Carson City composite
41.4 /100
Grade C- · weighted across 7 dims
Metro comparison
Carson City vs Reno
Carson City, NV and Reno, NV 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.
- 41.4
- Carson City Life Score
- C-
- Carson City grade
- 52.5
- Reno Life Score
- B
- Reno grade
Head-to-head verdict
Across the seven dimensions, Carson City scores higher on 3 (cost of living, safety, childcare) and Reno on 4 (wages, rent, schools, environment). The radar shows the full shape; the tables below break out every figure.
Carson City vs Reno 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.
◖ Carson City Reno ◗
cost of living
29
17
wages
51
70
rent
29
53
safety
29
28
schools
98
99
childcare
56
55
environment
15
75
Carson City and Reno differ across eleven dimensions of livability. Carson City has a cost-of-living index of 98.1 vs Reno's 101.0 (national average = 100). Median salaries are $66,022 in Carson City and $66,688 in Reno. A 2-bedroom averages $1,546/mo vs $1,272/mo.
How to read this matchup
Reading the Carson City vs Reno Comparison
Carson City (NV) and Reno (NV) 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 98.1 for Carson City against 101.0 for Reno, a 2.9-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 $1,546/mo in Carson City and $1,272/mo in Reno, a $274/mo difference that compounds to $3,288 over a year.
On wages, BLS OES reports a median salary of $66,022 across 25,810 jobs in Carson City against $66,688 across 266,130 jobs in Reno. Adjusted through the BEA cost-of-living lens, $100,000 earned in Carson City carries the same local purchasing power as $102,939 in Reno - 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 406.6 per 100,000 residents in NV vs 406.6 in NV, with property-crime rates of 2226.3 and 2226.3 respectively.
Schools are reported at the state tier by NCES: NV lists 742 public schools at a 20.5:1 student-teacher ratio, while NV lists 742 schools at 20.5:1, 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 $10,033/yr in the Carson City area versus $10,033/yr in Reno - 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, Carson City and Reno 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.
Reno composite
52.5 /100
Grade B · weighted across 7 dims
Cost-of-living gap
-2.9 pts
Carson City vs Reno BEA RPP
2-bed rent delta
$274 /mo
Carson City priced higher
Composite life score on the national 0–100 scale
Carson City
Carson City composite (Grade C-)
Reno
Reno composite (Grade B)
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 | Carson City | Reno |
|---|---|---|
| Overall RPP | 98.1 | 101.0 |
| Goods | 96.3 | 96.3 |
| Services | 92.7 | 89.3 |
| Rents | 101.2 | 123.5 |
Salary Equivalent Calculator
What salary in Reno gives the same purchasing power as your salary in Carson City?
$
Equivalent in Reno:
$102,939
Based on BEA Regional Price Parities (Carson City: 98.1, Reno: 101.0, national avg = 100).
🏠 Rent (Fair Market Rent) HUD →
| Bedrooms | Carson City | Reno |
|---|---|---|
| Studio | $1,105/mo | $1,070/mo |
| 1 Bedroom | $1,212/mo | $1,076/mo |
| 2 Bedroom | $1,546/mo | $1,272/mo |
| 3 Bedroom | $2,150/mo | $1,769/mo |
| 4 Bedroom | $2,593/mo | $2,134/mo |
💼 Wages & Employment BLS →
| Metric | Carson City | Reno |
|---|---|---|
| Avg Median Salary | $66,022 | $66,688 |
| Total Employment | 25,810 | 266,130 |
🛡️ Crime Rates (state-level) FBI →
| Crime Type (per 100K) | Carson City (NV) | Reno (NV) |
|---|---|---|
| Violent Crime | 406.6 | 406.6 |
| Property Crime | 2226.3 | 2226.3 |
🎓 Schools (state-level) NCES →
| Metric | NV | NV |
|---|---|---|
| Total Schools | 742 | 742 |
| Student-Teacher Ratio | 20.5:1 | 20.5:1 |
| Charter Schools | 13.6% | 13.6% |
👶 Childcare Costs (Annual Avg) (state-level) DOL →
| Age Group | NV | NV |
|---|---|---|
| Infant (Center) | $10,033/yr | $10,033/yr |
| Toddler (Center) | $8,666/yr | $8,666/yr |
| Preschool (Center) | $8,309/yr | $8,309/yr |
🌿 Environment (state-level) EPA →
| Metric | NV | NV |
|---|---|---|
| EPA Facilities | 186 | 186 |
| Water Systems | 228 | 228 |
| Superfund Sites | 2 | 2 |
| Water Violations | 970 | 970 |
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 | Carson City | Reno |
|---|---|---|
| Median AQI | 45.0 | 50.0 |
| Good Air Days | 73.8% | 51.4% |
| Unhealthy Air Days | 1 days | 4 days |
💧 Water Safety (EPA SDWIS, state-level) EPA SDWIS →
| Metric | NV | NV |
|---|---|---|
| Water Safety Score | 10/100 | 10/100 |
| Total Violations | 56,333 | 56,333 |
| Health-Based Violations | 6,657 | 6,657 |
| Systems with Violations | 92.5% | 92.5% |
🏥 Healthcare Access (HRSA, state-level) HRSA →
| Metric | NV | NV |
|---|---|---|
| Healthcare Access Score | 45/100 | 45/100 |
| Population in Shortage Area | 55.6% | 55.6% |
| HPSA Designations | 153 | 153 |
HPSA = Health Professional Shortage Area, designated by HRSA. Higher access score = better healthcare availability.
⚠️ Natural Disaster Risk (FEMA NRI, state-level) FEMA NRI →
| Metric | NV | NV |
|---|---|---|
| Disaster Safety Score | 68/100 | 68/100 |
| NRI Risk Score (avg county) | 46.2 | 46.2 |
| Expected Annual Loss Score | 46.5 | 46.5 |
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 Carson City more expensive than Reno? ▼
Carson City has a cost of living index of 98.1 compared to Reno's 101.0 (national average = 100). Reno is 2.9 points above Carson City on the BEA Regional Price Parity scale.
What is the rent difference between Carson City and Reno? ▼
A 2-bedroom apartment averages $1,546/mo in Carson City vs $1,272/mo in Reno, based on HUD Fair Market Rent data. Studios range from $1,105/mo to $1,070/mo.
How do salaries compare between Carson City and Reno? ▼
The average median salary across all occupations is $66,022 in Carson City and $66,688 in Reno, according to BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. After adjusting for cost of living, $100,000 in Carson City has the same purchasing power as $102,939 in Reno.
Is Carson City or Reno safer? ▼
At the state level, NV has a violent crime rate of 406.6 per 100,000 residents compared to NV's 406.6 per 100,000. Property crime rates are 2226.3 vs 2226.3 per 100,000 respectively, based on FBI Uniform Crime Report data.
How do schools compare between Carson City and Reno? ▼
NV has 742 public schools with an average student-teacher ratio of 20.5:1, while NV has 742 schools at 20.5:1. Charter schools make up 13.6% of NV schools vs 13.6% in NV. 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
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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