Best Places99587, AK Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 99587, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Local pay runs high here, and housing takes the biggest bite out of it. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
99587 ranks 8,463rd of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on heat safety by a wide margin, and the weather ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 99587
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.
99587's strengths and weaknesses
Where 99587 ranks high
- Heat safetyBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than 99% of zip codes
- Household income$151,188 median, better than 96% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than 92% of zip codes
Where 99587 ranks low
- Nice weatherabout 3 pleasant days a year, better than only 1% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$1,590 a month, better than only 4% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than only 18% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 18% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 99587
A household needs to earn about $159,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 99587 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is only a little above the area's median income of $151,188; 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 99587'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 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 99587
99587 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 99587.
Who works in 99587, and how
Work in 99587 centers on transportation & warehousing and education. Unemployment runs well above the national rate.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 80%
- Work from home 12%
- Transit, walk, or bike 8%
Life in 99587
99587 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 90% of zip codes. The coast is about 6 minutes away. That concentrates in some parts of 99587 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 99587, month by month
99587 sees roughly 3 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 65 degrees. January highs sit near 31, with lows near 18. The comfortable stretch runs July.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 31° | 24° | 18° |
| April | 45° | 37° | 29° |
| July | 65° | 55° | 47° |
| October | 45° | 38° | 32° |
Flying in and out of 99587
The nearest airport, Merrill Field, is about 30 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Ted Stevens Anchorage International, about 33 miles away.
The best schools in and around 99587
Schools across 99587 average a B+, better than 72% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Chugiak ElementaryB+ · 55% proficient
- Ravenwood ElementaryB+ · 55% proficient
- Girdwood SchoolB+ · 53% proficient
Top middle schools
- Gruening Middle SchoolB+ · 51% proficient
- Seward Middle SchoolB− · 40% proficient
Top high schools
- Eagle River High SchoolB+ · 55% proficient
- River City AcademyB · 50% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 99587 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
99587 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 99587 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 99587
Is 99587 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 99587 ranks 8,463rd of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on heat safety, low taxes, and clean air, and lowest on the weather and childcare costs. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 99587 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $613,255. The overall cost of living runs about 55% above the national average. Set against a $151,188 median income, cost of living beats 74% of zip codes.
Is 99587 safe?
99587 is safer than 26% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $697 per resident a year.
Compare 99587 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 99587. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 99587 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.
99587 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 99587: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 99587: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 99587: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 99587: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
99587 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.