Best Places96097, CA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 96097, 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.
96097 ranks 24,222nd of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on short commutes by a wide margin, and taxes are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 96097
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.
96097's strengths and weaknesses
Where 96097 ranks high
- Short commute17.1 minutes each way, better than 93% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 149 pleasant days a year, better than 89% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than 83% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than 81% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than 76% of zip codes
Where 96097 ranks low
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than only 12% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 14% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than only 15% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 96097
A household needs to earn about $71,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 96097 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $57,949, 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 96097's effective rate of 0.66%, 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 8 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 96097
96097 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 96097.
Who works in 96097, and how
Work in 96097 centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment sits above the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 90%
- Work from home 8%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in 96097
96097 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 82% of zip codes and more parkland per resident than 90% of zip codes. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 96097 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 96097, month by month
96097 sees roughly 149 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 97 degrees. January highs sit near 49, with lows near 26. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, August, and September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 49° | 37° | 26° |
| April | 68° | 50° | 33° |
| July | 97° | 77° | 55° |
| October | 72° | 53° | 35° |
Flying in and out of 96097
The nearest airport, Rogue Valley International/Medford, is about 47 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Sacramento International, about 216 miles away.
The best schools in and around 96097
Schools across 96097 average a C, better than 33% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Fort Jones ElementaryB · 48% proficient
- Grenada ElementaryC · 35% proficient
- Montague ElementaryC · 33% proficient
Top middle schools
- Scott Valley Junior HighB · 45% proficient
- Jackson Street ElementaryD− · 17% proficient
Top high schools
- Yreka HighB+ · 58% proficient
- Etna Union HighC+ · 40% proficient
- Discovery HighD · 21% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 96097 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
96097 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 96097 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 96097
Is 96097 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 96097 ranks 24,222nd of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on short commutes, the weather, and walkability, and lowest on taxes and distance from a big city. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 96097 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $278,571. The overall cost of living runs about 4% below the national average. Set against a $57,949 median income, cost of living beats 15% of zip codes.
Is 96097 safe?
96097 is safer than 35% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $400 per resident a year.
Compare 96097 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 96097. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 96097 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.
96097 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 96097: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 96097: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 96097: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 96097: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
96097 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.