Best Places98830, WA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 98830, 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.
98830 ranks 21,647th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on clean air by a wide margin, and tree cover ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 98830
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.
98830's strengths and weaknesses
Where 98830 ranks high
- Air qualityBetter than 98% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than 97% of zip codes
- Short commute15.9 minutes each way, better than 95% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 177 pleasant days a year, better than 95% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 84% of zip codes
Where 98830 ranks low
- Tree shadeBetter than only 2% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 2% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 2% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than only 11% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 98830
A household needs to earn about $68,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 98830 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is only a little above the area's median income of $66,283; the gap is small, which keeps homes within reach of local pay.
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 98830's effective rate of 0.73%, 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 98830
98830'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 98830.
Who works in 98830, and how
Work in 98830 centers on education and hospitality & food. Unemployment runs well above the national rate, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 86%
- Work from home 4%
- Transit, walk, or bike 10%
Life in 98830
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 98830.
What the weather is like in 98830, month by month
98830 sees roughly 177 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 93 degrees. January highs sit near 38, with lows near 24. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, and September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 38° | 31° | 24° |
| April | 66° | 52° | 37° |
| July | 93° | 78° | 60° |
| October | 65° | 51° | 37° |
Flying in and out of 98830
The nearest airport, Pangborn Memorial, is about 41 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Seattle-Tacoma International, about 129 miles away.
98830 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 98830 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 98830
Is 98830 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 98830 ranks 21,647th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on clean air, quiet, and short commutes, and lowest on tree cover and civic engagement. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 98830 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $263,600. The overall cost of living runs about 9% below the national average. Set against a $66,283 median income, cost of living beats 35% of zip codes.
Is 98830 safe?
98830 is safer than 17% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $628 per resident a year.
Compare 98830 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 98830. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 98830 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.
98830 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 98830: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 98830: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 98830: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 98830: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
98830 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.