PlainCompare

Metro Life Score

Auburn-Opelika, AL

53.3
Life Score / 100
B
Grade (curved)
#152
of 387 metros
61%
of metros outranked

Data updated May 2026

Verify: BEA · BLS · HUD · FBI · NCES · EPA · Census

The verdict

Auburn ranks #152 of 387 US metros, ahead of 61% - carried by its childcare (93/100) and held back most by environment (5/100).

93
strongest: Childcare
87
then: Cost of Living
5
weakest: Environment
7
weighted dimensions

Where Auburn sits among all US metros

Composite Life Score vs the national field

53 61th percentile higher than 61% of 387 US metros

25–30: 1 US metros (0%). Below this entry. 30–35: 16 US metros (4%). Below this entry. 35–40: 46 US metros (12%). Below this entry. 40–45: 53 US metros (14%). Below this entry. 45–50: 81 US metros (21%). Below this entry. 50–55: 67 US metros (17%). This entry sits in this band. 55–60: 68 US metros (18%). Above this entry. 60–65: 40 US metros (10%). Above this entry. 65–70: 12 US metros (3%). Above this entry. 70–75: 3 US metros (1%). Above this entry. This metro 25 75 every US metro, bucketed by value

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US metros. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source PlainCompare composite of BEA, BLS, HUD, FBI, NCES, DOL, EPA data · May 2026

How the score is built

Reading the Auburn Life Score

Auburn's composite score of 53.3 out of 100, a grade of B, places the metro at rank #152 of 387, ahead of 61% of US metros. The strongest inputs are Childcare (93/100) and Cost of Living (87/100), which pull the composite upward, while Environment (5/100) and Wages (14/100) drag it downward. (How the weighting works.)

BEA RPP 87.9 (rent-RPP 62.1). BLS median salary $57,668, 62,880 jobs (Fast Food and Counter Workers, Retail Salespersons, Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators). HUD 2BR FMR $1,181/mo (studio $847).

FBI UCR (AL): 376 violent, 1622 property/100K. NCES: 17.7:1 ratio, 1.2% charter. DOL infant childcare $6,896/yr. EPA: 16 Superfund sites (AL). Ranks #149-#155 below.

Dimension detail

How Auburn scores, dimension by dimension

Score Breakdown

Cost of Living Wages Rent Safety Schools Childcare Environment

Dimension Scores

Cost of Living 87/100 (20%)
Wages 14/100 (20%)
Rent 67/100 (15%)
Safety 42/100 (15%)
Schools 68/100 (10%)
Childcare 93/100 (10%)
Environment 5/100 (10%)

Key Data Points

87.9
Cost Index (RPP)
$57,668
Avg Median Salary
$1,181
2BR Fair Market Rent
376
Violent Crime/100K (AL)
17.7:1
Student-Teacher Ratio
$6,896
Infant Childcare/yr (AL)
16
Superfund Sites (AL)
62,880
Total Employment

Crime, schools, childcare, and environment data shown at state level where metro-specific data is unavailable.

Compare Auburn With...

Auburn vs Tuscaloosa Compare → Auburn vs Mobile Compare → Auburn vs Decatur Compare → Auburn vs Wildwood Compare → Auburn vs Waterloo Compare → Auburn vs Paducah Compare →

Ranking Context

Auburn outranks 61% of U.S. metros.

Rank Metro Score Grade
#149 Eagle Pass, TX 53.4 B
#150 Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI 53.5 B
#151 Racine-Mount Pleasant, WI 53.6 B
#152 Auburn-Opelika, AL 53.3 B
#153 Baton Rouge, LA 53.2 B
#154 Eau Claire, WI 52.9 B
#155 Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX 52.9 B

AL Metro Scores

Tuscaloosa, AL A+ 66.3 Mobile, AL A 62.3 Decatur, AL A 61.9 Montgomery, AL A- 60.5 Gadsden, AL A- 59.6 Dothan, AL A- 59.5

Using Auburn's Life Score

Auburn is a regional baseline, not a neighborhood reading, use it to shortlist, then dig into the dimensions that matter to you.

  • Its strongest dimension is childcare (93/100) and its weakest is environment (5/100) - weigh those against your own priorities. How the score is built
  • Put Auburn head-to-head against another metro before you decide, every dimension, side by side. Compare metros
  • See where Auburn lands on the national rankings for cost, safety, pay and more. Browse rankings

Scores summarize federal data at the metro level; crime, schools and cost vary widely within a single metro.

Explore more

Frequently Asked Questions

What are Auburn's biggest strengths? ▼
Auburn's strongest dimensions are Childcare (93/100), Cost of Living (87/100), Schools (68/100). Childcare is top-tier nationally.
What are Auburn's weakest areas? ▼
Auburn's lowest-scoring dimensions are Environment (5/100), Wages (14/100), Safety (42/100). Environment weighs heavily on the composite.
How expensive is Auburn compared to the national average? ▼
Auburn's Regional Price Parity is 87.9 (12.1% less than national); rent RPP 62.1.
What is the average salary in Auburn? ▼
Auburn median salary: $57,668, 62,880 jobs. Top: Fast Food and Counter Workers, Retail Salespersons, Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators.
How is the life score calculated? ▼
Auburn's 53.3/100 blends 7 federal-data dimensions - see our methodology page for the weighting.

Research Guides

Data from BEA, HUD, FBI UCR, BLS OES, NCES, DOL, and EPA. Not affiliated with the U.S. Government.

Related

Data sourced from official public datasets. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainCompare Editorial

Disclaimer: This information is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Data is sourced from BEA, BLS, HUD, FBI, NCES, DOL, and EPA. Consult a qualified professional before making decisions based on this data.

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

All federal data sources used on this page
  • U.S. Census Bureau ACS - multi-dimension demographic + housing + income aggregates for cross-area comparison. census.gov/programs-surveys/acs
  • BEA Regional Economic Accounts - GDP, personal income, employment by state and metro. bea.gov/data/regional
  • BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) - wage estimates for comparable-area indexing. bls.gov/oes
  • FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) - crime statistics for safety-score component. fbi.gov/ucr
  • NCES Common Core of Data - public-school quality indicators by area. nces.ed.gov/ccd
  • EPA AirNow + Air Quality System (AQS) - air-quality measurements by area. epa.gov/outdoor-air-quality-data
  • HUD Fair Market Rents (FMR) - county and metro housing-cost indicators. huduser.gov/datasets/fmr

Every figure on PlainCompare is loaded directly from BEA, HUD, FBI UCR, BLS OEWS, NCES, DOL, EPA, and the Census Bureau, no number is typed in by an editor. This metro's Life Score is computed directly from the 7 federal sources cited above. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 2026.