Best Places44265, OH Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 44265, 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.
44265 ranks 11,092nd of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on few empty homes by a wide margin, and walkability ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 44265
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.
44265's strengths and weaknesses
Where 44265 ranks high
- Low vacancyBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 95% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than 89% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than 89% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than 85% of zip codes
Where 44265 ranks low
- WalkabilityBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$1,273 a month, better than only 17% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than only 17% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than only 26% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than only 26% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 44265
A household needs to earn about $49,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 44265 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $61,731, 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 44265's effective rate of 1.11%, 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 6 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 44265
44265 runs younger than the country, and households here run larger than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 44265.
Who works in 44265, and how
Work in 44265 centers on professional & technical and education. Unemployment runs well above the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 78%
- Work from home 17%
- Transit, walk, or bike 5%
Life in 44265
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 44265.
What the weather is like in 44265, month by month
44265 sees roughly 103 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 88 degrees. January highs sit near 39, with lows near 22. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, and August through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 39° | 30° | 22° |
| April | 65° | 52° | 40° |
| July | 88° | 76° | 64° |
| October | 69° | 57° | 46° |
Flying in and out of 44265
The nearest airport, Akron-Canton Regional, is about 14 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Cleveland-Hopkins International, about 40 miles away.
The best schools in and around 44265
Schools across 44265 average an A−, better than 80% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Waterloo Elementary SchoolA− · 58% proficient
Top middle schools
- Waterloo Middle SchoolB+ · 50% proficient
Top high schools
- Waterloo High SchoolA− · 60% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 44265 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
44265 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 44265 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 44265
Is 44265 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 44265 ranks 11,092nd of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on few empty homes, cheap car insurance, and low disaster risk, and lowest on walkability and childcare costs. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 44265 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $178,800. The overall cost of living runs about 6% below the national average. Set against a $61,731 median income, cost of living beats 17% of zip codes.
Is 44265 safe?
Yes, 44265 is safer than 57% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $256 per resident a year.
Compare 44265 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 44265. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 44265 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.
44265 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 44265: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 44265: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 44265: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 44265: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
44265 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.