Best Places39480, MS Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 39480, 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.
39480 ranks 18,198th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on affordable childcare by a wide margin, and state infrastructure ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 39480
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.
39480's strengths and weaknesses
Where 39480 ranks high
- Cheap childcare$527 a month, better than 92% of zip codes
- Crime safetyBetter than 92% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than 83% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 81% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than 74% of zip codes
Where 39480 ranks low
- State infrastructureBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 13% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 17% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than only 19% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 39480
A household needs to earn about $49,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 39480 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $66,799, 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 39480's effective rate of 0.60%, 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 8 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 39480
39480's age mix sits close to the national median.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 39480.
Who works in 39480, and how
Work in 39480 centers on health care & social and education. Unemployment is low, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 88%
- Work from home 8%
- Transit, walk, or bike 5%
Life in 39480
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 39480.
What the weather is like in 39480, month by month
39480 sees roughly 76 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 91 degrees. January highs sit near 60, with lows near 38. The comfortable stretch runs February through May, October, and November.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 60° | 48° | 38° |
| April | 78° | 65° | 54° |
| July | 91° | 80° | 73° |
| October | 81° | 67° | 56° |
Flying in and out of 39480
The nearest airport, Hattiesburg/Laurel Regional, is about 18 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Louis Armstrong New Orleans International, about 132 miles away.
The best schools in and around 39480
Schools across 39480 average a B−, better than 56% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- West Jones Elementary SchoolB · 49% proficient
- South Jones Elementary SchoolB− · 40% proficient
Top high schools
- South Jones High SchoolB− · 43% proficient
- West Jones High SchoolC+ · 38% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 39480 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
39480 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 39480 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 39480
Is 39480 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 39480 ranks 18,198th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on affordable childcare, low crime, and tree cover, and lowest on state infrastructure and air quality. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 39480 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $192,863. The overall cost of living runs about 19% below the national average. Set against a $66,799 median income, cost of living beats 49% of zip codes.
Is 39480 safe?
Yes, 39480 is safer than 92% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $102 per resident a year.
Compare 39480 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 39480. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 39480 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.
39480 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 39480: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 39480: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 39480: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 39480: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
39480 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.