Best Places69346, NE Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 69346, 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.
69346 ranks 25,866th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on state finances by a wide margin, and tree cover ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 69346
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.
69346's strengths and weaknesses
Where 69346 ranks high
- State fiscal healthBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Short commute17.5 minutes each way, better than 93% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than 85% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than 84% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 132 pleasant days a year, better than 82% of zip codes
Where 69346 ranks low
- Tree shadeBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than only 11% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 69346
A household needs to earn about $26,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 69346 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $58,777, 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 69346's effective rate of 0.78%, 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 69346
69346 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 69346.
Who works in 69346, and how
Work in 69346 centers on agriculture & forestry and retail trade. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 83%
- Work from home 8%
- Transit, walk, or bike 8%
Life in 69346
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 69346.
What the weather is like in 69346, month by month
69346 sees roughly 132 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 89 degrees. January highs sit near 39, with lows near 11. The comfortable stretch runs June through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 39° | 23° | 11° |
| April | 61° | 43° | 29° |
| July | 89° | 71° | 55° |
| October | 64° | 44° | 28° |
Flying in and out of 69346
The nearest airport, Scottsbluff/Western Nebraska Regional/Wm B Heilig Field, is about 57 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Denver International, about 200 miles away.
The best schools in and around 69346
Schools across 69346 average a B−, better than 55% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Crawford Elementary SchoolB · 45% proficient
- Harrison Grade SchoolB− · 40% proficient
- Lusk ElementaryC− · 30% proficient
Top middle schools
- Lusk Middle SchoolB− · 42% proficient
Top high schools
- Crawford High SchoolB+ · 52% proficient
- Niobrara County High SchoolB− · 45% proficient
- Sioux County High SchoolB− · 42% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 69346 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
69346 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 69346 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 69346
Is 69346 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 69346 ranks 25,866th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on state finances, short commutes, and state infrastructure, and lowest on tree cover and distance from a big city. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 69346 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $99,015. The overall cost of living runs about 2% below the national average. Set against a $58,777 median income, cost of living beats 16% of zip codes.
Is 69346 safe?
69346 is safer than 11% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $556 per resident a year.
Compare 69346 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 69346. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 69346 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.
69346 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 69346: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 69346: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 69346: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 69346: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
69346 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.