Best Places59270, MT Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 59270, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. This page is for people who live here or already know they want to. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
59270 ranks 10,332nd of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. Distance from a big city pulls hardest against it, while it scores best on walkability.
The best neighborhoods in 59270
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.
59270's strengths and weaknesses
Where 59270 ranks high
- WalkabilityBetter than 90% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 87% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than 83% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than 83% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 131 pleasant days a year, better than 82% of zip codes
Where 59270 ranks low
- Big-city accessBetter than only 3% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than only 9% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than only 23% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than only 24% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$1,010 a month, better than only 32% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 59270
A household needs to earn about $70,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 59270 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $74,663, 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 59270's effective rate of 0.83%, 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 59270
59270's age mix sits close to the national median.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 59270.
Who works in 59270, and how
Work in 59270 centers on construction and retail trade. Unemployment is low, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 83%
- Work from home 7%
- Transit, walk, or bike 10%
Life in 59270
59270 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 81% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 59270 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 59270, month by month
59270 sees roughly 131 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 89 degrees. January highs sit near 29, with lows near 8. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 29° | 17° | 8° |
| April | 58° | 42° | 29° |
| July | 89° | 73° | 57° |
| October | 60° | 44° | 31° |
Flying in and out of 59270
The nearest airport, Sidney-Richland Regional, is about 1 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Denver International, about 543 miles away.
The best schools in and around 59270
Schools across 59270 average a C, better than 34% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Little Powder ElementaryA+ · 75% proficient
- Horse Creek SchoolA+ · 75% proficient
- Wibaux Elementary SchoolB · 45% proficient
Top middle schools
- Wibaux 7-8C · 35% proficient
- Sidney Middle SchoolC · 33% proficient
- Savage 7-8C− · 31% proficient
Top high schools
- Wibaux High SchoolD+ · 25% proficient
- Lambert High SchoolD+ · 25% proficient
- Watford City High SchoolD · 22% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 59270 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
59270 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 59270 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 59270
Is 59270 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 59270 ranks 10,332nd of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on walkability, low taxes, and civic engagement, and lowest on distance from a big city and tree cover. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 59270 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $267,050. The overall cost of living runs about 9% below the national average. Set against a $74,663 median income, cost of living beats 56% of zip codes.
Is 59270 safe?
Yes, 59270 is safer than 65% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $361 per resident a year.
Compare 59270 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 59270. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 59270 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.
59270 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 59270: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 59270: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 59270: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 59270: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
59270 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.