Best Places37396, TN Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 37396, 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.
37396 ranks 30,531st of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on fast internet by a wide margin, and a weak job market ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 37396
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.
37396's strengths and weaknesses
Where 37396 ranks high
- Internet speedBetter than 99% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than 96% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than 93% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than 93% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$564 a month, better than 89% of zip codes
Where 37396 ranks low
- Local economyBetter than only 2% of zip codes
- Short commute39.0 minutes each way, better than only 5% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than only 9% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than only 10% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 37396
A household needs to earn about $108,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 37396 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $50,129, 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 37396's effective rate of 0.38%, 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 37396
37396 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 37396.
Who works in 37396, and how
Work in 37396 centers on retail trade and professional & technical. Unemployment runs well above the national rate, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 77%
- Work from home 16%
- Transit, walk, or bike 7%
Life in 37396
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 37396.
What the weather is like in 37396, month by month
37396 sees roughly 62 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 93 degrees. January highs sit near 54, with lows near 32. The comfortable stretch runs March through May, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 54° | 42° | 32° |
| April | 77° | 62° | 49° |
| July | 93° | 81° | 72° |
| October | 79° | 64° | 52° |
Flying in and out of 37396
The nearest airport, Lovell Field, is about 17 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Nashville International, about 103 miles away.
The best schools in and around 37396
Schools across 37396 average a C−, better than 15% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Lookout Valley ElementaryB · 45% proficient
- Whitwell ElementaryB · 45% proficient
Top middle schools
- Chattanooga Valley Middle SchoolC · 31% proficient
- Jasper Middle SchoolC− · 28% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 37396 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
37396 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 37396 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 37396
Is 37396 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 37396 ranks 30,531st of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on fast internet, state finances, and tree cover, and lowest on a weak job market and long commutes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 37396 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $438,900. The overall cost of living runs about 14% below the national average. Set against a $50,129 median income, cost of living beats 20% of zip codes.
Is 37396 safe?
37396 is safer than 26% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $544 per resident a year.
Compare 37396 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 37396. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 37396 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.
37396 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 37396: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 37396: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 37396: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 37396: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
37396 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.