Best Places45144, OH Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 45144, 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.
45144 ranks 30,530th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on cheap car insurance by a wide margin, and low incomes rank lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 45144
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.
45144's strengths and weaknesses
Where 45144 ranks high
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 93% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 80% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than 71% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than 70% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than 66% of zip codes
Where 45144 ranks low
- Household income$43,488 median, better than only 3% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than only 3% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 10% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 45144
A household needs to earn about $33,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 45144 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $43,488, 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 45144's effective rate of 0.62%, 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 45144
45144's age mix sits close to the national median, 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 45144.
Who works in 45144, and how
Work in 45144 centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment sits above the national rate, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 94%
- Work from home 3%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in 45144
45144 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 92% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 45144 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 45144, month by month
45144 sees roughly 69 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 87 degrees. January highs sit near 40, with lows near 26. The comfortable stretch runs April through June and August through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 40° | 32° | 26° |
| April | 67° | 55° | 45° |
| July | 87° | 76° | 67° |
| October | 70° | 58° | 48° |
Flying in and out of 45144
Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International sits about 62 miles away. It is a medium hub and boarded 4.4 million passengers in 2025, with 99 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around 45144
Schools across 45144 average a B, better than 66% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- West Union Elementary SchoolA− · 58% proficient
- Ripley Union Lewis Huntington Elementary SchoolA− · 58% proficient
- Russellville Elementary SchoolB+ · 55% proficient
Top middle schools
- Eastern MsA− · 57% proficient
- Ripley Union Lewis Huntington Middle SchoolB+ · 50% proficient
Top high schools
- Eastern High SchoolB+ · 57% proficient
- West Union High SchoolB− · 44% proficient
- Ripley-union-lewis-huntington High SchoolB− · 43% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 45144 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
45144 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 45144 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 45144
Is 45144 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 45144 ranks 30,530th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on cheap car insurance, low taxes, and walkability, and lowest on low incomes and health outcomes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 45144 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $130,739. The overall cost of living runs about 16% below the national average. Set against a $43,488 median income, cost of living beats 6% of zip codes.
Is 45144 safe?
45144 is safer than 30% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $381 per resident a year.
Compare 45144 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 45144. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 45144 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.
45144 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 45144: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 45144: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 45144: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 45144: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
45144 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.