Best PlacesIndependence, KY Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Independence, 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.
Independence ranks 929th of 2,098 U.S. cities on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on few empty homes by a wide margin, and the weather ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in Independence
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.
Independence's strengths and weaknesses
Where Independence ranks high
- Low vacancyBetter than 98% of cities
- Local economyBetter than 93% of cities
- Voter turnoutBetter than 86% of cities
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 82% of cities
- QuietBetter than 80% of cities
Where Independence ranks low
- Nice weatherabout 53 pleasant days a year, better than only 1% of cities
- WalkabilityBetter than only 4% of cities
- BikingBetter than only 6% of cities
- TransitBetter than only 13% of cities
- Internet speedBetter than only 27% of cities
What it costs to buy a home in Independence
A household needs to earn about $67,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Independence home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $101,977, 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 Independence's effective rate of 0.91%, 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 5 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Independence
Independence 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 Independence.
Who works in Independence, and how
Work in Independence centers on manufacturing 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 85%
- Work from home 13%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in Independence
Independence has more parkland per resident than 84% of cities. That concentrates in some parts of Independence and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in Independence, month by month
Independence sees roughly 53 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 88 degrees. January highs sit near 43, with lows near 23. The comfortable stretch runs April through June and August through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 43° | 32° | 23° |
| April | 68° | 55° | 43° |
| July | 88° | 77° | 67° |
| October | 71° | 59° | 47° |
Flying in and out of Independence
Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International sits about 9 miles away. It is a medium hub and boarded 4.4 million passengers in 2025, with 99 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around Independence
Schools across Independence average a C+, better than 36% of cities.
Top elementary schools
- White's Tower Elementary SchoolB+ · 53% proficient
- Ryland Heights Elementary SchoolB · 48% proficient
- Kenton Elementary SchoolB · 47% proficient
Top middle schools
- Woodland Middle SchoolC+ · 39% proficient
- Twenhofel Middle SchoolC · 34% proficient
- Rector A. Jones Middle SchoolD− · 16% proficient
Top high schools
- Larry A. Ryle High SchoolB− · 44% proficient
- Dixie Heights High SchoolC+ · 39% proficient
- Simon Kenton High SchoolC+ · 39% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Independence school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Independence 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 Independence against the other 2,097 cities.
Who Independence suits
Families
Schools land around the 36th percentile and crime safety beats 68%.
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 73% of cities and 13% already work from home.
Common questions about living in Independence
Is Independence a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Independence ranks 929th of 2,098 cities. It scores highest on few empty homes, a strong job market, and civic engagement, and lowest on the weather and walkability. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Independence expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $253,733. The overall cost of living runs about 12% below the national average. Set against a $101,977 median income, cost of living beats 73% of cities.
Is Independence safe?
Yes, Independence is safer than 68% of cities. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $236 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in Independence?
July highs average about 88 degrees, and January highs near 43 with lows near 23. That works out to about 53 pleasant days a year, more than 1% of cities.
Is Independence good for families?
Schools beat 36% of cities, crime safety beats 68%, and childcare runs $866 a month.
Compare Independence with other cities
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Independence. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Independence 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.
Independence detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Independence: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Independence: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Independence: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Independence: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Independence 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.