Best Places97842, OR Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 97842, 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.
97842 ranks 19,192nd of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on quiet by a wide margin, and cell coverage ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 97842
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.
97842's strengths and weaknesses
Where 97842 ranks high
- QuietBetter than 97% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than 97% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than 96% of zip codes
- Short commute20.4 minutes each way, better than 83% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than 82% of zip codes
Where 97842 ranks low
- Cell coverageBetter than only 1% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than only 2% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than only 2% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than only 3% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than only 3% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 97842
A household needs to earn about $151,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 97842 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $79,118, 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 97842's effective rate of 0.53%, 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 97842
97842 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 97842.
Who works in 97842, and how
Work in 97842 centers on agriculture & forestry and professional & technical. Unemployment runs well above the national rate, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 73%
- Work from home 17%
- Transit, walk, or bike 9%
Life in 97842
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 97842.
What the weather is like in 97842, month by month
97842 sees roughly 110 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 85 degrees. January highs sit near 37, with lows near 25. The comfortable stretch runs June through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 37° | 30° | 25° |
| April | 56° | 44° | 34° |
| July | 85° | 68° | 52° |
| October | 58° | 46° | 36° |
Flying in and out of 97842
The nearest airport, Lewiston/Nez Perce County, is about 62 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Boise Air Trml/Gowen Field, about 137 miles away.
The best schools in and around 97842
Schools across 97842 average a B, better than 64% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Enterprise Elementary SchoolB+ · 55% proficient
- Riggins Elementary SchoolC− · 30% proficient
Top high schools
- Enterprise High SchoolB+ · 52% proficient
- Salmon River Jr/sr High SchoolC+ · 35% proficient
- Wallowa High SchoolC · 34% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 97842 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
97842 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 97842 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 97842
Is 97842 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 97842 ranks 19,192nd of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on quiet, clean air, and state infrastructure, and lowest on cell coverage and biking. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 97842 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $598,600. The overall cost of living runs about 4% above the national average. Set against a $79,118 median income, cost of living beats 37% of zip codes.
Is 97842 safe?
Yes, 97842 is safer than 68% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $318 per resident a year.
Compare 97842 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 97842. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 97842 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.
97842 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 97842: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 97842: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 97842: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 97842: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
97842 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.