Best PlacesDunnellon, FL Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Dunnellon, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Costs and crime both read low, and the nearest big city is a drive away. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
Dunnellon ranks 1,865th of 2,098 U.S. cities on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on quiet by a wide margin, and cell coverage ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in Dunnellon
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.
Dunnellon's strengths and weaknesses
Where Dunnellon ranks high
- QuietBetter than 99% of cities
- State infrastructureBetter than 96% of cities
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 95% of cities
- Crime safetyBetter than 88% of cities
- Tree shadeBetter than 85% of cities
Where Dunnellon ranks low
- Cell coverageBetter than only 1% of cities
- WalkabilityBetter than only 1% of cities
- Health outlookBetter than only 2% of cities
- BikingBetter than only 2% of cities
- Household income$55,619 median, better than only 4% of cities
What it costs to buy a home in Dunnellon
A household needs to earn about $60,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Dunnellon home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is only a little above the area's median income of $55,619; 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 Dunnellon'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, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 7 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Dunnellon
Dunnellon runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Dunnellon.
Who works in Dunnellon, and how
Work in Dunnellon centers on retail trade and health care & social. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 80%
- Work from home 16%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in Dunnellon
Dunnellon has more restaurants and bars per resident than 66% of cities. The coast is about 49 minutes away. That concentrates in some parts of Dunnellon and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in Dunnellon, month by month
Dunnellon sees roughly 130 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 92 degrees. January highs sit near 70, with lows near 45. The comfortable stretch runs October through April.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 70° | 56° | 45° |
| April | 84° | 71° | 58° |
| July | 92° | 81° | 73° |
| October | 85° | 73° | 64° |
Flying in and out of Dunnellon
The nearest airport, Gainesville Regional, is about 44 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Tampa International, about 76 miles away.
The best schools in and around Dunnellon
Schools across Dunnellon average a B−, better than 46% of cities.
Top elementary schools
- Hammett Bowen Jr. Elementary SchoolA− · 59% proficient
- Citrus Springs Elementary SchoolB · 47% proficient
- Dunnellon Elementary SchoolB · 46% proficient
Top middle schools
- Citrus Springs Middle SchoolA− · 53% proficient
- Crystal River Middle SchoolB · 46% proficient
- Dunnellon Middle SchoolB · 43% proficient
Top high schools
- Citrus High SchoolB · 49% proficient
- West Port High SchoolB · 49% proficient
- Crystal River High SchoolB− · 44% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Dunnellon school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Dunnellon 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 Dunnellon against the other 2,097 cities.
Who Dunnellon suits
Families
Schools land around the 46th percentile and crime safety beats 88%.
Retirees
The weather beats 74% of cities, health care access beats 58%, and it is quieter than 99%.
Common questions about living in Dunnellon
Is Dunnellon a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Dunnellon ranks 1,865th of 2,098 cities. It scores highest on quiet, state infrastructure, and low taxes, and lowest on cell coverage and walkability. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Dunnellon expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $231,160. The overall cost of living runs about 16% below the national average. Set against a $55,619 median income, cost of living beats 10% of cities.
Is Dunnellon safe?
Yes, Dunnellon is safer than 88% of cities. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $146 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in Dunnellon?
July highs average about 92 degrees, and January highs near 70 with lows near 45. That works out to about 130 pleasant days a year, more than 74% of cities.
Is Dunnellon good for families?
Schools beat 46% of cities, crime safety beats 88%, and childcare runs $760 a month.
Compare Dunnellon with other cities
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Dunnellon. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Dunnellon 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.
Dunnellon detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Dunnellon: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Dunnellon: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Dunnellon: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Dunnellon: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Dunnellon 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.