Best Places85541, AZ Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 85541, 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.
85541 ranks 18,151st of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on the weather by a wide margin, and air quality ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 85541
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.
85541's strengths and weaknesses
Where 85541 ranks high
- Nice weatherabout 191 pleasant days a year, better than 97% of zip codes
- Short commute19.6 minutes each way, better than 86% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than 84% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than 80% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than 77% of zip codes
Where 85541 ranks low
- Air qualityBetter than only 1% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 12% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than only 20% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than only 22% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 85541
A household needs to earn about $89,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 85541 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $71,548, 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 85541's effective rate of 0.55%, 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 85541
85541 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 85541.
Who works in 85541, and how
Work in 85541 centers on health care & social and construction. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 78%
- Work from home 16%
- Transit, walk, or bike 6%
Life in 85541
85541 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 67% of zip codes and more parkland per resident than 80% of zip codes. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 85541 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 85541, month by month
85541 sees roughly 191 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 91 degrees. January highs sit near 51, with lows near 33. The comfortable stretch runs April, May, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 51° | 41° | 33° |
| April | 70° | 57° | 45° |
| July | 91° | 78° | 66° |
| October | 74° | 61° | 50° |
Flying in and out of 85541
The nearest airport, Flagstaff Pulliam, is about 65 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Phoenix Sky Harbor International, about 69 miles away.
The best schools in and around 85541
Schools across 85541 average a C−, better than 23% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Franklin At Brimhall ElementaryA+ · 83% proficient
- Black Mountain Elementary SchoolA · 65% proficient
- Tonto Basin ElementaryB · 45% proficient
Top middle schools
- Franklin Junior High SchoolA+ · 78% proficient
- Sonoran Trails Middle SchoolB+ · 49% proficient
- Rim Country Middle SchoolD+ · 26% proficient
Top high schools
- Cactus Shadows High SchoolB · 48% proficient
- Payson High SchoolD+ · 25% proficient
- East Valley AcademyD+ · 25% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 85541 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
85541 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 85541 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 85541 suits
Families
Schools land around the 23rd percentile and crime safety beats 61%.
Retirees
The weather beats 97% of zip codes, health care access beats 59%, and it is quieter than 59%.
Common questions about living in 85541
Is 85541 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 85541 ranks 18,151st of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on the weather, short commutes, and a strong job market, and lowest on air quality and an overheated housing market. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 85541 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $351,904. The overall cost of living runs about 3% above the national average. Set against a $71,548 median income, cost of living beats 31% of zip codes.
Is 85541 safe?
Yes, 85541 is safer than 61% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $304 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 85541?
July highs average about 91 degrees, and January highs near 51 with lows near 33. That works out to about 191 pleasant days a year, more than 97% of zip codes.
Is 85541 good for families?
Schools beat 23% of zip codes, crime safety beats 61%, and childcare runs $856 a month.
Compare 85541 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 85541. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 85541 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.
85541 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 85541: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 85541: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 85541: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 85541: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
85541 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.