Best Places55309, MN Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 55309, 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.
55309 ranks 2,620th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on heat safety by a wide margin, and long commutes are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 55309
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.
55309's strengths and weaknesses
Where 55309 ranks high
- Heat safetyBetter than 97% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than 96% of zip codes
- Crime safetyBetter than 96% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 94% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than 91% of zip codes
Where 55309 ranks low
- Short commute33.0 minutes each way, better than only 16% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 22% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than only 24% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$1,041 a month, better than only 30% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than only 40% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 55309
A household needs to earn about $95,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 55309 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $117,340, 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 55309's effective rate of 0.95%, 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 55309
55309 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 55309.
Who works in 55309, and how
Work in 55309 centers on manufacturing and health care & social. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 85%
- Work from home 12%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in 55309
55309 has fewer places to eat and drink per resident than most zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 55309 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 55309, month by month
55309 sees roughly 122 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 83 degrees. January highs sit near 24, with lows near 9. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 24° | 16° | 9° |
| April | 54° | 43° | 35° |
| July | 83° | 72° | 63° |
| October | 58° | 48° | 41° |
Flying in and out of 55309
The nearest airport, St. Cloud Regional, is about 20 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Minneapolis-St Paul International/Wold-Chamberlain, about 42 miles away.
The best schools in and around 55309
Schools across 55309 average a B+, better than 71% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Pinewood ElementaryA− · 62% proficient
- Meadowvale ElementaryA− · 61% proficient
- Independence ElementaryB+ · 53% proficient
Top middle schools
- Becker MiddleB+ · 51% proficient
- Monticello MiddleB · 45% proficient
- Big Lake Middle SchoolB · 44% proficient
Top high schools
- Elk River Senior HighA− · 60% proficient
- Becker Senior HighB+ · 57% proficient
- Monticello Senior HighB+ · 55% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 55309 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
55309 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 55309 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 55309 suits
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 94% of zip codes, internet is fast and widely advertised, and 12% already work from home.
Retirees
The weather beats 76% of zip codes and health care access beats 64%.
Common questions about living in 55309
Is 55309 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 55309 ranks 2,620th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on heat safety, civic engagement, and low crime, and lowest on long commutes and taxes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 55309 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $357,943. The overall cost of living runs about 12% below the national average. Set against a $117,340 median income, cost of living beats 94% of zip codes.
Is 55309 safe?
Yes, 55309 is safer than 96% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $167 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 55309?
July highs average about 83 degrees, and January highs near 24 with lows near 9. That works out to about 122 pleasant days a year, more than 76% of zip codes.
Is 55309 good for families?
Schools beat 71% of zip codes, crime safety beats 96%, and childcare runs $1,041 a month.
Compare 55309 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 55309. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 55309 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.
55309 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 55309: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 55309: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 55309: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 55309: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
55309 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.