Best Places85209, AZ Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 85209, 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.
85209 ranks 4,141st 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 85209
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.
85209's strengths and weaknesses
Where 85209 ranks high
- Cell coverageBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 190 pleasant days a year, better than 96% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than 96% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than 93% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than 88% of zip codes
Where 85209 ranks low
- Heat safetyBetter than only 1% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than only 2% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than only 11% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$1,109 a month, better than only 24% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 85209
A household needs to earn about $99,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 85209 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is only a little above the area's median income of $97,294; 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 85209's effective rate of 0.44%, 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 85209
85209 runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 85209.
Who works in 85209, and how
Work in 85209 centers on retail trade and health care & social. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 74%
- Work from home 21%
- Transit, walk, or bike 5%
Life in 85209
85209 has more parkland per resident than 76% of zip codes and more late-night spots per resident than 83% of zip codes. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 85209 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 85209, month by month
85209 sees roughly 190 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 106 degrees. January highs sit near 65, with lows near 41. The comfortable stretch runs February through April, October, and November.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 65° | 52° | 41° |
| April | 86° | 71° | 56° |
| July | 106° | 94° | 82° |
| October | 89° | 74° | 61° |
Flying in and out of 85209
The nearest airport, Phoenix-Mesa Gateway, is about 5 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Phoenix Sky Harbor International, about 22 miles away.
The best schools in and around 85209
Schools across 85209 average a B+, better than 85% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Franklin At Brimhall ElementaryA+ · 83% proficient
- Neely Traditional AcademyA+ · 82% proficient
- MeridianA− · 61% proficient
Top middle schools
- Franklin Junior High SchoolA+ · 78% proficient
- Highland Jr High SchoolB+ · 50% proficient
- Imagine East Mesa MiddleC+ · 38% proficient
Top high schools
- Gilbert Classical Academy 7-12A+ · 81% proficient
- Desert Ridge HighC− · 28% proficient
- East Valley AcademyD+ · 25% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 85209 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
85209 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 85209 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 85209 suits
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 76% of zip codes, internet is fast and widely advertised, and 21% already work from home.
Common questions about living in 85209
Is 85209 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 85209 ranks 4,141st 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 85209 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $400,224. The overall cost of living runs about 3% below the national average. Set against a $97,294 median income, cost of living beats 76% of zip codes.
Is 85209 safe?
Yes, 85209 is safer than 71% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $266 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 85209?
July highs average about 106 degrees, and January highs near 65 with lows near 41. That works out to about 190 pleasant days a year, more than 96% of zip codes.
Is 85209 good for families?
Schools beat 85% of zip codes, crime safety beats 71%, and childcare runs $1,109 a month.
Compare 85209 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 85209. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 85209 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.
85209 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 85209: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 85209: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 85209: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 85209: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
85209 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.