Best PlacesWest Southwest 2, Topeka, KS Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around West Southwest 2, Topeka, 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.
West Southwest 2, Topeka ranks 3,959th of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on short commutes by a wide margin, and transit ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in West Southwest 2, Topeka
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 Southwest 2, Topeka's strengths and weaknesses
Where West Southwest 2, Topeka ranks high
- Short commute15.4 minutes each way, better than 97% of neighborhoods
- Healthcare accessBetter than 91% of neighborhoods
- Cheap childcare$796 a month, better than 89% of neighborhoods
- State infrastructureBetter than 87% of neighborhoods
- Voter turnoutBetter than 78% of neighborhoods
Where West Southwest 2, Topeka ranks low
- TransitBetter than only 5% of neighborhoods
- Big-city accessBetter than only 6% of neighborhoods
- Heat safetyBetter than only 13% of neighborhoods
- Low property taxBetter than only 15% of neighborhoods
- BikingBetter than only 18% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in West Southwest 2, Topeka
A household needs to earn about $82,000 a year to comfortably buy the median West Southwest 2, Topeka home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $59,138, so buying stretches a typical household.
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 Southwest 2, Topeka's effective rate of 1.54%, 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 Southwest 2, Topeka
West Southwest 2, Topeka 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 Southwest 2, Topeka.
Who works in West Southwest 2, Topeka, and how
Work in West Southwest 2, Topeka centers on health care & social and public administration. Unemployment is low, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 84%
- Work from home 13%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in West Southwest 2, Topeka
West Southwest 2, Topeka has more restaurants and bars per resident than 73% of neighborhoods and more parkland per resident than 99% of neighborhoods. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of West Southwest 2, Topeka and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in West Southwest 2, Topeka, month by month
West Southwest 2, Topeka sees roughly 88 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 92 degrees. January highs sit near 44, with lows near 20. The comfortable stretch runs April, May, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 44° | 30° | 20° |
| April | 71° | 56° | 43° |
| July | 92° | 80° | 68° |
| October | 74° | 58° | 45° |
Flying in and out of West Southwest 2, Topeka
The nearest airport, Manhattan Regional, is about 50 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Kansas City International, about 58 miles away.
The best schools in and around West Southwest 2, Topeka
Schools across West Southwest 2, Topeka average a C−, better than 28% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- Wanamaker ElemB · 50% proficient
- Mccarter ElemB− · 40% proficient
- Whitson ElemC · 35% proficient
Top middle schools
- Washburn Rural Middle SchoolC− · 29% proficient
- Landon Middle SchoolD · 21% proficient
Top high schools
- Washburn Rural HighC · 33% proficient
- Topeka West HighD · 19% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every West Southwest 2, Topeka school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
West Southwest 2, Topeka 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 Southwest 2, Topeka against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Common questions about living in West Southwest 2, Topeka
Is West Southwest 2, Topeka a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, West Southwest 2, Topeka ranks 3,959th of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on short commutes, health care access, and affordable childcare, and lowest on transit and distance from a big city. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is West Southwest 2, Topeka expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $285,785. The overall cost of living runs about 23% below the national average. Set against a $59,138 median income, cost of living beats 52% of neighborhoods.
Is West Southwest 2, Topeka safe?
Yes, West Southwest 2, Topeka is safer than 60% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $430 per resident a year.
Compare West Southwest 2, Topeka with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to West Southwest 2, Topeka. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in West Southwest 2, Topeka 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 Southwest 2, Topeka detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for West Southwest 2, Topeka: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in West Southwest 2, Topeka: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of West Southwest 2, Topeka: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in West Southwest 2, Topeka: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
West Southwest 2, Topeka 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.