Best Places98530, WA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 98530, 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.
98530 ranks 13,255th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on a strong job market by a wide margin, and childcare costs are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 98530
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.
98530's strengths and weaknesses
Where 98530 ranks high
- Local economyBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than 95% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than 94% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 84% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than 77% of zip codes
Where 98530 ranks low
- Cheap childcare$1,375 a month, better than only 11% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than only 11% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 17% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 19% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 19% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 98530
A household needs to earn about $68,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 98530 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $87,618, 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 98530's effective rate of 0.72%, 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 7 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 98530
98530 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 98530.
Who works in 98530, and how
Work in 98530 centers on public administration and hospitality & food. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 63%
- Work from home 34%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in 98530
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 98530.
What the weather is like in 98530, month by month
98530 sees roughly 115 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 81 degrees. January highs sit near 48, with lows near 37. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 48° | 41° | 37° |
| April | 61° | 50° | 41° |
| July | 81° | 66° | 54° |
| October | 63° | 51° | 44° |
Flying in and out of 98530
Seattle-Tacoma International sits about 52 miles away. It is a large hub and boarded 25.4 million passengers in 2025, with 172 nonstop destinations.
98530 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 98530 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 98530
Is 98530 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 98530 ranks 13,255th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on a strong job market, few empty homes, and clean air, and lowest on childcare costs and state infrastructure. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 98530 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $264,220. The overall cost of living runs about 5% above the national average. Set against a $87,618 median income, cost of living beats 50% of zip codes.
Is 98530 safe?
Yes, 98530 is safer than 59% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $375 per resident a year.
Compare 98530 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 98530. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 98530 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.
98530 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 98530: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 98530: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 98530: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 98530: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
98530 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.