Bellingham composite
38.6 /100
Grade C- · weighted across 7 dims
Metro comparison
Bellingham vs Lewiston
Bellingham, WA and Lewiston, ID-WA side by side, cost of living, rent, wages, crime, schools, childcare and environment, all from the same federal datasets so every number is directly comparable.
- 38.6
- Bellingham Life Score
- C-
- Bellingham grade
- 60.4
- Lewiston Life Score
- A-
- Lewiston grade
Head-to-head verdict
Across the seven dimensions, Bellingham scores higher on 2 (wages, schools) and Lewiston on 5 (cost of living, rent, safety, childcare, environment). The radar shows the full shape; the tables below break out every figure.
Bellingham vs Lewiston across all seven dimensions (each scored 0–100 as a national percentile, bigger area = stronger overall)
Where each metro wins, and by how much
Every dimension is a national percentile (0–100). Each bar leans toward the stronger metro, a long lean is a decisive edge, a near-even split is a toss-up. The radar shows the overall shape; this shows the per-dimension margins.
◖ Bellingham Lewiston ◗
cost of living
11
68
wages
91
30
rent
15
61
safety
47
74
schools
68
65
childcare
14
87
environment
8
52
Bellingham and Lewiston differ across eleven dimensions of livability. Bellingham has a cost-of-living index of 103.3 vs Lewiston's 91.2 (national average = 100). Median salaries are $74,723 in Bellingham and $59,266 in Lewiston. A 2-bedroom averages $1,794/mo vs $1,220/mo.
How to read this matchup
Reading the Bellingham vs Lewiston Comparison
Bellingham (WA) and Lewiston (ID) are assembled here from the same federal data pipeline, BEA Regional Price Parities, HUD Fair Market Rents, BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, FBI Uniform Crime Reports, NCES public-school counts, and EPA environmental indicators, so every number on this page is directly comparable. The overall cost index reads 103.3 for Bellingham against 91.2 for Lewiston, a 12.2-point gap on a scale where 100 equals the U.S. average. HUD's 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent, the figure used to set housing-choice voucher payment standards, is $1,794/mo in Bellingham and $1,220/mo in Lewiston, a $574/mo difference that compounds to $6,888 over a year.
On wages, BLS OES reports a median salary of $74,723 across 82,720 jobs in Bellingham against $59,266 across 22,910 jobs in Lewiston. Adjusted through the BEA cost-of-living lens, $100,000 earned in Bellingham carries the same local purchasing power as $88,219 in Lewiston - the most honest way to read the salary headline, because nominal wages and rents move together in tight metros. State-level violent crime, the most reliable geographic tier FBI UCR publishes, is 329.3 per 100,000 residents in WA vs 234.7 in ID, with property-crime rates of 2498.3 and 754.4 respectively.
Schools are reported at the state tier by NCES: WA lists 2,465 public schools at a 17.6:1 student-teacher ratio, while ID lists 778 schools at 17.1:1, a signal of class-size staffing, though individual district and school-level variation within each state is substantial. Department of Labor center-based infant care runs $15,987/yr in the Bellingham area versus $7,315/yr in Lewiston - a line item that shifts the real cost-of-living picture for households with children under five far more than headline RPP does. When these pieces are read together rather than in isolation, Bellingham and Lewiston are not simply "cheaper" or "more expensive" - they trade across dimensions, and which metro wins depends on whether your household optimizes for rent, wages, schools, childcare, safety, or environment. Treat the tables below as inputs to that trade-off, not as a single ranking.
Lewiston composite
60.4 /100
Grade A- · weighted across 7 dims
Cost-of-living gap
12.2 pts
Bellingham vs Lewiston BEA RPP
2-bed rent delta
$574 /mo
Bellingham priced higher
Composite life score on the national 0–100 scale
Bellingham
Bellingham composite (Grade C-)
Lewiston
Lewiston composite (Grade A-)
Composite is a weighted roll-up of seven dimensions: cost (20%), wages (20%), rent (15%), safety (15%), schools (10%), childcare (10%), environment (10%). Each input normalized to a 0–100 percentile across all metros.
💰 Cost of Living BEA →
| Category | Bellingham | Lewiston |
|---|---|---|
| Overall RPP | 103.3 | 91.2 |
| Goods | 105.0 | 96.2 |
| Services | 99.9 | 72.6 |
| Rents | 112.9 | 71.9 |
Salary Equivalent Calculator
What salary in Lewiston gives the same purchasing power as your salary in Bellingham?
$
Equivalent in Lewiston:
$88,219
Based on BEA Regional Price Parities (Bellingham: 103.3, Lewiston: 91.2, national avg = 100).
