Best Places79601, TX Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 79601, 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.
79601 ranks 24,241st of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on short commutes by a wide margin, and thin health care access ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 79601
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.
79601's strengths and weaknesses
Where 79601 ranks high
- Short commute14.9 minutes each way, better than 97% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 91% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$571 a month, better than 87% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 135 pleasant days a year, better than 84% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than 82% of zip codes
Where 79601 ranks low
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 9% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than only 11% of zip codes
- Household income$52,881 median, better than only 14% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than only 14% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 79601
A household needs to earn about $54,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 79601 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is only a little above the area's median income of $52,881; 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 79601's effective rate of 1.30%, 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 79601
79601 runs younger than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 79601.
Who works in 79601, and how
Work in 79601 centers on health care & social and education. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 80%
- Work from home 9%
- Transit, walk, or bike 11%
Life in 79601
79601 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 78% of zip codes and more parkland per resident than 78% of zip codes. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 79601 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 79601, month by month
79601 sees roughly 135 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 98 degrees. January highs sit near 61, with lows near 32. The comfortable stretch runs March through May, October, and November.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 61° | 45° | 32° |
| April | 82° | 65° | 51° |
| July | 98° | 85° | 73° |
| October | 83° | 67° | 54° |
Flying in and out of 79601
The nearest airport, Abilene Regional, is about 6 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Dallas-Fort Worth International, about 157 miles away.
The best schools in and around 79601
Schools across 79601 average a C+, better than 50% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
Top middle schools
- Eula J HA− · 55% proficient
- Clyde J HB · 44% proficient
- Merkel MiddleC+ · 36% proficient
Top high schools
- Academy For Technology Engineering Math & ScienceA · 70% proficient
- Clyde H SA− · 63% proficient
- Eula H SB+ · 58% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 79601 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
79601 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 79601 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 79601 suits
Remote workers
Internet is fast and widely advertised and 9% already work from home.
Common questions about living in 79601
Is 79601 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 79601 ranks 24,241st of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on short commutes, low taxes, and affordable childcare, and lowest on thin health care access and civic engagement. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 79601 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $194,396. The overall cost of living runs about 16% below the national average. Set against a $52,881 median income, cost of living beats 14% of zip codes.
Is 79601 safe?
79601 is safer than 20% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $624 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 79601?
July highs average about 98 degrees, and January highs near 61 with lows near 32. That works out to about 135 pleasant days a year, more than 84% of zip codes.
Is 79601 good for families?
Schools beat 50% of zip codes, crime safety beats 20%, and childcare runs $571 a month.
Compare 79601 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 79601. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 79601 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.
79601 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 79601: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 79601: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 79601: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 79601: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
79601 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.