How to Compare Cities with Data

The Six Comparison Dimensions

PlainCompare evaluates metros across six key areas, each drawing from a different federal data source:

1. Affordability: BEA Regional Price Parities measure how much goods and services cost relative to the national average. Combined with BLS wage data, this shows your real purchasing power, not just what you earn, but what you can buy with it.
2. Safety: FBI Uniform Crime Reporting data shows violent and property crime rates per 100,000 residents. Compare both types, a city can be safe from violent crime but have high property crime, or vice versa.
3. Jobs & Wages: BLS data shows employment levels and median wages for major occupations. Compare your specific occupation's wages across metros, not just overall median income.
4. Education: NCES data covers school counts, student-teacher ratios, and enrollment. Combined with Census data on educational attainment, this paints a picture of the education landscape.
5. Healthcare access: HRSA Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA) designations show where a metro is short on primary care, dental, or mental health providers relative to population.
6. Environment: EPA air quality data shows how many unhealthy air days a metro sees per year and water-system safety compliance under the Safe Drinking Water Act.

Browse all metros or use the comparison tool to evaluate specific cities side by side.

Step 1: Define Your Priorities

Before comparing cities, rank what matters most to you. Common priority sets:

• Young professional: Jobs → affordability → culture → safety
• Family with kids: Safety → education → affordability → health
• Retiree: Health → affordability → climate → safety
• Remote worker: Affordability → climate → safety → environment

Your priorities determine which dimensions carry more weight in your decision. A city that's excellent on safety but poor on affordability might be perfect for a high earner but impractical for a median-income household.

Step 2: Filter by Non-Negotiables

Start by eliminating cities that fail your must-have criteria. Use PlainCompare's rankings to filter:

• If affordability is critical, eliminate metros with price parities above 110% (10%+ more expensive than national average).
• If safety is non-negotiable, eliminate metros in the top quartile for violent crime.
• If your career requires a specific industry, eliminate metros without a strong job market in that field.

Step 3: Compare Your Shortlist

With 3-5 metros remaining, do a deep comparison:

1. Use the side-by-side comparison to see all dimensions at once.
2. Check composite scores that weight multiple factors into a single livability index.
3. Look at state-level context on state pages - state taxes, regulations, and policies affect daily life beyond metro-level data.
4. Cross-reference with county-level data for more granularity within a metro.

What Data Can't Tell You

Federal data is excellent for objective, quantifiable comparison. But some important factors aren't captured:

• Culture and community feel: No dataset measures walkability, restaurant quality, arts scene, or neighborhood character. Visit in person.
• Social connections: Proximity to family and friends matters enormously for happiness. Data can't capture this.
• Future trajectory: Data reflects the past. A city investing heavily in infrastructure and attracting employers may be much better in 5 years than current data shows.
• Micro-geography: A metro area contains diverse neighborhoods. Data for the metro average may not reflect the specific suburb you'd live in.

Frequently Asked Questions