Best Places85356, AZ Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 85356, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Several measures below read low, and the ranked lists name which ones. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
85356 ranks 26,377th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on the weather by a wide margin, and summer heat is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 85356
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.
85356's strengths and weaknesses
Where 85356 ranks high
- Nice weatherabout 213 pleasant days a year, better than 98% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than 87% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than 83% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than 75% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 75% of zip codes
Where 85356 ranks low
- Heat safetyBetter than only 1% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than only 2% of zip codes
- School gradeD, better than only 5% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than only 10% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 85356
A household needs to earn about $38,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 85356 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $66,080, so a typical household can afford the median home outright.
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 85356's effective rate of 0.49%, 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 3 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 85356
85356 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 85356.
Who works in 85356, and how
Work in 85356 centers on education and public administration. Unemployment runs well above the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 73%
- Work from home 25%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in 85356
85356 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 92% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 85356 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 85356, month by month
85356 sees roughly 213 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 109 degrees. January highs sit near 69, with lows near 43. The comfortable stretch runs November through April.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 69° | 56° | 43° |
| April | 89° | 74° | 57° |
| July | 109° | 96° | 82° |
| October | 92° | 77° | 61° |
Flying in and out of 85356
The nearest airport, Yuma MCAS/Yuma International, is about 27 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Phoenix Sky Harbor International, about 134 miles away.
The best schools in and around 85356
Schools across 85356 average a D, better than 5% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Dorothy Hall ElementaryB · 48% proficient
- Mohawk Valley SchoolC · 33% proficient
- Wellton Elementary SchoolD · 20% proficient
Top middle schools
- Southwest Jr. High SchoolD · 20% proficient
- Somerton Middle SchoolD · 20% proficient
Top high schools
- Gila Ridge High SchoolD− · 15% proficient
- Ajo High SchoolF · 10% proficient
- San Luis High SchoolF · 10% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 85356 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
85356 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 85356 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 85356
Is 85356 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 85356 ranks 26,377th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on the weather, cell coverage, and low property taxes, and lowest on summer heat and tree cover. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 85356 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $151,810. The overall cost of living runs about 11% below the national average. Set against a $66,080 median income, cost of living beats 36% of zip codes.
Is 85356 safe?
85356 is safer than 18% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $585 per resident a year.
Compare 85356 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 85356. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 85356 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.
85356 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 85356: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 85356: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 85356: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 85356: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
85356 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.