Best Places50057, IA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 50057, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Costs and crime both read low, and the nearest big city is a drive away. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
50057 ranks 6,214th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on what local pay buys by a wide margin, and biking ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 50057
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.
50057's strengths and weaknesses
Where 50057 ranks high
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 95% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than 94% of zip codes
- Household income$116,166 median, better than 88% of zip codes
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 84% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than 80% of zip codes
Where 50057 ranks low
- BikingBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 60 pleasant days a year, better than only 8% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than only 12% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than only 23% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than only 28% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 50057
A household needs to earn about $82,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 50057 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $116,166, 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 50057's effective rate of 1.02%, 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 50057
50057 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 50057.
Who works in 50057, and how
Work in 50057 centers on manufacturing and agriculture & forestry. Unemployment is low, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 92%
- Work from home 4%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in 50057
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 50057.
What the weather is like in 50057, month by month
50057 sees roughly 60 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 85 degrees. January highs sit near 32, with lows near 17. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, August, and September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 32° | 24° | 17° |
| April | 63° | 51° | 41° |
| July | 85° | 76° | 67° |
| October | 65° | 54° | 45° |
Flying in and out of 50057
The nearest airport, Des Moines International, is about 36 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Eppley Airfield, about 143 miles away.
The best schools in and around 50057
Schools across 50057 average a B+, better than 79% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Northstar Elementary SchoolB+ · 53% proficient
- Twin Cedars Elementary SchoolB+ · 52% proficient
- Melcher-dallas ElemB · 48% proficient
Top middle schools
- Chariton Middle SchoolA+ · 68% proficient
- Knoxville Middle SchoolA · 63% proficient
Top high schools
- Chariton High SchoolA− · 63% proficient
- Knoxville High SchoolA− · 63% proficient
- Melcher-dallas High SchoolB+ · 52% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 50057 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
50057 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 50057 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 50057
Is 50057 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 50057 ranks 6,214th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on what local pay buys, state finances, and high incomes, and lowest on biking and the weather. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 50057 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $305,172. The overall cost of living runs about 17% below the national average. Set against a $116,166 median income, cost of living beats 95% of zip codes.
Is 50057 safe?
Yes, 50057 is safer than 77% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $220 per resident a year.
Compare 50057 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 50057. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 50057 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.
50057 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 50057: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 50057: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 50057: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 50057: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
50057 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.