Best Places76801, TX Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 76801, 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.
76801 ranks 20,561st of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on clean air by a wide margin, and thin health care access ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 76801
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.
76801's strengths and weaknesses
Where 76801 ranks high
- Air qualityBetter than 97% of zip codes
- Short commute17.4 minutes each way, better than 93% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 157 pleasant days a year, better than 91% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 91% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$571 a month, better than 87% of zip codes
Where 76801 ranks low
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 12% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than only 12% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 16% of zip codes
- Crime safetyBetter than only 17% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than only 19% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 76801
A household needs to earn about $40,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 76801 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $57,641, 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 76801's effective rate of 1.27%, 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 5 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 76801
76801's age mix sits close to the national median, 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 76801.
Who works in 76801, and how
Work in 76801 centers on manufacturing and retail trade. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 90%
- Work from home 5%
- Transit, walk, or bike 5%
Life in 76801
76801 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 69% of zip codes and more parkland per resident than 67% of zip codes. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 76801 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 76801, month by month
76801 sees roughly 157 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 97 degrees. January highs sit near 60, with lows near 33. The comfortable stretch runs March through May, October, and November.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 60° | 45° | 33° |
| April | 79° | 65° | 53° |
| July | 97° | 84° | 72° |
| October | 80° | 66° | 54° |
Flying in and out of 76801
The nearest airport, Abilene Regional, is about 63 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Austin-Bergstrom International, about 131 miles away.
The best schools in and around 76801
Schools across 76801 average a C+, better than 50% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- East ElB+ · 55% proficient
- Woodland Heights ElB+ · 53% proficient
- J B Stephens ElB · 50% proficient
Top middle schools
- Early MiddleA · 61% proficient
- Bangs MiddleB+ · 47% proficient
- Brownwood MiddleB · 44% proficient
Top high schools
- Early H SA− · 63% proficient
- Bangs H SB+ · 58% proficient
- Brownwood H SB+ · 53% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 76801 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
76801 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 76801 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 76801 suits
Remote workers
Internet is fast and widely advertised and 5% already work from home.
Common questions about living in 76801
Is 76801 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 76801 ranks 20,561st of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on clean air, short commutes, and the weather, and lowest on thin health care access and summer heat. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 76801 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $144,464. The overall cost of living runs about 19% below the national average. Set against a $57,641 median income, cost of living beats 29% of zip codes.
Is 76801 safe?
76801 is safer than 17% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $618 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 76801?
July highs average about 97 degrees, and January highs near 60 with lows near 33. That works out to about 157 pleasant days a year, more than 91% of zip codes.
Is 76801 good for families?
Schools beat 50% of zip codes, crime safety beats 17%, and childcare runs $571 a month.
Compare 76801 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 76801. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 76801 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.
76801 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 76801: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 76801: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 76801: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 76801: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
76801 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.