Best Places39401, MS Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 39401, 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.
39401 ranks 27,004th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. State infrastructure pulls hardest against it, while it scores best on short commutes.
The best neighborhoods in 39401
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.
39401's strengths and weaknesses
Where 39401 ranks high
- Short commute18.9 minutes each way, better than 89% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than 85% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$664 a month, better than 79% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than 76% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than 72% of zip codes
Where 39401 ranks low
- State infrastructureBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- Household income$46,254 median, better than only 7% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 11% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 12% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 39401
A household needs to earn about $35,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 39401 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $46,254, 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 39401's effective rate of 0.63%, 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 39401
39401 runs younger 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 39401.
Who works in 39401, and how
Work in 39401 centers on retail trade and health care & social. Unemployment sits above the national rate, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 88%
- Work from home 4%
- Transit, walk, or bike 8%
Life in 39401
39401 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 78% of zip codes and more parkland per resident than 93% of zip codes. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 39401 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 39401, month by month
39401 sees roughly 88 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 93 degrees. January highs sit near 62, with lows near 40. The comfortable stretch runs February through May, October, and November.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 62° | 49° | 40° |
| April | 79° | 66° | 56° |
| July | 93° | 81° | 74° |
| October | 82° | 68° | 58° |
Flying in and out of 39401
The nearest airport, Hattiesburg/Laurel Regional, is about 11 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Louis Armstrong New Orleans International, about 107 miles away.
The best schools in and around 39401
Schools across 39401 average a C, better than 32% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Petal ElementaryA · 67% proficient
- Seminary Elementary SchoolA− · 60% proficient
- Moselle Elementary SchoolA− · 56% proficient
Top middle schools
- Petal Upper Elementary SchoolA · 67% proficient
- Perry Central Middle SchoolC · 35% proficient
- Seminary Middle SchoolC · 32% proficient
Top high schools
- Petal High SchoolB+ · 57% proficient
- South Jones High SchoolB− · 43% proficient
- Forrest County Agricultural Hi SchC+ · 38% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 39401 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
39401 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 39401 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 39401 suits
Remote workers
Internet is fast and widely advertised and 4% already work from home.
Retirees
Set weather, quiet, and health care weights on the map to test the fit.
Common questions about living in 39401
Is 39401 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 39401 ranks 27,004th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on short commutes, walkability, and affordable childcare, and lowest on state infrastructure and low incomes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 39401 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $136,187. The overall cost of living runs about 22% below the national average. Set against a $46,254 median income, cost of living beats 13% of zip codes.
Is 39401 safe?
39401 is safer than 39% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $220 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 39401?
July highs average about 93 degrees, and January highs near 62 with lows near 40. That works out to about 88 pleasant days a year, more than 54% of zip codes.
Is 39401 good for families?
Schools beat 32% of zip codes, crime safety beats 39%, and childcare runs $664 a month.
Compare 39401 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 39401. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 39401 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.
39401 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 39401: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 39401: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 39401: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 39401: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
39401 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.