Best Places56342, MN Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 56342, 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.
56342 ranks 24,105th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on state infrastructure by a wide margin, and a weak job market ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 56342
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.
56342's strengths and weaknesses
Where 56342 ranks high
- State infrastructureBetter than 91% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than 90% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than 80% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than 76% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than 75% of zip codes
Where 56342 ranks low
- Local economyBetter than only 3% of zip codes
- Short commute37.6 minutes each way, better than only 6% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than only 13% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than only 14% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 56342
A household needs to earn about $66,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 56342 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is only a little above the area's median income of $63,665; the gap is small, which keeps homes within reach of local pay.
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 56342's effective rate of 0.86%, 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 56342
56342 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 56342.
Who works in 56342, and how
Work in 56342 centers on construction and retail trade. Unemployment runs well above the national rate, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 82%
- Work from home 12%
- Transit, walk, or bike 5%
Life in 56342
56342 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 83% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 56342 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 56342, month by month
56342 sees roughly 114 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 80 degrees. January highs sit near 23, with lows near 7. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 23° | 15° | 7° |
| April | 52° | 41° | 32° |
| July | 80° | 69° | 58° |
| October | 56° | 46° | 38° |
Flying in and out of 56342
The nearest airport, Brainerd Lakes Regional, is about 36 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Minneapolis-St Paul International/Wold-Chamberlain, about 90 miles away.
The best schools in and around 56342
Schools across 56342 average a C+, better than 42% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Mora Elementary SchoolA− · 56% proficient
- Rippleside ElementaryB+ · 51% proficient
- East Central ElementaryB− · 40% proficient
Top high schools
- Aitkin Secondary SchoolB · 49% proficient
- Mora SecondaryB · 46% proficient
- Crosby-ironton SecondaryC+ · 38% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 56342 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
56342 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 56342 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 56342
Is 56342 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 56342 ranks 24,105th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on state infrastructure, low disaster risk, and health care access, and lowest on a weak job market and long commutes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 56342 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $252,245. The overall cost of living runs about 4% below the national average. Set against a $63,665 median income, cost of living beats 27% of zip codes.
Is 56342 safe?
Yes, 56342 is safer than 68% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $270 per resident a year.
Compare 56342 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 56342. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 56342 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.
56342 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 56342: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 56342: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 56342: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 56342: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
56342 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.