Best PlacesWest Jackson, OH Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around West Jackson, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Local pay runs high here, and housing takes the biggest bite out of it. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
West Jackson ranks 6,260th of 50,333 U.S. towns on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on cheap car insurance by a wide margin, and childcare costs are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in West Jackson
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.
West Jackson's strengths and weaknesses
Where West Jackson ranks high
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 95% of towns
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 88% of towns
- School gradeA−, better than 86% of towns
- Local economyBetter than 86% of towns
- Household income$98,288 median, better than 84% of towns
Where West Jackson ranks low
- Cheap childcare$1,258 a month, better than only 12% of towns
- Short commute34.6 minutes each way, better than only 15% of towns
- BikingBetter than only 15% of towns
- WalkabilityBetter than only 19% of towns
- Tree shadeBetter than only 20% of towns
What it costs to buy a home in West Jackson
A household needs to earn about $74,000 a year to comfortably buy the median West Jackson home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $98,288, 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 West Jackson's effective rate of 1.05%, 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 6 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in West Jackson
West Jackson runs older than the country, 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 West Jackson.
Who works in West Jackson, and how
Work in West Jackson centers on manufacturing and agriculture & forestry. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 88%
- Work from home 9%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in West Jackson
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across West Jackson.
What the weather is like in West Jackson, month by month
West Jackson sees roughly 75 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 84 degrees. January highs sit near 36, with lows near 22. The comfortable stretch runs May through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 36° | 29° | 22° |
| April | 62° | 51° | 41° |
| July | 84° | 74° | 65° |
| October | 67° | 55° | 46° |
Flying in and out of West Jackson
John Glenn Columbus International sits about 44 miles away. It is a medium hub and boarded 4.4 million passengers in 2025, with 94 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around West Jackson
Schools across West Jackson average an A−, better than 86% of towns.
Top elementary schools
- North Union Elementary SchoolA · 70% proficient
- Elgin Elementary SchoolA− · 58% proficient
- Ridgemont Elementary SchoolB+ · 52% proficient
Top middle schools
- North Union Middle SchoolA · 62% proficient
- Elgin Middle SchoolA− · 53% proficient
Top high schools
- North Union High SchoolB+ · 57% proficient
- Elgin High SchoolB+ · 52% proficient
- Ridgemont High SchoolB · 50% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every West Jackson school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
West Jackson 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 West Jackson against the other 50,332 towns.
Common questions about living in West Jackson
Is West Jackson a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, West Jackson ranks 6,260th of 50,333 towns. It scores highest on cheap car insurance, what local pay buys, and good schools, and lowest on childcare costs and long commutes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is West Jackson expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $275,248. The overall cost of living runs about 12% below the national average. Set against a $98,288 median income, cost of living beats 88% of towns.
Is West Jackson safe?
Yes, West Jackson is safer than 75% of towns. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $208 per resident a year.
Compare West Jackson with other towns
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to West Jackson. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in West Jackson 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.
West Jackson detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for West Jackson: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in West Jackson: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of West Jackson: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in West Jackson: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
West Jackson 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.