Best Places85206, AZ Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 85206, 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.
85206 ranks 7,324th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on cell coverage by a wide margin, and summer heat is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 85206
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.
85206's strengths and weaknesses
Where 85206 ranks high
- Cell coverageBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 206 pleasant days a year, better than 98% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than 97% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than 95% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than 91% of zip codes
Where 85206 ranks low
- Heat safetyBetter than only 1% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than only 1% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than only 9% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than only 9% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$1,109 a month, better than only 24% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 85206
A household needs to earn about $86,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 85206 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is only a little above the area's median income of $78,143; 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 85206's effective rate of 0.46%, 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 6 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 85206
85206 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 85206.
Who works in 85206, and how
Work in 85206 centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 74%
- Work from home 22%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in 85206
85206 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 78% of zip codes and more parkland per resident than 69% of zip codes. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 85206 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 85206, month by month
85206 sees roughly 206 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 107 degrees. January highs sit near 67, with lows near 44. The comfortable stretch runs November through April.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 67° | 55° | 44° |
| April | 88° | 74° | 60° |
| July | 107° | 96° | 84° |
| October | 90° | 77° | 65° |
Flying in and out of 85206
The nearest airport, Phoenix-Mesa Gateway, is about 7 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Phoenix Sky Harbor International, about 17 miles away.
The best schools in and around 85206
Schools across 85206 average a B+, better than 87% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Franklin At Brimhall ElementaryA+ · 83% proficient
- Neely Traditional AcademyA+ · 82% proficient
- Pioneer Elementary SchoolB+ · 55% proficient
Top middle schools
- Franklin Junior High SchoolA+ · 78% proficient
- Highland Jr High SchoolB+ · 50% proficient
Top high schools
- Gilbert Classical Academy 7-12A+ · 81% proficient
- East Valley AcademyD+ · 25% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 85206 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
85206 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 85206 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 85206 suits
Remote workers
Internet is fast and widely advertised and 22% already work from home.
Retirees
The weather beats 98% of zip codes and health care access beats 56%.
Common questions about living in 85206
Is 85206 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 85206 ranks 7,324th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on cell coverage, the weather, and low disaster risk, and lowest on summer heat and air quality. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 85206 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $343,485. The overall cost of living runs about 5% below the national average. Set against a $78,143 median income, cost of living beats 52% of zip codes.
Is 85206 safe?
85206 is safer than 43% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $373 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 85206?
July highs average about 107 degrees, and January highs near 67 with lows near 44. That works out to about 206 pleasant days a year, more than 98% of zip codes.
Is 85206 good for families?
Schools beat 87% of zip codes, crime safety beats 43%, and childcare runs $1,109 a month.
Compare 85206 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 85206. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 85206 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.
85206 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 85206: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 85206: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 85206: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 85206: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
85206 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.