Best PlacesPutnam County, OH Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in Putnam County, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. This page is for people who live here or already know they want to. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
Putnam County ranks 175th of 3,144 U.S. counties on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on cheap car insurance by a wide margin, and tree cover ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in Putnam 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 Putnam County
The parts of Putnam 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.
Ottawa
It is quieter, local pay stretches further, and incomes run higher.
Fort Jennings
More households have young kids and crime runs lower.
Columbus Grove
Prices have run up less.
Pandora
Continental
Leipsic
More homes sit empty and fewer adults hold degrees.
Scores across Putnam County run from about the 29th to the 94th percentile nationally. The map is where that becomes a choice of area.
Putnam County's strengths and weaknesses
Where Putnam County ranks high
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 99% of counties
- School gradeA+, better than 99% of counties
- Healthcare accessBetter than 94% of counties
- Heat safetyBetter than 94% of counties
- Low vacancyBetter than 93% of counties
Where Putnam County ranks low
- Tree shadeBetter than only 16% of counties
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 25% of counties
- WalkabilityBetter than only 27% of counties
- BikingBetter than only 31% of counties
- Low property taxBetter than only 35% of counties
What it costs to buy a home in Putnam County
A household needs to earn about $54,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Putnam County home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $86,462, 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 Putnam County's effective rate of 0.94%, 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 Putnam County
Putnam County'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 Putnam County.
Who works in Putnam County, and how
Work in Putnam County centers on manufacturing and health care & social. Unemployment is low, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 90%
- Work from home 6%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in Putnam County
Putnam County has fewer places to eat and drink per resident than most counties. That concentrates in some parts of Putnam County and thins out in others, which the map shows.
Is Putnam County growing, and who is moving in?
Putnam County has held roughly flat in population over the last decade. The largest inbound stream comes from Hancock County, OH.
Where new residents come from
Where people leaving Putnam County go
Move counts are the latest county-to-county migration flows, each county grouped into its metro.
What the weather is like in Putnam County, month by month
Putnam County sees roughly 80 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 85 degrees. January highs sit near 35, with lows near 22. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 35° | 28° | 22° |
| April | 62° | 50° | 40° |
| July | 85° | 74° | 64° |
| October | 66° | 54° | 45° |
Flying in and out of Putnam County
The nearest airport, Eugene F Kranz Toledo Express, is about 43 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Detroit Metro Wayne County, about 92 miles away.
The best schools in and around Putnam County
Schools across Putnam County average an A+, better than 99% of counties.
Top elementary schools
- Ottoville Elementary SchoolA+ · 93% proficient
- Miller City Elementary SchoolA+ · 92% proficient
- Kalida Elementary SchoolA+ · 88% proficient
Top middle schools
- Miller City Middle SchoolA+ · 87% proficient
- Pandora-gilboa Middle SchoolA+ · 78% proficient
- Columbus Grove Middle SchoolA+ · 76% proficient
Top high schools
- Ottoville High SchoolA+ · 88% proficient
- Miller City High SchoolA+ · 87% proficient
- Kalida High SchoolA+ · 86% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Putnam County school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Putnam 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 Putnam County against the other 3,143 counties.
Who Putnam County suits
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 90% of counties and 6% already work from home.
Common questions about living in Putnam County
Is Putnam County a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Putnam County ranks 175th of 3,144 counties. It scores highest on cheap car insurance, good schools, and health care access, and lowest on tree cover and state finances. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Putnam County expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $202,102. The overall cost of living runs about 16% below the national average. Set against a $86,462 median income, cost of living beats 90% of counties.
Is Putnam County safe?
Yes, Putnam County is safer than 65% of counties. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $266 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in Putnam County?
July highs average about 85 degrees, and January highs near 35 with lows near 22. That works out to about 80 pleasant days a year, more than 38% of counties.
What are the best neighborhoods in Putnam County?
Using the default rankings, the highest-scoring areas are Ottawa, Fort Jennings, and Columbus Grove. The ranked list and the re-weightable map above let you re-sort them for your own priorities.
Compare Putnam County with other counties
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Putnam County. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Putnam 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.
Putnam County detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Putnam County: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Putnam County: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Putnam County: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Putnam County: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Putnam 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.