Best PlacesCongress Heights, Washington, DC Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Congress Heights, Washington, 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.
Congress Heights, Washington ranks 5,051st of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on state infrastructure by a wide margin, and childcare costs are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in Congress Heights, Washington
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.
Congress Heights, Washington's strengths and weaknesses
Where Congress Heights, Washington ranks high
- State infrastructureBetter than 99% of neighborhoods
- Disaster safetyBetter than 96% of neighborhoods
- Air qualityBetter than 85% of neighborhoods
- Low property taxBetter than 83% of neighborhoods
- State fiscal healthBetter than 83% of neighborhoods
Where Congress Heights, Washington ranks low
- Cheap childcare$2,143 a month, better than only 3% of neighborhoods
- Local economyBetter than only 7% of neighborhoods
- Crime safetyBetter than only 9% of neighborhoods
- Short commute32.2 minutes each way, better than only 12% of neighborhoods
- Nice weatherabout 64 pleasant days a year, better than only 14% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in Congress Heights, Washington
A household needs to earn about $114,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Congress Heights, Washington home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $69,119, so buying stretches a typical household.
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 Congress Heights, Washington's effective rate of 0.61%, 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 Congress Heights, Washington
Congress Heights, Washington runs younger 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 Congress Heights, Washington.
Who works in Congress Heights, Washington, and how
Work in Congress Heights, Washington centers on public administration and health care & social. Unemployment runs well above the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 38%
- Work from home 24%
- Transit, walk, or bike 38%
Life in Congress Heights, Washington
The coast is about 26 minutes away. Distance to the water changes a lot across Congress Heights, Washington, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in Congress Heights, Washington, month by month
Congress Heights, Washington sees roughly 64 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 92 degrees. January highs sit near 49, with lows near 30. The comfortable stretch runs April, May, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 49° | 38° | 30° |
| April | 72° | 59° | 48° |
| July | 92° | 81° | 73° |
| October | 74° | 63° | 53° |
Flying in and out of Congress Heights, Washington
Ronald Reagan Washington Ntl sits about 2 miles away. It is a large hub and boarded 12.0 million passengers in 2025, with 128 nonstop destinations.
Congress Heights, Washington 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 Congress Heights, Washington against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Common questions about living in Congress Heights, Washington
Is Congress Heights, Washington a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Congress Heights, Washington ranks 5,051st of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on state infrastructure, low disaster risk, and clean air, and lowest on childcare costs and a weak job market. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Congress Heights, Washington expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $449,074. The overall cost of living runs about 9% above the national average. Set against a $69,119 median income, cost of living beats 26% of neighborhoods.
Is Congress Heights, Washington safe?
Congress Heights, Washington is safer than 9% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $1,337 per resident a year.
Compare Congress Heights, Washington with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Congress Heights, Washington. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Congress Heights, Washington 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.
Congress Heights, Washington detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Congress Heights, Washington: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Congress Heights, Washington: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Congress Heights, Washington: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Congress Heights, Washington: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Congress Heights, Washington 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.