Best Places81006, CO Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 81006, 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.
81006 ranks 22,045th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. Air quality pulls hardest against it, while it scores best on civic engagement.
The best neighborhoods in 81006
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.
81006's strengths and weaknesses
Where 81006 ranks high
- Voter turnoutBetter than 84% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 137 pleasant days a year, better than 84% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than 80% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than 77% of zip codes
- Short commute21.9 minutes each way, better than 76% of zip codes
Where 81006 ranks low
- Air qualityBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 17% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 19% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 81006
A household needs to earn about $80,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 81006 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $68,969, so buying stretches a typical household.
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 81006'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 9 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 81006
81006 runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 81006.
Who works in 81006, and how
Work in 81006 centers on health care & social and manufacturing. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 89%
- Work from home 8%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in 81006
81006 has more parkland per resident than 87% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 81006 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 81006, month by month
81006 sees roughly 137 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 97 degrees. January highs sit near 51, with lows near 15. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, and September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 51° | 31° | 15° |
| April | 73° | 53° | 34° |
| July | 97° | 78° | 61° |
| October | 75° | 54° | 36° |
Flying in and out of 81006
The nearest airport, Pueblo Memorial, is about 4 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Denver International, about 112 miles away.
The best schools in and around 81006
Schools across 81006 average a C−, better than 20% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- North Mesa Elementary SchoolC · 35% proficient
- Vineland Elementary SchoolC− · 26% proficient
- South Mesa Elementary SchoolD+ · 25% proficient
Top middle schools
- Corwin International Magnet SchoolC · 34% proficient
- Pleasant View Middle SchoolC · 33% proficient
- Sky View Middle SchoolC− · 29% proficient
Top high schools
- Pueblo County High SchoolC+ · 35% proficient
- Pueblo West High SchoolC · 32% proficient
- Central High SchoolD− · 14% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 81006 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
81006 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 81006 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 81006
Is 81006 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 81006 ranks 22,045th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on civic engagement, the weather, and cell coverage, and lowest on air quality and state finances. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 81006 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $314,534. The overall cost of living runs about 12% below the national average. Set against a $68,969 median income, cost of living beats 44% of zip codes.
Is 81006 safe?
81006 is safer than 25% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $641 per resident a year.
Compare 81006 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 81006. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 81006 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.
81006 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 81006: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 81006: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 81006: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 81006: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
81006 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.