Best PlacesPottawatomie County, KS Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in Pottawatomie County, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. The averages hide a wide spread here, so the area matters as much as the address. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
Pottawatomie County ranks 390th of 3,144 U.S. counties on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on state infrastructure by a wide margin, and taxes are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in Pottawatomie 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 Pottawatomie County
The parts of Pottawatomie 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.
Wamego
More residents vote, local pay stretches further, and homes cost less.
Manhattan & St. George
More households have young kids and more adults hold degrees.
St. Marys
Scores across Pottawatomie County run from about the 25th to the 87th percentile nationally. The map is where that becomes a choice of area.
Pottawatomie County's strengths and weaknesses
Where Pottawatomie County ranks high
- State infrastructureBetter than 94% of counties
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 93% of counties
- Educational attainmentBetter than 92% of counties
- Household income$94,757 median, better than 90% of counties
- Local economyBetter than 90% of counties
Where Pottawatomie County ranks low
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 17% of counties
- Tree shadeBetter than only 28% of counties
- Low property taxBetter than only 32% of counties
- TransitBetter than only 35% of counties
- Big-city accessBetter than only 40% of counties
What it costs to buy a home in Pottawatomie County
A household needs to earn about $67,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Pottawatomie County home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $94,757, 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 Pottawatomie County's effective rate of 0.97%, 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 8 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Pottawatomie County
Pottawatomie County runs younger than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Pottawatomie County.
Who works in Pottawatomie County, and how
Work in Pottawatomie County centers on education and health care & social. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 89%
- Work from home 8%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in Pottawatomie County
Pottawatomie County has more late-night spots per resident than 68% of counties. That concentrates in some parts of Pottawatomie County and thins out in others, which the map shows.
Is Pottawatomie County growing, and who is moving in?
Pottawatomie County has grown about 18% over the last decade. The largest inbound stream comes from the rest of the Manhattan, KS metro.
Where new residents come from
Where people leaving Pottawatomie County go
Move counts are the latest county-to-county migration flows, each county grouped into its metro.
What the weather is like in Pottawatomie County, month by month
Pottawatomie County sees roughly 112 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 91 degrees. January highs sit near 42, with lows near 21. The comfortable stretch runs April, May, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 42° | 30° | 21° |
| April | 71° | 56° | 44° |
| July | 91° | 79° | 68° |
| October | 72° | 57° | 46° |
Flying in and out of Pottawatomie County
The nearest airport, Manhattan Regional, is about 20 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Kansas City International, about 87 miles away.
The best schools in and around Pottawatomie County
Schools across Pottawatomie County average a C+, better than 52% of counties.
Top elementary schools
- West ElemA− · 59% proficient
- St George ElemA− · 58% proficient
- Riley County Grade SchoolB+ · 55% proficient
Top middle schools
- Rock Creek Middle SchoolB · 47% proficient
- Susan B Anthony Middle SchoolB · 44% proficient
- Randolph MiddleC+ · 38% proficient
Top high schools
- Rock Creek High SchoolC+ · 40% proficient
- Manhattan High School West/east CampusC+ · 39% proficient
- St. Marys Junior Senior HighC · 32% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Pottawatomie County school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Pottawatomie 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 Pottawatomie County against the other 3,143 counties.
Who Pottawatomie County suits
Families
Schools land around the 52nd percentile and crime safety beats 86%.
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 93% of counties and 8% already work from home.
Retirees
The weather beats 69% of counties and health care access beats 79%.
Common questions about living in Pottawatomie County
Is Pottawatomie County a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Pottawatomie County ranks 390th of 3,144 counties. It scores highest on state infrastructure, what local pay buys, and an educated workforce, and lowest on 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 Pottawatomie County expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $250,085. The overall cost of living runs about 14% below the national average. Set against a $94,757 median income, cost of living beats 93% of counties.
Is Pottawatomie County safe?
Yes, Pottawatomie County is safer than 86% of counties. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $305 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in Pottawatomie County?
July highs average about 91 degrees, and January highs near 42 with lows near 21. That works out to about 112 pleasant days a year, more than 69% of counties.
What are the best neighborhoods in Pottawatomie County?
Using the default rankings, the highest-scoring areas are Wamego, Manhattan & St. George, and St. Marys. The ranked list and the re-weightable map above let you re-sort them for your own priorities.
Compare Pottawatomie County with other counties
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Pottawatomie County. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Pottawatomie 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.
Pottawatomie County detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Pottawatomie County: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Pottawatomie County: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Pottawatomie County: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Pottawatomie County: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Pottawatomie 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.