Best Places42629, KY Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 42629, 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.
42629 ranks 30,912th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on affordable childcare by a wide margin, and health outcomes rank lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 42629
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.
42629's strengths and weaknesses
Where 42629 ranks high
- Cheap childcare$439 a month, better than 98% of zip codes
- Short commute22.2 minutes each way, better than 74% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than 74% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than 69% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 67% of zip codes
Where 42629 ranks low
- Health outlookBetter than only 2% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than only 3% of zip codes
- Household income$36,256 median, better than only 3% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 10% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 42629
A household needs to earn about $45,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 42629 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $36,256, 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 42629's effective rate of 0.58%, 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 42629
42629 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 42629.
Who works in 42629, and how
Work in 42629 centers on manufacturing and education. Unemployment sits above 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 42629
42629 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 69% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 42629 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 42629, month by month
42629 sees roughly 62 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 89 degrees. January highs sit near 48, with lows near 25. The comfortable stretch runs April through June and August through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 48° | 35° | 25° |
| April | 71° | 57° | 43° |
| July | 89° | 76° | 65° |
| October | 74° | 58° | 44° |
Flying in and out of 42629
The nearest airport, Blue Grass, is about 78 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Nashville International, about 106 miles away.
The best schools in and around 42629
Schools across 42629 average a C−, better than 27% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Russell Springs Elementary SchoolC− · 30% proficient
- Jamestown Elementary SchoolD+ · 23% proficient
Top middle schools
- Russell County Middle SchoolC · 32% proficient
Top high schools
- Russell County High SchoolC · 33% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 42629 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
42629 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 42629 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 42629
Is 42629 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 42629 ranks 30,912th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on affordable childcare, short commutes, and low property taxes, and lowest on health outcomes and the cost of living against local pay. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 42629 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $177,225. The overall cost of living runs about 18% below the national average. Set against a $36,256 median income, cost of living beats 3% of zip codes.
Is 42629 safe?
42629 is safer than 47% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $290 per resident a year.
Compare 42629 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 42629. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 42629 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.
42629 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 42629: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 42629: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 42629: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 42629: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
42629 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.