Best PlacesOld Columbine, AZ Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Old Columbine, 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.
Old Columbine ranks 24,343rd of 50,333 U.S. towns on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on quiet by a wide margin, and air quality ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in Old Columbine
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.
Old Columbine's strengths and weaknesses
Where Old Columbine ranks high
- QuietBetter than 97% of towns
- Nice weatherabout 171 pleasant days a year, better than 97% of towns
- Local economyBetter than 96% of towns
- Health outlookBetter than 89% of towns
- Low property taxBetter than 82% of towns
Where Old Columbine ranks low
- Air qualityBetter than only 3% of towns
- BikingBetter than only 3% of towns
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 8% of towns
- Heat safetyBetter than only 12% of towns
- Crime safetyBetter than only 15% of towns
What it costs to buy a home in Old Columbine
A household needs to earn about $66,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Old Columbine home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $86,254, 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 Old Columbine's effective rate of 0.46%, 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 Old Columbine
Old Columbine'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 Old Columbine.
Who works in Old Columbine, and how
Work in Old Columbine centers on health care & social and mining & oil & gas. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 92%
- Work from home 4%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in Old Columbine
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across Old Columbine.
What the weather is like in Old Columbine, month by month
Old Columbine sees roughly 171 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 104 degrees. January highs sit near 62, with lows near 31. The comfortable stretch runs March, April, October, and November.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 62° | 46° | 31° |
| April | 85° | 67° | 47° |
| July | 104° | 88° | 73° |
| October | 86° | 68° | 51° |
Flying in and out of Old Columbine
The nearest airport, Tucson International, is about 73 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Phoenix Sky Harbor International, about 130 miles away.
The best schools in and around Old Columbine
Schools across Old Columbine average a C−, better than 30% of towns.
Top elementary schools
- Bonita Elementary SchoolB− · 43% proficient
- Pima Elementary SchoolC+ · 38% proficient
Top middle schools
- Pima Junior High SchoolD · 23% proficient
Top high schools
- Thatcher High SchoolC+ · 38% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Old Columbine school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Old Columbine 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 Old Columbine against the other 50,332 towns.
Common questions about living in Old Columbine
Is Old Columbine a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Old Columbine ranks 24,343rd of 50,333 towns. It scores highest on quiet, the weather, and a strong job market, and lowest on air quality and biking. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Old Columbine expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $265,553. The overall cost of living runs about 8% below the national average. Set against a $86,254 median income, cost of living beats 67% of towns.
Is Old Columbine safe?
Old Columbine is safer than 15% of towns. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $521 per resident a year.
Compare Old Columbine with other towns
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Old Columbine. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Old Columbine 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.
Old Columbine detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Old Columbine: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Old Columbine: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Old Columbine: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Old Columbine: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Old Columbine 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.