Best Places64850, MO Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 64850, 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.
64850 ranks 21,773rd of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on affordable childcare by a wide margin, and noise is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 64850
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.
64850's strengths and weaknesses
Where 64850 ranks high
- Cheap childcare$445 a month, better than 98% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than 74% of zip codes
- Short commute22.3 minutes each way, better than 74% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than 71% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than 71% of zip codes
Where 64850 ranks low
- QuietBetter than only 16% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than only 16% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than only 17% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than only 26% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than only 26% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 64850
A household needs to earn about $44,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 64850 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $63,677, 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 64850's effective rate of 0.60%, 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 7 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 64850
64850'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 64850.
Who works in 64850, and how
Work in 64850 centers on manufacturing and retail trade. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 87%
- Work from home 10%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in 64850
64850 has more parkland per resident than 78% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 64850 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 64850, month by month
64850 sees roughly 77 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 89 degrees. January highs sit near 45, with lows near 28. The comfortable stretch runs April through June, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 45° | 35° | 28° |
| April | 68° | 56° | 47° |
| July | 89° | 78° | 69° |
| October | 71° | 59° | 50° |
Flying in and out of 64850
The nearest airport, Joplin Regional, is about 21 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Kansas City International, about 169 miles away.
The best schools in and around 64850
Schools across 64850 average a C+, better than 47% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- George Washington Carver Elem.B · 50% proficient
- South Elem.B− · 43% proficient
- Goodman Elem.B− · 43% proficient
Top middle schools
- Seneca Intermediate SchoolB · 43% proficient
- Neosho Jr. HighB− · 42% proficient
- Middle Sch.C+ · 38% proficient
Top high schools
- East Newton HighC+ · 38% proficient
- Neosho HighC · 31% proficient
- Seneca HighC− · 30% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 64850 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
64850 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 64850 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 64850 suits
Families
Schools land around the 47th percentile and crime safety beats 57%.
Retirees
Set weather, quiet, and health care weights on the map to test the fit.
Common questions about living in 64850
Is 64850 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 64850 ranks 21,773rd of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on affordable childcare, state finances, and short commutes, and lowest on noise and internet speeds. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 64850 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $172,168. The overall cost of living runs about 22% below the national average. Set against a $63,677 median income, cost of living beats 46% of zip codes.
Is 64850 safe?
Yes, 64850 is safer than 57% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $356 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 64850?
July highs average about 89 degrees, and January highs near 45 with lows near 28. That works out to about 77 pleasant days a year, more than 38% of zip codes.
Is 64850 good for families?
Schools beat 47% of zip codes, crime safety beats 57%, and childcare runs $445 a month.
Compare 64850 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 64850. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 64850 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.
64850 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 64850: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 64850: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 64850: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 64850: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
64850 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.