Best Places86038, AZ Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 86038, 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.
86038 ranks 30,309th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on short commutes by a wide margin, and an overheated housing market is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 86038
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.
86038's strengths and weaknesses
Where 86038 ranks high
- Short commute11.2 minutes each way, better than 99% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than 95% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 154 pleasant days a year, better than 90% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than 79% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than 78% of zip codes
Where 86038 ranks low
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 2% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than only 3% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- Crime safetyBetter than only 7% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than only 7% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 86038
A household needs to earn about $45,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 86038 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $63,844, 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 86038's effective rate of 0.32%, 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 5 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 86038
86038's age mix sits close to the national median, 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 86038.
Who works in 86038, and how
Work in 86038 centers on public administration and retail trade. Unemployment sits above the national rate, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 86%
- Work from home 10%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in 86038
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 86038.
What the weather is like in 86038, month by month
86038 sees roughly 154 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 96 degrees. January highs sit near 54, with lows near 37. The comfortable stretch runs April, May, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 54° | 44° | 37° |
| April | 74° | 61° | 50° |
| July | 96° | 82° | 71° |
| October | 78° | 65° | 55° |
Flying in and out of 86038
The nearest airport, Flagstaff Pulliam, is about 16 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Phoenix Sky Harbor International, about 110 miles away.
The best schools in and around 86038
Schools across 86038 average a D+, better than 14% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Weitzel's Puente De Hozho Bilingual Magnet SchoolC− · 30% proficient
Top middle schools
- Mount Elden Middle SchoolD · 20% proficient
- Sinagua Middle SchoolD− · 17% proficient
Top high schools
- Summit High SchoolD+ · 25% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 86038 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
86038 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 86038 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 86038
Is 86038 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 86038 ranks 30,309th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on short commutes, low property taxes, and the weather, and lowest on an overheated housing market and internet speeds. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 86038 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $186,200. The overall cost of living runs about 3% above the national average. Set against a $63,844 median income, cost of living beats 13% of zip codes.
Is 86038 safe?
86038 is safer than 7% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $702 per resident a year.
Compare 86038 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 86038. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 86038 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.
86038 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 86038: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 86038: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 86038: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 86038: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
86038 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.