Best Places45809, OH Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 45809, 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.
45809 ranks 12,678th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on cheap car insurance by a wide margin, and the weather ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 45809
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.
45809's strengths and weaknesses
Where 45809 ranks high
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 99% of zip codes
- School gradeA, better than 88% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than 88% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than 82% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 81% of zip codes
Where 45809 ranks low
- Nice weatherabout 57 pleasant days a year, better than only 4% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than only 14% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than only 15% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than only 19% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than only 20% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 45809
A household needs to earn about $61,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 45809 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $80,568, 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 45809's effective rate of 0.97%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Who lives in 45809
45809'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 45809.
Who works in 45809, and how
Work in 45809 centers on other services and retail trade. Unemployment is low, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 87%
- Work from home 2%
- Transit, walk, or bike 11%
Life in 45809
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 45809.
What the weather is like in 45809, month by month
45809 sees roughly 57 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 86 degrees. January highs sit near 37, with lows near 20. The comfortable stretch runs May through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 37° | 29° | 20° |
| April | 64° | 51° | 39° |
| July | 86° | 75° | 64° |
| October | 69° | 56° | 45° |
Flying in and out of 45809
The nearest airport, Fort Wayne International, is about 54 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is John Glenn Columbus International, about 90 miles away.
The best schools in and around 45809
Schools across 45809 average an A, better than 88% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Elida ElementaryA · 67% proficient
Top middle schools
- Elida Middle SchoolA · 61% proficient
Top high schools
- Elida High SchoolA− · 59% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 45809 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
45809 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 45809 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 45809
Is 45809 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 45809 ranks 12,678th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on cheap car insurance, good schools, and civic engagement, and lowest on the weather and a weak job market. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 45809 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $228,700. The overall cost of living runs about 8% below the national average. Set against a $80,568 median income, cost of living beats 58% of zip codes.
Is 45809 safe?
45809 is safer than 54% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $261 per resident a year.
Compare 45809 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 45809. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 45809 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.
45809 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 45809: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 45809: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 45809: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 45809: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
45809 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.