoolC · 31% proficient
- Madisonville Middle SchoolC− · 28% proficient
Top high schools
- Tellico Plains High SchoolC+ · 35% proficient
- Sweetwater High SchoolD+ · 25% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 37385 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
37385 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 37385 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 37385
Is 37385 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 37385 ranks 24,443rd of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on tree cover, state finances, and low property taxes, and lowest on health outcomes and long commutes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 37385 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $210,724. The overall cost of living runs about 15% below the national average. Set against a $61,676 median income, cost of living beats 28% of zip codes.
Is 37385 safe?
37385 is safer than 53% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $412 per resident a year.
Compare 37385 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 37385. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 37385 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.
37385 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 37385: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 37385: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 37385: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 37385: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
37385 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.