Best Places65486, MO Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 65486, 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.
65486 ranks 21,947th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on affordable childcare by a wide margin, and education levels rank lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 65486
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.
65486's strengths and weaknesses
Where 65486 ranks high
- Cheap childcare$408 a month, better than 99% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than 95% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than 74% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than 74% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than 71% of zip codes
Where 65486 ranks low
- Educational attainmentBetter than only 16% of zip codes
- Short commute33.1 minutes each way, better than only 16% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than only 17% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than only 17% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than only 18% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 65486
A household needs to earn about $45,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 65486 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $74,579, 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 65486's effective rate of 0.62%, 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 65486
65486 runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 65486.
Who works in 65486, and how
Work in 65486 centers on transportation & warehousing and construction. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 94%
- Work from home 4%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in 65486
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 65486.
What the weather is like in 65486, month by month
65486 sees roughly 74 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 89 degrees. January highs sit near 44, with lows near 25. The comfortable stretch runs April through June, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 44° | 33° | 25° |
| April | 70° | 57° | 46° |
| July | 89° | 78° | 68° |
| October | 71° | 58° | 48° |
Flying in and out of 65486
The nearest airport, Waynesville-St Robert Regional Forney Field, is about 26 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is St Louis Lambert International, about 115 miles away.
The best schools in and around 65486
Schools across 65486 average a C, better than 34% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- St. Elizabeth Elem.A · 67% proficient
- Miller Co. Elem.C · 33% proficient
- Iberia Elem.C · 32% proficient
Top high schools
- St. Elizabeth HighA · 70% proficient
- Iberia HighC− · 30% proficient
- Tuscumbia HighD · 20% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 65486 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
65486 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 65486 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 65486
Is 65486 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 65486 ranks 21,947th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on affordable childcare, a strong job market, and state finances, and lowest on education levels and long commutes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 65486 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $176,958. The overall cost of living runs about 22% below the national average. Set against a $74,579 median income, cost of living beats 70% of zip codes.
Is 65486 safe?
65486 is safer than 37% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $427 per resident a year.
Compare 65486 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 65486. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 65486 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.
65486 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 65486: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 65486: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 65486: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 65486: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
65486 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.