Best Places59868, MT Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 59868, 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.
59868 ranks 23,968th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on quiet by a wide margin, and an overheated housing market is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 59868
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.
59868's strengths and weaknesses
Where 59868 ranks high
- QuietBetter than 94% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than 89% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than 89% of zip codes
- Short commute18.9 minutes each way, better than 89% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 87% of zip codes
Where 59868 ranks low
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than only 7% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than only 7% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 59868
A household needs to earn about $88,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 59868 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $49,609, 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 59868's effective rate of 0.43%, 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 59868
59868 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 59868.
Who works in 59868, and how
Work in 59868 centers on retail trade and hospitality & food. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 68%
- Work from home 26%
- Transit, walk, or bike 6%
Life in 59868
59868 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 88% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 59868 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 59868, month by month
59868 sees roughly 116 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 59868
The nearest airport, Missoula Montana, is about 34 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Boise Air Trml/Gowen Field, about 283 miles away.
The best schools in and around 59868
Schools across 59868 average a C+, better than 42% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Sunset SchoolB · 50% proficient
- Swan Valley SchoolB · 50% proficient
- Seeley Lake ElementaryC · 33% proficient
Top middle schools
- Swan Valley 7-8A+ · 75% proficient
- Seeley Lake 7-8B+ · 50% proficient
- Arlee 7-8D− · 18% proficient
Top high schools
- Hellgate High SchoolB− · 44% proficient
- Seeley-swan High SchoolD · 21% proficient
- Powell County High SchoolD− · 17% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 59868 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
59868 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 59868 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 59868
Is 59868 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 59868 ranks 23,968th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on quiet, civic engagement, and low property taxes, and lowest on an overheated housing market and air quality. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 59868 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $354,550. The overall cost of living runs about 4% above the national average. Set against a $49,609 median income, cost of living beats 6% of zip codes.
Is 59868 safe?
59868 is safer than 37% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $480 per resident a year.
Compare 59868 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 59868. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 59868 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.
59868 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 59868: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 59868: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 59868: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 59868: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
59868 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.