Best PlacesAgua Fria, El Mirage, AZ Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Agua Fria, El Mirage, 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.
Agua Fria, El Mirage ranks 3,530th of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on low property taxes by a wide margin, and tree cover ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in Agua Fria, El Mirage
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.
Agua Fria, El Mirage's strengths and weaknesses
Where Agua Fria, El Mirage ranks high
- Low property taxBetter than 97% of neighborhoods
- Disaster safetyBetter than 97% of neighborhoods
- Cell coverageBetter than 95% of neighborhoods
- Crime safetyBetter than 88% of neighborhoods
- QuietBetter than 85% of neighborhoods
Where Agua Fria, El Mirage ranks low
- Tree shadeBetter than only 1% of neighborhoods
- Air qualityBetter than only 8% of neighborhoods
- Educational attainmentBetter than only 9% of neighborhoods
- Heat safetyBetter than only 9% of neighborhoods
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 14% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in Agua Fria, El Mirage
A household needs to earn about $71,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Agua Fria, El Mirage home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $79,920, 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 Agua Fria, El Mirage's effective rate of 0.40%, 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 4 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Agua Fria, El Mirage
Agua Fria, El Mirage 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 Agua Fria, El Mirage.
Who works in Agua Fria, El Mirage, and how
Work in Agua Fria, El Mirage centers on construction and retail trade. Unemployment sits above the national rate, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 86%
- Work from home 10%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in Agua Fria, El Mirage
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across Agua Fria, El Mirage.
What the weather is like in Agua Fria, El Mirage, month by month
Agua Fria, El Mirage sees roughly 137 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 109 degrees. January highs sit near 67, with lows near 40. The comfortable stretch runs February through April and November.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 67° | 53° | 40° |
| April | 88° | 73° | 56° |
| July | 109° | 96° | 83° |
| October | 91° | 76° | 61° |
Flying in and out of Agua Fria, El Mirage
Phoenix Sky Harbor International sits about 21 miles away. It is a large hub and boarded 25.2 million passengers in 2025, with 177 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around Agua Fria, El Mirage
Schools across Agua Fria, El Mirage average a D+, better than 21% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- Surprise Elementary SchoolC · 33% proficient
- El Mirage Elementary SchoolD · 21% proficient
- Riverview SchoolD · 21% proficient
Top high schools
- Valley Vista High SchoolC− · 29% proficient
- Dysart High SchoolC− · 28% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Agua Fria, El Mirage school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Agua Fria, El Mirage 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 Agua Fria, El Mirage against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Common questions about living in Agua Fria, El Mirage
Is Agua Fria, El Mirage a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Agua Fria, El Mirage ranks 3,530th of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on low property taxes, low disaster risk, and cell coverage, and lowest on tree cover and air quality. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Agua Fria, El Mirage expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $286,930. The overall cost of living runs about 6% below the national average. Set against a $79,920 median income, cost of living beats 51% of neighborhoods.
Is Agua Fria, El Mirage safe?
Yes, Agua Fria, El Mirage is safer than 88% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $269 per resident a year.
Compare Agua Fria, El Mirage with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Agua Fria, El Mirage. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Agua Fria, El Mirage 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.
Agua Fria, El Mirage detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Agua Fria, El Mirage: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Agua Fria, El Mirage: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Agua Fria, El Mirage: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Agua Fria, El Mirage: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Agua Fria, El Mirage 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.