Best PlacesEmpire, NV Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Empire, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Several measures below read low, and the ranked lists name which ones. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
Empire ranks 34,566th of 50,333 U.S. towns on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on short commutes by a wide margin, and crime is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in Empire
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.
Empire's strengths and weaknesses
Where Empire ranks high
- Short commute2.7 minutes each way, better than 99% of towns
- State infrastructureBetter than 98% of towns
- QuietBetter than 97% of towns
- Nice weatherabout 157 pleasant days a year, better than 94% of towns
- State fiscal healthBetter than 92% of towns
Where Empire ranks low
- Crime safetyBetter than only 1% of towns
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 1% of towns
- Tree shadeBetter than only 2% of towns
- Educational attainmentBetter than only 3% of towns
- Local economyBetter than only 7% of towns
Who lives in Empire
Empire runs older than the country, though fewer residents are over 65 than the national share.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Empire.
Who works in Empire, and how
Work in Empire centers on arts & entertainment and other services. Unemployment runs well above the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 46%
- Work from home 27%
- Transit, walk, or bike 27%
Life in Empire
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across Empire.
What the weather is like in Empire, month by month
Empire sees roughly 157 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 99 degrees. January highs sit near 47, with lows near 20. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, and September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 47° | 33° | 20° |
| April | 69° | 51° | 32° |
| July | 99° | 80° | 55° |
| October | 71° | 51° | 30° |
Flying in and out of Empire
The nearest airport, Reno/Tahoe International, is about 69 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Sacramento International, about 167 miles away.
The best schools in and around Empire
Schools across Empire average a D+, better than 10% of towns.
Top elementary schools
- Lovelock Elementary SchoolD+ · 22% proficient
- Sierra PrimaryD− · 16% proficient
Top middle schools
- Lou Mendive Middle SchoolC · 34% proficient
- Pershing County Middle SchoolD · 23% proficient
Top high schools
- Edward C. Reed High SchoolC− · 29% proficient
- Pershing County High SchoolC− · 27% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Empire school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Empire 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 Empire against the other 50,332 towns.
Common questions about living in Empire
Is Empire a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Empire ranks 34,566th of 50,333 towns. It scores highest on short commutes, state infrastructure, and quiet, and lowest on crime and civic engagement. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Empire safe?
Empire is safer than 0% of towns. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $2,337 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in Empire?
July highs average about 99 degrees, and January highs near 47 with lows near 20. That works out to about 157 pleasant days a year, more than 94% of towns.
Compare Empire with other towns
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Empire. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Empire 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.
Empire detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Empire: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Empire: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Empire: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Empire: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Empire 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.