Best Places70601, LA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 70601, 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.
70601 ranks 31,938th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on short commutes by a wide margin, and state infrastructure ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 70601
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.
70601's strengths and weaknesses
Where 70601 ranks high
- Short commute16.2 minutes each way, better than 95% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than 94% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than 94% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than 87% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than 86% of zip codes
Where 70601 ranks low
- State infrastructureBetter than only 1% of zip codes
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than only 2% of zip codes
- School gradeD−, better than only 2% of zip codes
- Crime safetyBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than only 5% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 70601
A household needs to earn about $56,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 70601 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is only a little above the area's median income of $51,389; the gap is small, which keeps homes within reach of local pay.
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 70601's effective rate of 0.36%, 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 70601
70601'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 70601.
Who works in 70601, and how
Work in 70601 centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment runs well above the national rate, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 88%
- Work from home 5%
- Transit, walk, or bike 6%
Life in 70601
70601 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 87% of zip codes and more parkland per resident than 72% of zip codes. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 70601 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 70601, month by month
70601 sees roughly 99 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 91 degrees. January highs sit near 63, with lows near 44. The comfortable stretch runs February through May and October through December.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 63° | 52° | 44° |
| April | 78° | 68° | 60° |
| July | 91° | 82° | 76° |
| October | 83° | 71° | 62° |
Flying in and out of 70601
The nearest airport, Lake Charles Regional, is about 7 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is George Bush Intcntl/Houston, about 129 miles away.
The best schools in and around 70601
Schools across 70601 average a D−, better than 2% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- T. S. Cooley Elementary Magnet SchoolA+ · 91% proficient
- Prien Lake Elementary SchoolA− · 58% proficient
- T. H. Watkins Elementary SchoolD+ · 25% proficient
Top middle schools
- S. P. Arnett Middle SchoolC+ · 37% proficient
- S. J. Welsh Middle SchoolC · 33% proficient
- Oak Park Middle SchoolD− · 14% proficient
Top high schools
- Alfred M. Barbe High SchoolB− · 44% proficient
- Westlake High SchoolC+ · 35% proficient
- Lagrange High SchoolD− · 12% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 70601 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
70601 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 70601 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 70601 suits
Remote workers
Internet is fast and widely advertised and 5% already work from home.
Common questions about living in 70601
Is 70601 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 70601 ranks 31,938th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on short commutes, walkability, and low property taxes, and lowest on state infrastructure and car insurance costs. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 70601 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $228,525. The overall cost of living runs about 23% below the national average. Set against a $51,389 median income, cost of living beats 26% of zip codes.
Is 70601 safe?
70601 is safer than 5% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $952 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 70601?
July highs average about 91 degrees, and January highs near 63 with lows near 44. That works out to about 99 pleasant days a year, more than 63% of zip codes.
Is 70601 good for families?
Schools beat 2% of zip codes, crime safety beats 5%, and childcare runs $710 a month.
Compare 70601 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 70601. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 70601 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.
70601 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 70601: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 70601: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 70601: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 70601: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
70601 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.