Best Places59831, MT Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 59831, 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.
59831 ranks 28,028th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on clean air by a wide margin, and the cost of living against local pay is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 59831
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.
59831's strengths and weaknesses
Where 59831 ranks high
- Air qualityBetter than 93% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 87% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than 80% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 124 pleasant days a year, better than 78% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than 70% of zip codes
Where 59831 ranks low
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than only 3% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than only 7% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than only 9% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 59831
A household needs to earn about $68,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 59831 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $53,681, so buying stretches a typical household.
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 59831's effective rate of 0.52%, 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 59831
59831's age mix sits close to the national median, 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 59831.
Who works in 59831, and how
Work in 59831 centers on agriculture & forestry and retail trade. Unemployment runs well above the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 80%
- Work from home 13%
- Transit, walk, or bike 7%
Life in 59831
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 59831.
What the weather is like in 59831, month by month
59831 sees roughly 124 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 91 degrees. January highs sit near 33, with lows near 16. The comfortable stretch runs June through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 33° | 24° | 16° |
| April | 60° | 45° | 31° |
| July | 91° | 71° | 51° |
| October | 60° | 44° | 32° |
Flying in and out of 59831
The nearest airport, Missoula Montana, is about 29 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Boise Air Trml/Gowen Field, about 275 miles away.
The best schools in and around 59831
Schools across 59831 average a D+, better than 12% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Dixon ElementaryD− · 16% proficient
- Hot Springs SchoolF · 8% proficient
Top middle schools
- Hot Springs 7-8C− · 30% proficient
- Dixon 7-8D+ · 25% proficient
Top high schools
- Charlo High SchoolC− · 30% proficient
- Hot Springs High SchoolD+ · 25% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 59831 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
59831 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 59831 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 59831
Is 59831 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 59831 ranks 28,028th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on clean air, low taxes, and low property taxes, and lowest on the cost of living against local pay and internet speeds. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 59831 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $269,600. The overall cost of living runs about 10% above the national average. Set against a $53,681 median income, cost of living beats 3% of zip codes.
Is 59831 safe?
59831 is safer than 54% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $391 per resident a year.
Compare 59831 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 59831. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 59831 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.
59831 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 59831: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 59831: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 59831: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 59831: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
59831 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.