Metro Life Score
Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY
Below-median composite Life Score — grade C+, 37th percentile of the national corpus.
- 46.8
- Life Score / 100
- C+
- Grade (curved)
- #242
- of 387 metros
- 37%
- composite percentile
Data updated August 2026
Verify: BEA · BLS · HUD · FBI · NCES · EPA · Census · Report a data issue · Data changelog
The verdict
Buffalo-Cheektowaga is below-median composite Life Score — #242 of 387 (46.8/100, grade C+, 37th percentile). Carried by wages at 89/100; held back most by schools at 3/100.
- 37th
- composite percentile
- #242
- of 387 peers
- 38th
- cost dimension percentile
- 88th
- wages dimension percentile
Life Score shape · MID · WAGE-LED · signature wages
Buffalo-Cheektowaga: pay power is the signature
Buffalo-Cheektowaga stamps MID · WAGE-LED with wages at the 88th percentile of the metro corpus (PEAK) — ahead of its cost mark (DEAR, 38th) and composite #242. Wages (89/100) amplifies the lead; Schools (3/100) is the residual gap. According to PlainCompare's federal Life Score corpus ranking, Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY ranks #242 of 387 metros by composite Life Score (highest = #1) and #239 of 387 by cost-of-living dimension score (highest = #1). Methodology.
BEA RPP 95.8 (rent-RPP 81.0). BLS median salary $74,613, 524,180 jobs (Home Health and Personal Care Aides, Retail Salespersons, Fast Food and Counter Workers). HUD 2BR FMR $1,343/mo (studio $1,105).
FBI UCR (NY): 380 violent, 1661 property/100K. NCES: 11.8:1 ratio, 7.1% charter. DOL infant childcare $13,869/yr. EPA: 122 Superfund sites (NY).
Where Buffalo-Cheektowaga sits among all US metros
Composite Life Score vs the national field
47 37th percentile higher than 37% of 387 US metros
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 · August 2026
Dimension detail
How Buffalo-Cheektowaga scores, dimension by dimension
Score Breakdown
Dimension Scores
Key Data Points
Geography used: crime, schools, childcare, and environment cards above are NY state-level when metro-specific feeds are unavailable, see the scope key at the top of this page.
Compare Buffalo-Cheektowaga With...
Ranking Context
Buffalo-Cheektowaga outranks 37% of U.S. metros.
| Rank | Metro | Score | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|
| #239 | Kansas City, MO-KS | 46.9 | C+ |
| #240 | Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL | 47.0 | C+ |
| #241 | Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas, NV | 47.0 | C+ |
| #242 | Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY | 46.8 | C+ |
| #243 | Bend, OR | 46.8 | C+ |
| #244 | Providence-Warwick, RI-MA | 46.7 | C+ |
| #245 | Panama City-Panama City Beach, FL | 46.5 | C+ |
NY Metro Scores
Read with Buffalo-Cheektowaga
Nearest composite peers and cost poles for Buffalo-Cheektowaga (MID · WAGE-LED · DEAR/PEAK), replacing the fixed Explore/Guides strip.
Bend, OR
ABS(composite) peer at 46.8 (Δ 0.0 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade C+ vs this page's MID · WAGE-LED · DEAR/PEAK.
Providence-Warwick, RI-MA
ABS(composite) peer at 46.7 (Δ 0.1 vs this metro); lower Life Score · grade C+ vs this page's MID · WAGE-LED · DEAR/PEAK.
Kansas City, MO-KS
ABS(composite) peer at 46.9 (Δ 0.1 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade C+ vs this page's MID · WAGE-LED · DEAR/PEAK.
Las Vegas-Henderson-North Las Vegas, NV
ABS(composite) peer at 47.0 (Δ 0.2 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade C+ vs this page's MID · WAGE-LED · DEAR/PEAK.
Logan, UT-ID (cost pole)
ABS(cost_score) orthogonal peer at 38/100 (Δ 0); cost stamp DEAR vs this metro's DEAR.
Midland, TX (cost pole)
ABS(cost_score) orthogonal peer at 39/100 (Δ 0); cost stamp DEAR vs this metro's DEAR.
Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY relocation guide
Stamp-branched guide for MID · WAGE-LED · DEAR/PEAK - how to read federal Life Score inputs before a move.