Best Places40509, KY Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 40509, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Local pay runs high here, and housing takes the biggest bite out of it. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
40509 ranks 6,601st of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on population health by a wide margin, and the weather ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 40509
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.
40509's strengths and weaknesses
Where 40509 ranks high
- Health outlookBetter than 91% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 91% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than 90% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than 90% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than 90% of zip codes
Where 40509 ranks low
- Nice weatherabout 53 pleasant days a year, better than only 2% of zip codes
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than only 14% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than only 15% of zip codes
- School gradeC−, better than only 28% of zip codes
- Crime safetyBetter than only 30% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 40509
A household needs to earn about $89,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 40509 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $103,994, 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 40509's effective rate of 0.89%, 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 40509
40509 runs younger than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 40509.
Who works in 40509, and how
Work in 40509 centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 84%
- Work from home 13%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in 40509
40509 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 78% of zip codes and more parkland per resident than 71% of zip codes. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 40509 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 40509, month by month
40509 sees roughly 53 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 89 degrees. January highs sit near 46, with lows near 26. The comfortable stretch runs April through June, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 46° | 35° | 26° |
| April | 70° | 56° | 44° |
| July | 89° | 77° | 67° |
| October | 74° | 60° | 47° |
Flying in and out of 40509
The nearest airport, Blue Grass, is about 10 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International, about 73 miles away.
The best schools in and around 40509
Schools across 40509 average a C−, better than 28% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Athens-chilesburg ElementaryA− · 58% proficient
- Brenda Cowan ElementaryB− · 43% proficient
- Garrett Morgan ElementaryB− · 42% proficient
Top middle schools
- Edythe Jones Hayes Middle SchoolB · 45% proficient
- Morton Middle SchoolB− · 43% proficient
- Crawford Middle SchoolD− · 19% proficient
Top high schools
- Frederick Douglass High SchoolC+ · 36% proficient
- George Rogers Clark High SchoolC− · 26% proficient
- Carter G. Woodson AcademyD− · 17% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 40509 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
40509 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 40509 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 40509 suits
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 91% of zip codes, internet is fast and widely advertised, and 13% already work from home.
Retirees
Set weather, quiet, and health care weights on the map to test the fit.
Common questions about living in 40509
Is 40509 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 40509 ranks 6,601st of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on population health, what local pay buys, and an educated workforce, and lowest on the weather and car insurance costs. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 40509 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $334,754. The overall cost of living runs about 14% below the national average. Set against a $103,994 median income, cost of living beats 91% of zip codes.
Is 40509 safe?
40509 is safer than 30% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $384 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 40509?
July highs average about 89 degrees, and January highs near 46 with lows near 26. That works out to about 53 pleasant days a year, more than 2% of zip codes.
Is 40509 good for families?
Schools beat 28% of zip codes, crime safety beats 30%, and childcare runs $797 a month.
Compare 40509 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 40509. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 40509 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.
40509 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 40509: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 40509: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 40509: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 40509: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
40509 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.