Best PlacesLa Forge, MO Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around La Forge, 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.
La Forge ranks 46,265th of 50,333 U.S. towns on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on affordable childcare by a wide margin, and health outcomes rank lowest.
The best neighborhoods in La Forge
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.
La Forge's strengths and weaknesses
Where La Forge ranks high
- Cheap childcare$356 a month, better than 99% of towns
- Short commute19.8 minutes each way, better than 88% of towns
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 82% of towns
- State fiscal healthBetter than 73% of towns
- Cell coverageBetter than 64% of towns
Where La Forge ranks low
- Health outlookBetter than only 4% of towns
- Tree shadeBetter than only 4% of towns
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 5% of towns
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 5% of towns
- Nice weatherabout 59 pleasant days a year, better than only 7% of towns
Who lives in La Forge
La Forge runs older 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 La Forge.
Who works in La Forge, and how
Work in La Forge centers on agriculture & forestry and transportation & warehousing. Unemployment sits above the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 89%
- Work from home 8%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in La Forge
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across La Forge.
What the weather is like in La Forge, month by month
La Forge sees roughly 59 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 91 degrees. January highs sit near 45, with lows near 30. The comfortable stretch runs April, May, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 45° | 37° | 30° |
| April | 71° | 59° | 49° |
| July | 91° | 81° | 72° |
| October | 74° | 61° | 51° |
Flying in and out of La Forge
The nearest airport, Cape Girardeau Regional, is about 38 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Memphis International, about 115 miles away.
The best schools in and around La Forge
Schools across La Forge average a C−, better than 26% of towns.
Top elementary schools
- New Madrid ElementaryC · 35% proficient
Top middle schools
- Central Middle SchoolD− · 18% proficient
Top high schools
- Central High SchoolD · 19% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every La Forge school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
La Forge 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 La Forge against the other 50,332 towns.
Common questions about living in La Forge
Is La Forge a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, La Forge ranks 46,265th of 50,333 towns. It scores highest on affordable childcare, short commutes, and a stable housing market, and lowest on health outcomes and tree cover. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is La Forge safe?
La Forge is safer than 30% of towns. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $458 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in La Forge?
July highs average about 91 degrees, and January highs near 45 with lows near 30. That works out to about 59 pleasant days a year, more than 7% of towns.
Compare La Forge with other towns
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to La Forge. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in La Forge 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.
La Forge detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for La Forge: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in La Forge: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of La Forge: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in La Forge: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
La Forge 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.