Best Places97026, OR Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 97026, 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.
97026 ranks 23,777th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on state infrastructure by a wide margin, and noise is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 97026
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.
97026's strengths and weaknesses
Where 97026 ranks high
- State infrastructureBetter than 96% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than 95% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than 85% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than 80% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than 80% of zip codes
Where 97026 ranks low
- QuietBetter than only 3% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 7% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- School gradeD, better than only 9% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 97026
A household needs to earn about $103,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 97026 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $81,972, 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 97026's effective rate of 0.68%, 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 97026
97026 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 97026.
Who works in 97026, and how
Work in 97026 centers on construction and manufacturing. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 88%
- Work from home 6%
- Transit, walk, or bike 6%
Life in 97026
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 97026.
What the weather is like in 97026, month by month
97026 sees roughly 110 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 87 degrees. January highs sit near 50, with lows near 35. The comfortable stretch runs May through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 50° | 42° | 35° |
| April | 65° | 52° | 41° |
| July | 87° | 70° | 55° |
| October | 67° | 55° | 44° |
Flying in and out of 97026
The nearest airport, McNary Field, is about 15 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Portland International, about 36 miles away.
The best schools in and around 97026
Schools across 97026 average a D, better than 9% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Gervais Elementary SchoolD− · 11% proficient
Top middle schools
- Gervais Middle SchoolF · 12% proficient
Top high schools
- Gervais High SchoolC · 34% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 97026 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
97026 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 97026 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 97026
Is 97026 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 97026 ranks 23,777th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on state infrastructure, cell coverage, and few empty homes, and lowest on noise and education levels. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 97026 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $402,541. The overall cost of living runs about 16% above the national average. Set against a $81,972 median income, cost of living beats 23% of zip codes.
Is 97026 safe?
Yes, 97026 is safer than 72% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $307 per resident a year.
Compare 97026 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 97026. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 97026 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.
97026 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 97026: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 97026: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 97026: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 97026: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
97026 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.