Best Places99506, AK Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 99506, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. The coast is close, and the measures below put a number on how close. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
99506 ranks 12,568th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on heat safety by a wide margin, and childcare costs are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 99506
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.
99506's strengths and weaknesses
Where 99506 ranks high
- Heat safetyBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Short commute12.0 minutes each way, better than 99% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than 98% of zip codes
Where 99506 ranks low
- Cheap childcare$1,590 a month, better than only 4% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Crime safetyBetter than only 16% of zip codes
Who lives in 99506
99506 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 99506.
Who works in 99506, and how
Work in 99506 centers on health care & social and hospitality & food. Unemployment is close to the national rate.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 87%
- Work from home 2%
- Transit, walk, or bike 11%
Life in 99506
99506 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 70% of zip codes. The coast is about 7 minutes away. That concentrates in some parts of 99506 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 99506, month by month
99506 sees roughly 133 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 69 degrees. January highs sit near 25, with lows near 9. The comfortable stretch runs June through August.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 25° | 17° | 9° |
| April | 48° | 39° | 29° |
| July | 69° | 60° | 53° |
| October | 45° | 37° | 29° |
Flying in and out of 99506
The nearest airport, Merrill Field, is about 2 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Ted Stevens Anchorage International, about 8 miles away.
The best schools in and around 99506
Schools across 99506 average a B+, better than 66% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Orion Elementary SchoolA · 68% proficient
- Aurora ElementaryB+ · 53% proficient
- Ursa Minor ElementaryB · 48% proficient
Top middle schools
- Nicholas J. Begich Middle SchoolD− · 17% proficient
Top high schools
- Bartlett High SchoolD · 23% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 99506 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
99506 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 99506 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 99506
Is 99506 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 99506 ranks 12,568th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on heat safety, low taxes, and population health, and lowest on childcare costs and civic engagement. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 99506 safe?
99506 is safer than 16% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $812 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 99506?
July highs average about 69 degrees, and January highs near 25 with lows near 9. That works out to about 133 pleasant days a year, more than 82% of zip codes.
Compare 99506 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 99506. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 99506 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.
99506 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 99506: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 99506: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 99506: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 99506: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
99506 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.
- 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.