Best Places62681, IL Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 62681, 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.
62681 ranks 25,946th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on a stable housing market by a wide margin, and the weather ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 62681
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.
62681's strengths and weaknesses
Where 62681 ranks high
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 94% of zip codes
- Short commute18.2 minutes each way, better than 91% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than 87% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than 76% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$704 a month, better than 73% of zip codes
Where 62681 ranks low
- Nice weatherabout 57 pleasant days a year, better than only 4% of zip codes
- School gradeD−, better than only 4% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than only 8% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 62681
A household needs to earn about $34,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 62681 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $63,217, 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 62681's effective rate of 1.68%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 4 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 62681
62681 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 62681.
Who works in 62681, and how
Work in 62681 centers on retail trade 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 84%
- Work from home 5%
- Transit, walk, or bike 12%
Life in 62681
62681 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 74% of zip codes and more parkland per resident than 98% of zip codes. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 62681 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 62681, month by month
62681 sees roughly 57 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 85 degrees. January highs sit near 34, with lows near 19. The comfortable stretch runs May through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 34° | 26° | 19° |
| April | 64° | 51° | 41° |
| July | 85° | 75° | 65° |
| October | 68° | 55° | 45° |
Flying in and out of 62681
The nearest airport, Quincy Regional-Baldwin Field, is about 36 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is St Louis Lambert International, about 95 miles away.
The best schools in and around 62681
Schools across 62681 average a D−, better than 4% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Webster Elem SchoolD · 18% proficient
- Astoria Elem SchoolD− · 16% proficient
- V I T Elementary SchoolF · 8% proficient
Top middle schools
- Brown County Middle SchoolD · 23% proficient
- V I T Jr High SchoolD− · 16% proficient
- Astoria Junior High SchoolF · 11% proficient
Top high schools
- Rushville-industry High SchoolD · 20% proficient
- Astoria High SchoolD− · 16% proficient
- V I T Sr High SchoolF · 10% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 62681 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
62681 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 62681 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 62681
Is 62681 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 62681 ranks 25,946th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on a stable housing market, short commutes, and walkability, and lowest on the weather and the schools. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 62681 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $116,665. The overall cost of living runs about 16% below the national average. Set against a $63,217 median income, cost of living beats 37% of zip codes.
Is 62681 safe?
62681 is safer than 46% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $263 per resident a year.
Compare 62681 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 62681. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 62681 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.
62681 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 62681: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 62681: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 62681: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 62681: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
62681 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.