Best Places37821, TN Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 37821, 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.
37821 ranks 28,251st of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on state finances by a wide margin, and health outcomes rank lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 37821
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.
37821's strengths and weaknesses
Where 37821 ranks high
- State fiscal healthBetter than 96% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$564 a month, better than 89% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than 83% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 82% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than 82% of zip codes
Where 37821 ranks low
- Health outlookBetter than only 3% of zip codes
- Household income$49,136 median, better than only 10% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than only 11% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than only 14% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 16% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 37821
A household needs to earn about $36,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 37821 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $49,136, 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 37821's effective rate of 0.53%, 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 5 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 37821
37821 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 37821.
Who works in 37821, and how
Work in 37821 centers on manufacturing and hospitality & food. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 92%
- Work from home 6%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in 37821
37821 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 65% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 37821 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 37821, month by month
37821 sees roughly 84 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 90 degrees. January highs sit near 48, with lows near 31. The comfortable stretch runs April through June, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 48° | 38° | 31° |
| April | 73° | 60° | 50° |
| July | 90° | 78° | 70° |
| October | 74° | 61° | 52° |
Flying in and out of 37821
The nearest airport, McGhee Tyson, is about 46 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Charlotte/Douglas International, about 137 miles away.
The best schools in and around 37821
Schools across 37821 average a C, better than 40% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Newport Grammar SchoolA− · 61% proficient
- Grassy Fork ElementaryB+ · 55% proficient
- Centerview ElementaryB− · 40% proficient
Top middle schools
- East Ridge Middle SchoolB+ · 50% proficient
Top high schools
- Cocke Co High SchoolA− · 60% proficient
- Cosby High SchoolC+ · 35% proficient
- Morristown East HighC · 32% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 37821 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
37821 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 37821 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 37821 suits
Retirees
Set weather, quiet, and health care weights on the map to test the fit.
Common questions about living in 37821
Is 37821 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 37821 ranks 28,251st of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on state finances, affordable childcare, and low disaster risk, and lowest on health outcomes and low incomes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 37821 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $144,003. The overall cost of living runs about 19% below the national average. Set against a $49,136 median income, cost of living beats 14% of zip codes.
Is 37821 safe?
37821 is safer than 19% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $682 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 37821?
July highs average about 90 degrees, and January highs near 48 with lows near 31. That works out to about 84 pleasant days a year, more than 50% of zip codes.
Is 37821 good for families?
Schools beat 40% of zip codes, crime safety beats 19%, and childcare runs $564 a month.
Compare 37821 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 37821. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 37821 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.
37821 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 37821: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 37821: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 37821: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 37821: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
37821 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.