Best PlacesMcPherson County, KS Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in McPherson County, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Costs and crime read low across the board, which puts the choice down to which part suits you. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
McPherson County ranks 812th of 3,144 U.S. counties on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on short commutes by a wide margin, and property taxes are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in McPherson County
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.
The best areas in McPherson County
The parts of McPherson County, ranked by the BestNeighborhood standard score across every neighborhood, highest scoring first. Each note says how that part differs from the rest of the county.
Lindsborg
McPherson
More adults hold degrees, though fewer households have young kids.
Moundridge
More homes sit empty and biking is worse.
Inman
Scores across McPherson County run from about the 35th to the 78th percentile nationally. The map is where that becomes a choice of area.
McPherson County's strengths and weaknesses
Where McPherson County ranks high
- Short commute14.8 minutes each way, better than 96% of counties
- Cheap childcare$467 a month, better than 95% of counties
- State infrastructureBetter than 94% of counties
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 87% of counties
- Crime safetyBetter than 85% of counties
Where McPherson County ranks low
- Low property taxBetter than only 13% of counties
- Tree shadeBetter than only 15% of counties
- Big-city accessBetter than only 16% of counties
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 17% of counties
- QuietBetter than only 18% of counties
What it costs to buy a home in McPherson County
A household needs to earn about $58,000 a year to comfortably buy the median McPherson County home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $78,938, 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 McPherson County's effective rate of 1.34%, 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 10 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in McPherson County
McPherson County's age mix sits close to the national median, 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 McPherson County.
Who works in McPherson County, and how
Work in McPherson County centers on manufacturing and education. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 85%
- Work from home 7%
- Transit, walk, or bike 8%
Life in McPherson County
McPherson County has fewer places to eat and drink per resident than most counties and more parkland per resident than 83% of counties. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of McPherson County and thins out in others, which the map shows.
Is McPherson County growing, and who is moving in?
McPherson County has grown about 5% over the last decade. The largest inbound stream comes from Wichita, KS.
Where new residents come from
Where people leaving McPherson County go
Move counts are the latest county-to-county migration flows, each county grouped into its metro.
What the weather is like in McPherson County, month by month
McPherson County sees roughly 98 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 94 degrees. January highs sit near 44, with lows near 21. The comfortable stretch runs April, May, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 44° | 31° | 21° |
| April | 72° | 56° | 43° |
| July | 94° | 81° | 69° |
| October | 73° | 58° | 46° |
Flying in and out of McPherson County
The nearest airport, Salina Regional, is about 28 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Kansas City International, about 170 miles away.
The best schools in and around McPherson County
Schools across McPherson County average a C−, better than 28% of counties.
Top elementary schools
- Hesston ElemA− · 60% proficient
- Goessel ElemA− · 57% proficient
- Windom ElemA− · 57% proficient
Top middle schools
- Hesston MiddleB− · 42% proficient
- Smoky Valley Middle SchoolC · 33% proficient
- Moundridge MiddleC− · 30% proficient
Top high schools
- Hesston HighB− · 42% proficient
- Southeast Saline HighC+ · 35% proficient
- Smoky Valley HighC− · 27% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every McPherson County school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
McPherson County 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 McPherson County against the other 3,143 counties.
Who McPherson County suits
Families
Schools land around the 28th percentile and crime safety beats 85%.
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 87% of counties and 7% already work from home.
Retirees
The weather beats 59% of counties and health care access beats 80%.
Common questions about living in McPherson County
Is McPherson County a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, McPherson County ranks 812th of 3,144 counties. It scores highest on short commutes, affordable childcare, and state infrastructure, and lowest on property taxes and tree cover. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is McPherson County expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $206,764. The overall cost of living runs about 20% below the national average. Set against a $78,938 median income, cost of living beats 87% of counties.
Is McPherson County safe?
Yes, McPherson County is safer than 85% of counties. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $270 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in McPherson County?
July highs average about 94 degrees, and January highs near 44 with lows near 21. That works out to about 98 pleasant days a year, more than 59% of counties.
What are the best neighborhoods in McPherson County?
Using the default rankings, the highest-scoring areas are Lindsborg, McPherson, and Moundridge. The ranked list and the re-weightable map above let you re-sort them for your own priorities.
Compare McPherson County with other counties
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to McPherson County. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in McPherson County 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.
McPherson County detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for McPherson County: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in McPherson County: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of McPherson County: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in McPherson County: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
McPherson County 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.
- U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program: population growth and net migration behind the population-change section.
- 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.