Best Places66781, KS Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 66781, 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.
66781 ranks 29,656th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on fast internet by a wide margin, and air quality ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 66781
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.
66781's strengths and weaknesses
Where 66781 ranks high
- Internet speedBetter than 97% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$467 a month, better than 97% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than 94% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than 58% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 91 pleasant days a year, better than 57% of zip codes
Where 66781 ranks low
- Air qualityBetter than only 13% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than only 17% of zip codes
- Household income$55,897 median, better than only 18% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than only 19% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than only 20% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 66781
A household needs to earn about $31,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 66781 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $55,897, 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 66781's effective rate of 1.07%, 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 3 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 66781
66781 runs younger than the country, 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 66781.
Who works in 66781, and how
Work in 66781 centers on manufacturing and health care & social. Unemployment is low, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 90%
- Work from home 7%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in 66781
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 66781.
What the weather is like in 66781, month by month
66781 sees roughly 91 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 91 degrees. January highs sit near 45, with lows near 26. The comfortable stretch runs April, May, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 45° | 34° | 26° |
| April | 70° | 58° | 48° |
| July | 91° | 80° | 71° |
| October | 72° | 60° | 50° |
Flying in and out of 66781
The nearest airport, Joplin Regional, is about 18 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Kansas City International, about 138 miles away.
The best schools in and around 66781
Schools across 66781 average a C−, better than 26% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Southeast Elementary SchoolB · 50% proficient
Top middle schools
- Central ElemC · 35% proficient
- Southeast Middle SchoolD · 22% proficient
Top high schools
- Columbus Junior High And High SchoolC− · 25% proficient
- Southeast HighD− · 12% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 66781 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
66781 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 66781 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 66781
Is 66781 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 66781 ranks 29,656th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on fast internet, affordable childcare, and state infrastructure, and lowest on air quality and a weak job market. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 66781 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $115,907. The overall cost of living runs about 25% below the national average. Set against a $55,897 median income, cost of living beats 31% of zip codes.
Is 66781 safe?
66781 is safer than 22% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $470 per resident a year.
Compare 66781 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 66781. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 66781 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.
66781 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 66781: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 66781: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 66781: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 66781: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
66781 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.