Best Places85286, AZ Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 85286, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Local pay runs high here, and housing takes the biggest bite out of it. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
85286 ranks 354th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on population health by a wide margin, and air quality ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 85286
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.
85286's strengths and weaknesses
Where 85286 ranks high
- Health outlookBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 203 pleasant days a year, better than 97% of zip codes
- School gradeA, better than 97% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than 97% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than 97% of zip codes
Where 85286 ranks low
- Air qualityBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than only 16% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$1,109 a month, better than only 24% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 85286
A household needs to earn about $162,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 85286 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $131,960, 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 85286's effective rate of 0.52%, 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 10 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 85286
85286 runs younger than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 85286.
Who works in 85286, and how
Work in 85286 centers on manufacturing and health care & social. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 70%
- Work from home 27%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in 85286
85286 has more parkland per resident than 93% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 85286 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 85286, month by month
85286 sees roughly 203 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 107 degrees. January highs sit near 66, with lows near 42. The comfortable stretch runs November through March.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 66° | 56° | 42° |
| April | 87° | 76° | 58° |
| July | 107° | 98° | 84° |
| October | 89° | 79° | 62° |
Flying in and out of 85286
The nearest airport, Phoenix-Mesa Gateway, is about 11 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Phoenix Sky Harbor International, about 15 miles away.
The best schools in and around 85286
Schools across 85286 average an A, better than 97% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Great Hearts Academies - Archway LincolnA+ · 77% proficient
- Haley ElementaryA · 66% proficient
- Anna Marie Jacobson Elementary SchoolA · 66% proficient
Top middle schools
- Arizona College Prep Middle SchoolA+ · 88% proficient
Top high schools
- Arizona College Prep High SchoolA+ · 87% proficient
- Great Hearts Academies - Lincoln PrepA− · 60% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 85286 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
85286 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 85286 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 85286 suits
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 94% of zip codes, internet is fast and widely advertised, and 27% already work from home.
Common questions about living in 85286
Is 85286 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 85286 ranks 354th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on population health, the weather, and good schools, and lowest on air quality and summer heat. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 85286 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $646,188. The overall cost of living runs about 0% below the national average. Set against a $131,960 median income, cost of living beats 94% of zip codes.
Is 85286 safe?
Yes, 85286 is safer than 70% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $269 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 85286?
July highs average about 107 degrees, and January highs near 66 with lows near 42. That works out to about 203 pleasant days a year, more than 97% of zip codes.
Is 85286 good for families?
Schools beat 97% of zip codes, crime safety beats 70%, and childcare runs $1,109 a month.
Compare 85286 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 85286. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 85286 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.
85286 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 85286: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 85286: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 85286: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 85286: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
85286 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.