Best Places82240, WY Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 82240, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Costs and crime both read low, and the nearest big city is a drive away. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
82240 ranks 13,247th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on low taxes by a wide margin, and air quality ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 82240
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.
82240's strengths and weaknesses
Where 82240 ranks high
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Short commute13.9 minutes each way, better than 98% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$506 a month, better than 93% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 137 pleasant days a year, better than 84% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than 78% of zip codes
Where 82240 ranks low
- Air qualityBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 12% of zip codes
- Household income$60,448 median, better than only 25% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 82240
A household needs to earn about $63,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 82240 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is only a little above the area's median income of $60,448; 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 82240's effective rate of 0.65%, 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 82240
82240 runs older than the country, 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 82240.
Who works in 82240, and how
Work in 82240 centers on education and health care & social. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 84%
- Work from home 10%
- Transit, walk, or bike 6%
Life in 82240
82240 has more parkland per resident than 90% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 82240 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 82240, month by month
82240 sees roughly 137 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 94 degrees. January highs sit near 43, with lows near 15. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 43° | 27° | 15° |
| April | 65° | 46° | 30° |
| July | 94° | 74° | 58° |
| October | 68° | 48° | 32° |
Flying in and out of 82240
The nearest airport, Scottsbluff/Western Nebraska Regional/Wm B Heilig Field, is about 33 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Denver International, about 154 miles away.
The best schools in and around 82240
Schools across 82240 average a B, better than 64% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Southeast ElementaryB+ · 53% proficient
- Lingle-ft. Laramie ElementaryB · 45% proficient
- Trail ElementaryB− · 43% proficient
Top middle schools
- Southeast Junior High SchoolA · 60% proficient
- Torrington Middle SchoolB · 47% proficient
- Lingle-ft. Laramie Middle SchoolB · 45% proficient
Top high schools
- Southeast High SchoolA · 75% proficient
- Lingle-ft. Laramie High SchoolB · 47% proficient
- Torrington High SchoolB− · 43% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 82240 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
82240 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 82240 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 82240
Is 82240 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 82240 ranks 13,247th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on low taxes, short commutes, and affordable childcare, and lowest on air quality and distance from a big city. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 82240 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $247,746. The overall cost of living runs about 19% below the national average. Set against a $60,448 median income, cost of living beats 38% of zip codes.
Is 82240 safe?
Yes, 82240 is safer than 71% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $259 per resident a year.
Compare 82240 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 82240. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 82240 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.
82240 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 82240: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 82240: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 82240: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 82240: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
82240 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.