Chattanooga composite
39.3 /100
Grade C- · weighted across 7 dims
Metro comparison
Chattanooga vs Kingsport
Chattanooga, TN-GA and Kingsport-Bristol, TN-VA 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.
- 39.3
- Chattanooga Life Score
- C-
- Chattanooga grade
- 53.9
- Kingsport Life Score
- B
- Kingsport grade
Head-to-head verdict
Across the seven dimensions, Chattanooga scores higher on 3 (wages, safety, childcare) and Kingsport on 4 (cost of living, rent, schools, environment). The radar shows the full shape; the tables below break out every figure.
Chattanooga vs Kingsport 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.
◖ Chattanooga Kingsport ◗
cost of living
67
93
wages
30
25
rent
39
89
safety
4
3
schools
49
51
childcare
69
67
environment
17
47
Chattanooga and Kingsport differ across eleven dimensions of livability. Chattanooga has a cost-of-living index of 91.5 vs Kingsport's 86.4 (national average = 100). Median salaries are $61,856 in Chattanooga and $57,656 in Kingsport. A 2-bedroom averages $1,390/mo vs $1,044/mo.
How to read this matchup
Reading the Chattanooga vs Kingsport Comparison
Chattanooga (TN) and Kingsport (TN) 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 91.5 for Chattanooga against 86.4 for Kingsport, a 5.0-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 $1,390/mo in Chattanooga and $1,044/mo in Kingsport, a $346/mo difference that compounds to $4,152 over a year.
On wages, BLS OES reports a median salary of $61,856 across 261,210 jobs in Chattanooga against $57,656 across 111,690 jobs in Kingsport. Adjusted through the BEA cost-of-living lens, $100,000 earned in Chattanooga carries the same local purchasing power as $94,515 in Kingsport - 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 601.6 per 100,000 residents in TN vs 601.6 in TN, with property-crime rates of 2057.9 and 2057.9 respectively.
Schools are reported at the state tier by NCES: TN lists 1,844 public schools at a 15.3:1 student-teacher ratio, while TN lists 1,844 schools at 15.3:1, 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 $7,860/yr in the Chattanooga area versus $7,860/yr in Kingsport - 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, Chattanooga and Kingsport 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.
Kingsport composite
53.9 /100
Grade B · weighted across 7 dims
Cost-of-living gap
5.0 pts
Chattanooga vs Kingsport BEA RPP
2-bed rent delta
$346 /mo
Chattanooga priced higher
Composite life score on the national 0–100 scale
Chattanooga
Chattanooga composite (Grade C-)
Kingsport
Kingsport 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 | Chattanooga | Kingsport |
|---|---|---|
| Overall RPP | 91.5 | 86.4 |
| Goods | 96.0 | 96.2 |
| Services | 74.2 | 75.9 |
| Rents | 76.5 | 56.5 |
Salary Equivalent Calculator
What salary in Kingsport gives the same purchasing power as your salary in Chattanooga?
$
Equivalent in Kingsport:
$94,515
Based on BEA Regional Price Parities (Chattanooga: 91.5, Kingsport: 86.4, national avg = 100).
🏠 Rent (Fair Market Rent) HUD →
| Bedrooms | Chattanooga | Kingsport |
|---|---|---|
| Studio | $1,211/mo | $720/mo |
| 1 Bedroom | $1,263/mo | $818/mo |
| 2 Bedroom | $1,390/mo | $1,044/mo |
| 3 Bedroom | $1,734/mo | $1,338/mo |
| 4 Bedroom | $1,853/mo | $1,464/mo |
💼 Wages & Employment BLS →
| Metric | Chattanooga | Kingsport |
|---|---|---|
| Avg Median Salary | $61,856 | $57,656 |
| Total Employment | 261,210 | 111,690 |
🛡️ Crime Rates (state-level) FBI →
| Crime Type (per 100K) | Chattanooga (TN) | Kingsport (TN) |
|---|---|---|
| Violent Crime | 601.6 | 601.6 |
| Property Crime | 2057.9 | 2057.9 |
🎓 Schools (state-level) NCES →
| Metric | TN | TN |
|---|---|---|
| Total Schools | 1,844 | 1,844 |
| Student-Teacher Ratio | 15.3:1 | 15.3:1 |
| Charter Schools | 6.2% | 6.2% |
👶 Childcare Costs (Annual Avg) (state-level) DOL →
| Age Group | TN | TN |
|---|---|---|
| Infant (Center) | $7,860/yr | $7,860/yr |
| Toddler (Center) | $6,190/yr | $6,190/yr |
| Preschool (Center) | $6,190/yr | $6,190/yr |
🌿 Environment (state-level) EPA →
| Metric | TN | TN |
|---|---|---|
| EPA Facilities | 740 | 740 |
| Water Systems | 453 | 453 |
| Superfund Sites | 26 | 26 |
| Water Violations | 1,091 | 1,091 |
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 | Chattanooga | Kingsport |
|---|---|---|
| Median AQI | 52.0 | 41.0 |
| Good Air Days | 42.4% | 77.7% |
| Unhealthy Air Days | 3 days | 0 days |
💧 Water Safety (EPA SDWIS, state-level) EPA SDWIS →
| Metric | TN | TN |
|---|---|---|
| Water Safety Score | 8/100 | 8/100 |
| Total Violations | 43,318 | 43,318 |
| Health-Based Violations | 9,414 | 9,414 |
| Systems with Violations | 94.0% | 94.0% |
🏥 Healthcare Access (HRSA, state-level) HRSA →
| Metric | TN | TN |
|---|---|---|
| Healthcare Access Score | 0/100 | 0/100 |
| Population in Shortage Area | 100.0% | 100.0% |
| HPSA Designations | 380 | 380 |
HPSA = Health Professional Shortage Area, designated by HRSA. Higher access score = better healthcare availability.
⚠️ Natural Disaster Risk (FEMA NRI, state-level) FEMA NRI →
| Metric | TN | TN |
|---|---|---|
| Disaster Safety Score | 60/100 | 60/100 |
| NRI Risk Score (avg county) | 52.5 | 52.5 |
| Expected Annual Loss Score | 49.3 | 49.3 |
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 Chattanooga more expensive than Kingsport? ▼
Chattanooga has a cost of living index of 91.5 compared to Kingsport's 86.4 (national average = 100). Chattanooga is 5.0 points above Kingsport on the BEA Regional Price Parity scale.
What is the rent difference between Chattanooga and Kingsport? ▼
A 2-bedroom apartment averages $1,390/mo in Chattanooga vs $1,044/mo in Kingsport, based on HUD Fair Market Rent data. Studios range from $1,211/mo to $720/mo.
How do salaries compare between Chattanooga and Kingsport? ▼
The average median salary across all occupations is $61,856 in Chattanooga and $57,656 in Kingsport, according to BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. After adjusting for cost of living, $100,000 in Chattanooga has the same purchasing power as $94,515 in Kingsport.
Is Chattanooga or Kingsport safer? ▼
At the state level, TN has a violent crime rate of 601.6 per 100,000 residents compared to TN's 601.6 per 100,000. Property crime rates are 2057.9 vs 2057.9 per 100,000 respectively, based on FBI Uniform Crime Report data.
How do schools compare between Chattanooga and Kingsport? ▼
TN has 1,844 public schools with an average student-teacher ratio of 15.3:1, while TN has 1,844 schools at 15.3:1. Charter schools make up 6.2% of TN schools vs 6.2% in TN. 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