🏠 Rent (Fair Market Rent) HUD →
| Bedrooms | Bellingham | Lewiston |
|---|---|---|
| Studio | $1,463/mo | $925/mo |
| 1 Bedroom | $1,493/mo | $931/mo |
| 2 Bedroom | $1,794/mo | $1,220/mo |
| 3 Bedroom | $2,495/mo | $1,697/mo |
| 4 Bedroom | $3,010/mo | $2,037/mo |
💼 Wages & Employment BLS →
| Metric | Bellingham | Lewiston |
|---|---|---|
| Avg Median Salary | $74,723 | $59,266 |
| Total Employment | 82,720 | 22,910 |
🛡️ Crime Rates (state-level) FBI →
| Crime Type (per 100K) | Bellingham (WA) | Lewiston (ID) |
|---|---|---|
| Violent Crime | 329.3 | 234.7 |
| Property Crime | 2498.3 | 754.4 |
🎓 Schools (state-level) NCES →
| Metric | WA | ID |
|---|---|---|
| Total Schools | 2,465 | 778 |
| Student-Teacher Ratio | 17.6:1 | 17.1:1 |
| Charter Schools | 0.6% | 9.8% |
👶 Childcare Costs (Annual Avg) (state-level) DOL →
| Age Group | WA | ID |
|---|---|---|
| Infant (Center) | $15,987/yr | $7,315/yr |
| Toddler (Center) | $12,531/yr | $7,002/yr |
| Preschool (Center) | $12,531/yr | $6,437/yr |
🌿 Environment (state-level) EPA →
| Metric | WA | ID |
|---|---|---|
| EPA Facilities | 367 | 135 |
| Water Systems | 2,397 | 767 |
| Superfund Sites | 69 | 12 |
| Water Violations | 2,705 | 2,204 |
Government-verified data - Air quality (EPA AQS), water safety (EPA SDWIS), healthcare access (HRSA), and disaster risk (FEMA NRI) are sourced directly from U.S. federal agencies. No crowdsourced estimates.
💨 Air Quality (EPA AQS) EPA AQS →
| Metric | Bellingham | Lewiston |
|---|---|---|
| Median AQI | 33.0 | 43.0 |
| Good Air Days | 92.8% | 61.2% |
| Unhealthy Air Days | 0 days | 8 days |
💧 Water Safety (EPA SDWIS, state-level) EPA SDWIS →
| Metric | WA | ID |
|---|---|---|
| Water Safety Score | 10/100 | 5/100 |
| Total Violations | 314,648 | 104,850 |
| Health-Based Violations | 20,590 | 19,965 |
| Systems with Violations | 92.1% | 96.1% |
🏥 Healthcare Access (HRSA, state-level) HRSA →
| Metric | WA | ID |
|---|---|---|
| Healthcare Access Score | 0/100 | 0/100 |
| Population in Shortage Area | 100.0% | 100.0% |
| HPSA Designations | 597 | 244 |
HPSA = Health Professional Shortage Area, designated by HRSA. Higher access score = better healthcare availability.
⚠️ Natural Disaster Risk (FEMA NRI, state-level) FEMA NRI →
| Metric | WA | ID |
|---|---|---|
| Disaster Safety Score | 37/100 | 78/100 |
| NRI Risk Score (avg county) | 70.0 | 38.5 |
| Expected Annual Loss Score | 69.0 | 41.3 |
FEMA National Risk Index (NRI) scores are county-level percentiles (0–100). Higher disaster safety score = lower relative risk. State-level values are county averages.
Crime, schools, childcare, and environment data shown at state level. Metro-specific data for these dimensions is not available.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Bellingham more expensive than Lewiston? ▼
Bellingham has a cost of living index of 103.3 compared to Lewiston's 91.2 (national average = 100). Bellingham is 12.2 points above Lewiston on the BEA Regional Price Parity scale.
What is the rent difference between Bellingham and Lewiston? ▼
A 2-bedroom apartment averages $1,794/mo in Bellingham vs $1,220/mo in Lewiston, based on HUD Fair Market Rent data. Studios range from $1,463/mo to $925/mo.
How do salaries compare between Bellingham and Lewiston? ▼
The average median salary across all occupations is $74,723 in Bellingham and $59,266 in Lewiston, according to BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. After adjusting for cost of living, $100,000 in Bellingham has the same purchasing power as $88,219 in Lewiston.
Is Bellingham or Lewiston safer? ▼
At the state level, WA has a violent crime rate of 329.3 per 100,000 residents compared to ID's 234.7 per 100,000. Property crime rates are 2498.3 vs 754.4 per 100,000 respectively, based on FBI Uniform Crime Report data.
How do schools compare between Bellingham and Lewiston? ▼
WA has 2,465 public schools with an average student-teacher ratio of 17.6:1, while ID has 778 schools at 17.1:1. Charter schools make up 0.6% of WA schools vs 9.8% in ID. Data from the National Center for Education Statistics.
Where does the comparison data come from? ▼
All data comes from official U.S. government sources: Bureau of Economic Analysis (cost of living), HUD (fair market rents), BLS (wages), FBI UCR (crime), NCES (schools), Department of Labor (childcare), EPA (environment, air quality, water safety), HRSA (healthcare access), and FEMA NRI (disaster risk). No crowdsourced estimates or proprietary ratings are used.
Research Guides
Explore more
Data from BEA, HUD, FBI UCR, BLS OES, NCES, DOL, EPA AQS, EPA SDWIS, HRSA, and FEMA NRI. Not affiliated with the U.S. Government.
Disclaimer: This comparison is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, legal, or relocation advice. Consult a qualified professional before making decisions based on this data.
Related
Data sourced from official public datasets, current as of 2026. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainCompare Editorial