Best Places71270, LA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 71270, 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.
71270 ranks 26,931st 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 71270
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.
71270's strengths and weaknesses
Where 71270 ranks high
- Short commute17.4 minutes each way, better than 93% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than 90% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than 79% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than 77% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than 71% of zip codes
Where 71270 ranks low
- State infrastructureBetter than only 1% of zip codes
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than only 3% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 11% of zip codes
- Household income$52,430 median, better than only 13% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 71270
A household needs to earn about $56,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 71270 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is only a little above the area's median income of $52,430; 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 71270's effective rate of 0.41%, 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 71270
71270 runs younger than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 71270.
Who works in 71270, and how
Work in 71270 centers on education and health care & social. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 81%
- Work from home 13%
- Transit, walk, or bike 6%
Life in 71270
71270 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 77% of zip codes and more late-night spots per resident than 88% of zip codes. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 71270 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 71270, month by month
71270 sees roughly 77 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 93 degrees. January highs sit near 59, with lows near 39. The comfortable stretch runs March through May, October, and November.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 59° | 47° | 39° |
| April | 77° | 64° | 54° |
| July | 93° | 82° | 74° |
| October | 80° | 66° | 56° |
Flying in and out of 71270
The nearest airport, Monroe Regional, is about 35 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Louis Armstrong New Orleans International, about 225 miles away.
The best schools in and around 71270
Schools across 71270 average a C, better than 38% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Choudrant Elementary SchoolB · 45% proficient
- Cypress Springs Elementary SchoolC · 33% proficient
- Ruston Elementary SchoolC− · 30% proficient
Top middle schools
- Ruston Junior High SchoolC− · 28% proficient
- I.a. Lewis SchoolD · 21% proficient
Top high schools
- Choudrant High SchoolB+ · 57% proficient
- Ruston High SchoolB · 48% proficient
- Jonesboro-hodge High SchoolF · 9% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 71270 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
71270 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 71270 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 71270 suits
Remote workers
Internet is fast and widely advertised and 13% already work from home.
Retirees
Set weather, quiet, and health care weights on the map to test the fit.
Common questions about living in 71270
Is 71270 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 71270 ranks 26,931st of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on short commutes, low property taxes, and an educated workforce, 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 71270 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $226,684. The overall cost of living runs about 19% below the national average. Set against a $52,430 median income, cost of living beats 17% of zip codes.
Is 71270 safe?
71270 is safer than 16% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $682 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 71270?
July highs average about 93 degrees, and January highs near 59 with lows near 39. That works out to about 77 pleasant days a year, more than 39% of zip codes.
Is 71270 good for families?
Schools beat 38% of zip codes, crime safety beats 16%, and childcare runs $720 a month.
Compare 71270 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 71270. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 71270 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.
71270 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 71270: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 71270: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 71270: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 71270: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
71270 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.