Grand Junction composite
45.9 /100
Grade C+ · weighted across 7 dims
Metro comparison
Grand Junction vs Greeley
Grand Junction, CO and Greeley, CO 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.
- 45.9
- Grand Junction Life Score
- C+
- Grand Junction grade
- 41.8
- Greeley Life Score
- C-
- Greeley grade
Head-to-head verdict
Across the seven dimensions, Grand Junction scores higher on 4 (cost of living, rent, safety, childcare) and Greeley on 3 (wages, schools, environment). The radar shows the full shape; the tables below break out every figure.
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.
◖ Grand Junction Greeley ◗
cost of living
41
22
wages
52
72
rent
58
27
safety
6
6
schools
64
65
childcare
22
22
environment
93
93
Grand Junction and Greeley differ across eleven dimensions of livability. Grand Junction has a cost-of-living index of 95.5 vs Greeley's 100.2 (national average = 100). Median salaries are $64,324 in Grand Junction and $68,947 in Greeley. A 2-bedroom averages $1,249/mo vs $1,563/mo.
Beyond the headline numbers
Reading the Grand Junction vs Greeley Comparison
The cost gap above compounds fastest through housing: the difference in HUD's 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent between Grand Junction and Greeley works out to $3,768 over a year, the largest single line item behind the headline spread.
Adjusted for cost of living rather than compared as nominal dollars, $100,000 earned in Grand Junction carries the same local purchasing power as $104,923 in Greeley - the more honest read than the salary headline above, because nominal wages and rents move together in tight metros. State-level violent crime, the most reliable geographic tier FBI UCR publishes, is 481.2 per 100,000 residents in CO vs 481.2 in CO, with property-crime rates of 2640.7 and 2640.7 respectively.
Schools are reported at the state tier by NCES: CO lists 1,923 public schools at a 15.7:1 student-teacher ratio, while CO lists 1,923 schools at 15.7:1, 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 $12,821/yr in the Grand Junction area versus $12,821/yr in Greeley - 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, Grand Junction and Greeley 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.
Greeley composite
41.8 /100
Grade C- · weighted across 7 dims
Environment score gap
0 pts
Greeley cleaner, national percentile
Safety score gap
0 pts
Grand Junction safer, national percentile
Composite life score on the national 0–100 scale
Grand Junction
Grand Junction composite (Grade C+)
Greeley
Greeley composite (Grade C-)
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 | Grand Junction | Greeley |
|---|---|---|
| Overall RPP | 95.5 | 100.2 |
| Goods | 96.1 | 96.1 |
| Services | 83.3 | 82.0 |
| Rents | 86.4 | 112.6 |
Salary Equivalent Calculator
What salary in Greeley gives the same purchasing power as your salary in Grand Junction?
$
Equivalent in Greeley:
$104,923
Based on BEA Regional Price Parities (Grand Junction: 95.5, Greeley: 100.2, national avg = 100).
🏠 Rent (Fair Market Rent) HUD →
| Bedrooms | Grand Junction | Greeley |
|---|---|---|
| Studio | $881/mo | $1,171/mo |
| 1 Bedroom | $986/mo | $1,238/mo |
| 2 Bedroom | $1,249/mo | $1,563/mo |
| 3 Bedroom | $1,737/mo | $2,174/mo |
| 4 Bedroom | $2,095/mo | $2,590/mo |
💼 Wages & Employment BLS →
| Metric | Grand Junction | Greeley |
|---|---|---|
| Avg Median Salary | $64,324 | $68,947 |
| Total Employment | 60,630 | 109,840 |
🛡️ Crime Rates (state-level) FBI →
| Crime Type (per 100K) | Grand Junction (CO) | Greeley (CO) |
|---|---|---|
| Violent Crime | 481.2 | 481.2 |
| Property Crime | 2640.7 | 2640.7 |
🎓 Schools (state-level) NCES →
| Metric | CO | CO |
|---|---|---|
| Total Schools | 1,923 | 1,923 |
| Student-Teacher Ratio | 15.7:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Charter Schools | 13.7% | 13.7% |
👶 Childcare Costs (Annual Avg) (state-level) DOL →
| Age Group | CO | CO |
|---|---|---|
| Infant (Center) | $12,821/yr | $12,821/yr |
| Toddler (Center) | $11,897/yr | $11,897/yr |
| Preschool (Center) | $11,013/yr | $11,013/yr |
🌿 Environment (state-level) EPA →
| Metric | CO | CO |
|---|---|---|
| EPA Facilities | 316 | 316 |
| Water Systems | 1,109 | 1,109 |
| Superfund Sites | 24 | 24 |
| Water Violations | 5,561 | 5,561 |
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 | Grand Junction | Greeley |
|---|---|---|
| Median AQI | 46.0 | 52.0 |
| Good Air Days | 65.2% | 44.7% |
| Unhealthy Air Days | 0 days | 6 days |
💧 Water Safety (EPA SDWIS, state-level) EPA SDWIS →
| Metric | CO | CO |
|---|---|---|
| Water Safety Score | 10/100 | 10/100 |
| Total Violations | 238,796 | 238,796 |
| Health-Based Violations | 30,589 | 30,589 |
| Systems with Violations | 92.6% | 92.6% |
🏥 Healthcare Access (HRSA, state-level) HRSA →
| Metric | CO | CO |
|---|---|---|
| Healthcare Access Score | 36/100 | 36/100 |
| Population in Shortage Area | 64.3% | 64.3% |
| HPSA Designations | 309 | 309 |
HPSA = Health Professional Shortage Area, designated by HRSA. Higher access score = better healthcare availability.
⚠️ Natural Disaster Risk (FEMA NRI, state-level) FEMA NRI →
| Metric | CO | CO |
|---|---|---|
| Disaster Safety Score | 76/100 | 76/100 |
| NRI Risk Score (avg county) | 40.7 | 40.7 |
| Expected Annual Loss Score | 44.2 | 44.2 |
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 Grand Junction more expensive than Greeley? ▼
Grand Junction has a cost of living index of 95.5 compared to Greeley's 100.2 (national average = 100). Greeley is 4.7 points above Grand Junction on the BEA Regional Price Parity scale.
What is the rent difference between Grand Junction and Greeley? ▼
A 2-bedroom apartment averages $1,249/mo in Grand Junction vs $1,563/mo in Greeley, based on HUD Fair Market Rent data. Studios range from $881/mo to $1,171/mo.
How do salaries compare between Grand Junction and Greeley? ▼
The average median salary across all occupations is $64,324 in Grand Junction and $68,947 in Greeley, according to BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. After adjusting for cost of living, $100,000 in Grand Junction has the same purchasing power as $104,923 in Greeley.
Is Grand Junction or Greeley safer? ▼
At the state level, CO has a violent crime rate of 481.2 per 100,000 residents compared to CO's 481.2 per 100,000. Property crime rates are 2640.7 vs 2640.7 per 100,000 respectively, based on FBI Uniform Crime Report data.
How do schools compare between Grand Junction and Greeley? ▼
CO has 1,923 public schools with an average student-teacher ratio of 15.7:1, while CO has 1,923 schools at 15.7:1. Charter schools make up 13.7% of CO schools vs 13.7% in CO. 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