Best Places85542, AZ Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 85542, 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.
85542 ranks 32,672nd of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on a stable housing market by a wide margin, and a weak job market ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 85542
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.
85542's strengths and weaknesses
Where 85542 ranks high
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 160 pleasant days a year, better than 92% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than 91% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than 86% of zip codes
Where 85542 ranks low
- Local economyBetter than only 1% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 1% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than only 1% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than only 2% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than only 3% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 85542
A household needs to earn about $8,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 85542 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $33,646, 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 85542's effective rate of 0.05%, 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 2 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 85542
85542 runs younger than the country, and households here run larger than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 85542.
Who works in 85542, and how
Work in 85542 centers on construction and health care & social. Unemployment runs well above the national rate, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 90%
- Work from home 4%
- Transit, walk, or bike 6%
Life in 85542
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 85542.
What the weather is like in 85542, month by month
85542 sees roughly 160 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 104 degrees. January highs sit near 62, with lows near 31. The comfortable stretch runs March, April, October, and November.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 62° | 46° | 31° |
| April | 85° | 67° | 47° |
| July | 104° | 88° | 73° |
| October | 86° | 68° | 51° |
Flying in and out of 85542
The nearest airport, Phoenix-Mesa Gateway, is about 71 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Phoenix Sky Harbor International, about 92 miles away.
The best schools in and around 85542
Schools across 85542 average a D−, better than 3% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Pima Elementary SchoolC+ · 38% proficient
- Ray Elementary SchoolD · 18% proficient
- Leonor Hambly K-8D− · 13% proficient
Top middle schools
- Pima Junior High SchoolD · 23% proficient
- San Carlos Middle SchoolF · 8% proficient
Top high schools
- Ray Jr/sr High SchoolF · 8% proficient
- Hayden High SchoolF · 8% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 85542 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
85542 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 85542 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 85542
Is 85542 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 85542 ranks 32,672nd of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on a stable housing market, low property taxes, and the weather, and lowest on a weak job market and thin health care access. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 85542 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $35,405. The overall cost of living runs about 7% below the national average. Set against a $33,646 median income, cost of living beats 3% of zip codes.
Is 85542 safe?
85542 is safer than 6% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $746 per resident a year.
Compare 85542 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 85542. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 85542 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.
85542 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 85542: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 85542: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 85542: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 85542: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
85542 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.