Best PlacesOhio Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in Ohio, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. The averages are not the whole story, and the strongest areas score well above them. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
Ohio ranks 26th of 50 U.S. states on the BestNeighborhood index. It ranks low mainly on the weather and health outcomes. It does better on low disaster risk, which keeps it off the bottom.
The best neighborhoods in Ohio
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 Ohio
The counties of Ohio, grouped by direction and ranked by the BestNeighborhood standard score across every neighborhood in each. Each note says how that part differs from the rest of the state.
Franklin County & Delaware County
More adults hold degrees, local pay stretches further, and incomes run higher.
Hamilton County, Montgomery County & Butler County
Scores close to Franklin County & Delaware County, except that homes cost less here.
Allen County, Miami County & Shelby County
It is quieter, though tree cover is thinner.
Cuyahoga County & Summit County
Biking is better, though fewer households have young kids.
Lucas County & Wood County
Schools score higher, though transit reaches fewer jobs.
Lorain County & Erie County
Scores close to Lucas County & Wood County, except that crime runs lower here.
Stark County, Columbiana County & Tuscarawas County
Prices have run up less, though health outcomes score lower.
Fairfield County, Ross County & Scioto County
Washington County
More homes sit empty and big-city amenities are further off.
Ohio shows why a single number is not enough. Some neighborhoods score in the bottom 1% of the country and others in the top 1%. Pick the area first, then the home.
Ohio's strengths and weaknesses
Ohio lands in the middle because its strengths and weaknesses roughly balance. Low disaster risk is the standout, in the top 1% of states. Cheap car insurance and good schools follow.
The drawbacks are real but narrow. The weather, health outcomes, and property taxes hold the score down. The detail is below, and the map is where it turns into a choice of neighborhood rather than just a place.
Where Ohio ranks high
- Disaster safetyBetter than 99% of states
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 94% of states
- School gradeB+, better than 89% of states
- Low vacancyBetter than 74% of states
- Voter turnoutBetter than 73% of states
Where Ohio ranks low
- Nice weatherabout 70 pleasant days a year, better than only 19% of states
- Health outlookBetter than only 21% of states
- Low property taxBetter than only 21% of states
- Local economyBetter than only 23% of states
- Air qualityBetter than only 29% of states
What it costs to buy a home in Ohio
A household needs to earn about $66,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Ohio home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $81,524, 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 Ohio'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 9 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Ohio
Ohio's age mix sits close to the national median.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Ohio.
Who works in Ohio, and how
Work in Ohio centers on health care & social and manufacturing. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 82%
- Work from home 13%
- Transit, walk, or bike 5%
Life in Ohio
Ohio has fewer places to eat and drink per resident than most states and more parkland per resident than 75% of states. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of Ohio and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in Ohio, month by month
Ohio sees roughly 70 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 86 degrees. January highs sit near 38, with lows near 23. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, and August through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 38° | 30° | 23° |
| April | 63° | 50° | 40° |
| July | 86° | 76° | 65° |
| October | 69° | 57° | 47° |
The best schools in and around Ohio
Schools across Ohio average a B+, better than 89% of states.
Top elementary schools
- Parkside Elementary SchoolA+ · 98% proficient
- Wells AcademyA+ · 98% proficient
- Dorothy E Lewis Elementary SchoolA+ · 97% proficient
Top middle schools
- Orchard Middle SchoolA+ · 93% proficient
- School Of InnovationA+ · 92% proficient
- Mariemont Junior High SchoolA+ · 91% proficient
Top high schools
- Fort Loramie Junior-senior High SchoolA+ · 93% proficient
- Mariemont High SchoolA+ · 92% proficient
- St Henry High SchoolA+ · 88% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Ohio school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Ohio 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 Ohio against the other 49 states.
Who Ohio suits
Common questions about living in Ohio
Is Ohio a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Ohio ranks 26th of 50 states. It scores highest on low disaster risk, cheap car insurance, and good schools, and lowest on the weather and health outcomes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Ohio expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $235,456. The overall cost of living runs about 13% below the national average. Set against a $81,524 median income, cost of living beats 58% of states.
Is Ohio safe?
Ohio is safer than 35% of states. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $356 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in Ohio?
July highs average about 86 degrees, and January highs near 38 with lows near 23. That works out to about 70 pleasant days a year, more than 19% of states.
What are the best areas in Ohio?
Using the default rankings, the highest-scoring areas are Franklin County & Delaware County, Hamilton County, Montgomery County & Butler County, and Allen County, Miami County & Shelby County. The ranked list and the re-weightable map above let you re-sort them for your own priorities.
Is Ohio good for families?
Schools beat 89% of states, crime safety beats 35%, and childcare runs $1,147 a month.
Is Ohio good for remote workers?
Cost of living against local pay beats 58% of states, though advertised internet speeds beat only 51% of states. About 13% of workers already work from home.
Compare Ohio with other states
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Ohio. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Ohio 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.
Ohio detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Ohio: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Ohio: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Ohio: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Ohio: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Ohio 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.
- 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.