Best Places72404, AR Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 72404, 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.
72404 ranks 10,675th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores best on what local pay buys, and the weather ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 72404
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.
72404's strengths and weaknesses
Where 72404 ranks high
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 87% of zip codes
- Short commute19.5 minutes each way, better than 87% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than 86% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 85% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than 83% of zip codes
Where 72404 ranks low
- Nice weatherabout 68 pleasant days a year, better than only 21% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than only 21% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 25% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than only 25% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 29% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 72404
A household needs to earn about $67,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 72404 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $90,467, 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 72404's effective rate of 0.56%, 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 8 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 72404
72404 runs younger than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 72404.
Who works in 72404, and how
Work in 72404 centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 91%
- Work from home 7%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in 72404
72404 has fewer places to eat and drink per resident than most zip codes and more parkland per resident than 70% of zip codes. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 72404 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 72404, month by month
72404 sees roughly 68 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 92 degrees. January highs sit near 48, with lows near 32. The comfortable stretch runs April, May, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 48° | 39° | 32° |
| April | 73° | 61° | 52° |
| July | 92° | 82° | 74° |
| October | 76° | 64° | 53° |
Flying in and out of 72404
Memphis International sits about 66 miles away. It is a medium hub and boarded 2.4 million passengers in 2025, with 78 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around 72404
Schools across 72404 average a C+, better than 46% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Valley View Intermediate SchoolA− · 58% proficient
- Westside Elementary SchoolC+ · 36% proficient
- Visual & Performing Art MagnetC+ · 35% proficient
Top middle schools
- Valley View Junior High SchoolA− · 57% proficient
- Brookland Junior High SchoolB− · 39% proficient
- Westside Middle SchoolC+ · 39% proficient
Top high schools
- Valley View High SchoolB− · 42% proficient
- Bay High SchoolC · 32% proficient
- Westside High SchoolC− · 28% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 72404 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
72404 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 72404 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 72404 suits
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 87% of zip codes, internet is fast and widely advertised, and 7% already work from home.
Retirees
Set weather, quiet, and health care weights on the map to test the fit.
Common questions about living in 72404
Is 72404 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 72404 ranks 10,675th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on what local pay buys, short commutes, and state finances, and lowest on the weather and summer heat. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 72404 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $264,657. The overall cost of living runs about 20% below the national average. Set against a $90,467 median income, cost of living beats 87% of zip codes.
Is 72404 safe?
72404 is safer than 48% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $496 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 72404?
July highs average about 92 degrees, and January highs near 48 with lows near 32. That works out to about 68 pleasant days a year, more than 21% of zip codes.
Is 72404 good for families?
Schools beat 46% of zip codes, crime safety beats 48%, and childcare runs $671 a month.
Compare 72404 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 72404. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 72404 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.
72404 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 72404: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 72404: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 72404: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 72404: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
72404 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.