Best Places49426, MI Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 49426, 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.
49426 ranks 1,953rd of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on low crime by a wide margin, and car insurance costs are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 49426
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.
49426's strengths and weaknesses
Where 49426 ranks high
- Crime safetyBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than 96% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than 95% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than 91% of zip codes
Where 49426 ranks low
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than only 7% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 24% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 72 pleasant days a year, better than only 28% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than only 30% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than only 30% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 49426
A household needs to earn about $100,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 49426 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $115,259, 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 49426's effective rate of 1.00%, 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 49426
49426 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 49426.
Who works in 49426, and how
Work in 49426 centers on manufacturing and health care & social. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 86%
- Work from home 12%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in 49426
49426 has fewer places to eat and drink per resident than most zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 49426 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 49426, month by month
49426 sees roughly 72 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 84 degrees. January highs sit near 35, with lows near 21. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 35° | 28° | 21° |
| April | 59° | 47° | 37° |
| July | 84° | 73° | 61° |
| October | 64° | 54° | 44° |
Flying in and out of 49426
The nearest airport, Gerald R Ford International, is about 18 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is General Mitchell International, about 103 miles away.
The best schools in and around 49426
Schools across 49426 average a B+, better than 72% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- El Puente Spanish ImmersionA · 65% proficient
- Adams Elementary SchoolA− · 58% proficient
- Park Elemementary SchoolA− · 58% proficient
Top middle schools
- Baldwin Street Middle SchoolB+ · 52% proficient
- Riley Street Middle SchoolB+ · 50% proficient
- Cityside Middle SchoolB · 46% proficient
Top high schools
- Jenison High SchoolB · 48% proficient
- Hudsonville High SchoolB · 46% proficient
- Zeeland East High SchoolB− · 41% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 49426 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
49426 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 49426 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 49426 suits
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 91% of zip codes, internet is fast and widely advertised, and 12% already work from home.
Common questions about living in 49426
Is 49426 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 49426 ranks 1,953rd of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on low crime, civic engagement, and heat safety, and lowest on car insurance costs and state finances. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 49426 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $373,888. The overall cost of living runs about 7% below the national average. Set against a $115,259 median income, cost of living beats 91% of zip codes.
Is 49426 safe?
Yes, 49426 is safer than 100% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $129 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 49426?
July highs average about 84 degrees, and January highs near 35 with lows near 21. That works out to about 72 pleasant days a year, more than 28% of zip codes.
Is 49426 good for families?
Schools beat 72% of zip codes, crime safety beats 100%, and childcare runs $741 a month.
Compare 49426 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 49426. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 49426 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.
49426 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 49426: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 49426: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 49426: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 49426: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
49426 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.