Best PlacesWest Scio, OR Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around West Scio, 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 Scio ranks 10,571st of 50,333 U.S. towns on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on state infrastructure by a wide margin, and disaster risk is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in West Scio
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 Scio's strengths and weaknesses
Where West Scio ranks high
- State infrastructureBetter than 97% of towns
- Internet speedBetter than 92% of towns
- Household income$113,606 median, better than 91% of towns
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 81% of towns
- Crime safetyBetter than 80% of towns
Where West Scio ranks low
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 18% of towns
- Cheap childcare$1,009 a month, better than only 24% of towns
- Short commute31.1 minutes each way, better than only 28% of towns
- Heat safetyBetter than only 31% of towns
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 34% of towns
What it costs to buy a home in West Scio
A household needs to earn about $124,000 a year to comfortably buy the median West Scio home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is only a little above the area's median income of $113,606; the gap is small, which keeps homes within reach of local pay.
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 Scio's effective rate of 0.48%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices and rents, renting stays cheaper than buying across the first 10 years here, so the case for buying rests on staying much longer or on prices rising faster than assumed. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in West Scio
West Scio runs older than the country, and households here run larger than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for West Scio.
Who works in West Scio, and how
Work in West Scio centers on construction and agriculture & forestry. Unemployment is low, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 92%
- Work from home 8%
- Transit, walk, or bike 1%
Life in West Scio
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across West Scio.
What the weather is like in West Scio, month by month
West Scio sees roughly 103 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 88 degrees. January highs sit near 51, with lows near 35. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 51° | 42° | 35° |
| April | 65° | 52° | 40° |
| July | 88° | 71° | 55° |
| October | 68° | 54° | 44° |
Flying in and out of West Scio
The nearest airport, McNary Field, is about 16 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Portland International, about 63 miles away.
The best schools in and around West Scio
Schools across West Scio average a C+, better than 44% of towns.
Top elementary schools
- Jefferson Elementary SchoolC · 33% proficient
- Centennial Elementary SchoolD+ · 23% proficient
Top middle schools
- Scio Middle SchoolC− · 28% proficient
- Jefferson Middle SchoolD · 20% proficient
Top high schools
- Cascade Senior High SchoolA+ · 90% proficient
- Scio High SchoolB+ · 58% proficient
- Jefferson High SchoolC · 31% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every West Scio school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
West Scio 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 Scio against the other 50,332 towns.
Common questions about living in West Scio
Is West Scio a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, West Scio ranks 10,571st of 50,333 towns. It scores highest on state infrastructure, fast internet, and high incomes, and lowest on disaster risk and childcare costs. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is West Scio expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $495,308. The overall cost of living runs about 4% above the national average. Set against a $113,606 median income, cost of living beats 81% of towns.
Is West Scio safe?
Yes, West Scio is safer than 80% of towns. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $273 per resident a year.
Compare West Scio with other towns
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to West Scio. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in West Scio 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 Scio detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for West Scio: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in West Scio: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of West Scio: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in West Scio: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
West Scio 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.