Best Places72573, AR Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 72573, 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.
72573 ranks 29,236th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on affordable childcare by a wide margin, and walkability ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 72573
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.
72573's strengths and weaknesses
Where 72573 ranks high
- Cheap childcare$481 a month, better than 95% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than 86% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than 83% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 77% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 71% of zip codes
Where 72573 ranks low
- WalkabilityBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than only 10% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 72573
A household needs to earn about $38,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 72573 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $51,351, 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 72573's effective rate of 0.49%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices and rents, renting stays cheaper than buying across the first 10 years here, so the case for buying rests on staying much longer or on prices rising faster than assumed. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 72573
72573 runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 72573.
Who works in 72573, and how
Work in 72573 centers on health care & social and education. Unemployment is low, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 95%
- Work from home 4%
- Transit, walk, or bike 1%
Life in 72573
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 72573.
What the weather is like in 72573, month by month
72573 sees roughly 81 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 91 degrees. January highs sit near 49, with lows near 27. The comfortable stretch runs April through June, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 49° | 37° | 27° |
| April | 72° | 58° | 47° |
| July | 91° | 79° | 69° |
| October | 75° | 60° | 48° |
Flying in and out of 72573
The nearest airport, Boone County, is about 77 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Memphis International, about 124 miles away.
The best schools in and around 72573
Schools across 72573 average a B−, better than 61% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Melbourne Elementary SchoolB+ · 53% proficient
- Cave City Elementary SchoolC+ · 40% proficient
- Izard Co. Cons. Elem. SchoolC · 33% proficient
Top middle schools
- Cave City Middle School Career And Collegiate PreparatoryB− · 41% proficient
- Izard County Cons Middle SchD+ · 27% proficient
Top high schools
- Melbourne High SchoolB− · 44% proficient
- Cave City High Career & Collegiate Preparatory SchoolC− · 28% proficient
- Izard Co. Cons. High SchoolD+ · 25% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 72573 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
72573 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 72573 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 72573
Is 72573 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 72573 ranks 29,236th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on affordable childcare, state finances, and low property taxes, and lowest on walkability and cell coverage. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 72573 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $149,893. The overall cost of living runs about 17% below the national average. Set against a $51,351 median income, cost of living beats 15% of zip codes.
Is 72573 safe?
72573 is safer than 53% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $449 per resident a year.
Compare 72573 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 72573. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 72573 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.
72573 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 72573: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 72573: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 72573: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 72573: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
72573 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.