PlainCompare

Metro Life Score

Boise City, ID

47.9
Life Score / 100
C+
Grade (curved)
#222
of 387 metros
43%
of metros outranked

Data updated May 2026

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

The verdict

Boise City ranks #222 of 387 US metros, ahead of 43% - carried by its childcare (88/100) and held back most by environment (11/100).

88
strongest: Childcare
75
then: Safety
11
weakest: Environment
7
weighted dimensions

Where Boise City sits among all US metros

Composite Life Score vs the national field

48 43th percentile higher than 43% 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%). This entry sits in this band. 50–55: 67 US metros (17%). Above this entry. 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 Boise City Life Score

Boise City's composite score of 47.9 out of 100, a grade of C+, places the metro at rank #222 of 387, ahead of 43% of US metros. The strongest inputs are Childcare (88/100) and Safety (75/100), which pull the composite upward, while Environment (11/100) and Rent (23/100) drag it downward. (How the weighting works.)

BEA RPP 98.4 (rent-RPP 105.6). BLS median salary $67,378, 377,880 jobs (Fast Food and Counter Workers, General and Operations Managers, Home Health and Personal Care Aides). HUD 2BR FMR $1,655/mo (studio $1,170).

FBI UCR (ID): 235 violent, 754 property/100K. NCES: 17.1:1 ratio, 9.8% charter. DOL infant childcare $7,315/yr. EPA: 12 Superfund sites (ID). Ranks #219-#225 below.

Dimension detail

How Boise City scores, dimension by dimension

Score Breakdown

Cost of Living Wages Rent Safety Schools Childcare Environment

Dimension Scores

Cost of Living 26/100 (20%)
Wages 58/100 (20%)
Rent 23/100 (15%)
Safety 75/100 (15%)
Schools 65/100 (10%)
Childcare 88/100 (10%)
Environment 11/100 (10%)

Key Data Points

98.4
Cost Index (RPP)
$67,378
Avg Median Salary
$1,655
2BR Fair Market Rent
235
Violent Crime/100K (ID)
17.1:1
Student-Teacher Ratio
$7,315
Infant Childcare/yr (ID)
12
Superfund Sites (ID)
377,880
Total Employment

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

Compare Boise City With...

Boise City vs Pocatello Compare → Boise City vs Twin Falls Compare → Boise City vs Lewiston Compare → Boise City vs Wildwood Compare → Boise City vs Waterloo Compare → Boise City vs Paducah Compare →

Ranking Context

Boise City outranks 43% of U.S. metros.

Rank Metro Score Grade
#219 St. George, UT 48.0 C+
#220 Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI 48.0 C+
#221 Wenatchee-East Wenatchee, WA 48.1 C+
#222 Boise City, ID 47.9 C+
#223 Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL 47.9 C+
#224 Port St. Lucie, FL 47.7 C+
#225 Victoria, TX 47.7 C+

ID Metro Scores

Pocatello, ID A 63.0 Twin Falls, ID * A- 60.8 Lewiston, ID-WA A- 60.4 Idaho Falls, ID B+ 58.4 Logan, UT-ID B- 50.7 Coeur d'Alene, ID C+ 46.9

Using Boise City's Life Score

Boise City 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 (88/100) and its weakest is environment (11/100) - weigh those against your own priorities. How the score is built
  • Put Boise City head-to-head against another metro before you decide, every dimension, side by side. Compare metros
  • See where Boise City 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 Boise City's biggest strengths? ▼
Boise City's strongest dimensions are Childcare (88/100), Safety (75/100), Schools (65/100). Childcare is top-tier nationally.
What are Boise City's weakest areas? ▼
Boise City's lowest-scoring dimensions are Environment (11/100), Rent (23/100), Cost of Living (26/100). Environment weighs heavily on the composite.
How expensive is Boise City compared to the national average? ▼
Boise City's Regional Price Parity is 98.4 (1.6% less than national); rent RPP 105.6.
What is the average salary in Boise City? ▼
Boise City median salary: $67,378, 377,880 jobs. Top: Fast Food and Counter Workers, General and Operations Managers, Home Health and Personal Care Aides.
How is the life score calculated? ▼
Boise City's 47.9/100 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.