PlainCompare

Metro Life Score

Columbus, IN

47.4
Life Score / 100
C+
Grade (curved)
#229
of 387 metros
41%
of metros outranked

Data updated May 2026

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

The verdict

Columbus ranks #229 of 387 US metros, ahead of 41% - carried by its wages (55/100) and held back most by environment (20/100).

55
strongest: Wages
55
then: Schools
20
weakest: Environment
7
weighted dimensions

Where Columbus sits among all US metros

Composite Life Score vs the national field

47 41th percentile higher than 41% 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 Columbus Life Score

Columbus's composite score of 47.4 out of 100, a grade of C+, places the metro at rank #229 of 387, ahead of 41% of US metros. The strongest inputs are Wages (55/100) and Schools (55/100), which pull the composite upward, while Environment (20/100) and Rent (36/100) drag it downward. (How the weighting works.)

BEA RPP 93.0 (rent-RPP 75.5). BLS median salary $64,275, 41,930 jobs (Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators, Retail Salespersons, Machinists). HUD 2BR FMR $1,415/mo (studio $1,233).

FBI UCR (IN): 308 violent, 1321 property/100K. NCES: 15.9:1 ratio, 6.5% charter. EPA: 53 Superfund sites (IN). Ranks #226-#232 below.

Dimension detail

How Columbus scores, dimension by dimension

Score Breakdown

Cost of Living Wages Rent Safety Schools Childcare Environment

Dimension Scores

Cost of Living 54/100 (20%)
Wages 55/100 (20%)
Rent 36/100 (15%)
Safety 52/100 (15%)
Schools 55/100 (10%)
Childcare -/100 (10%)
Environment 20/100 (10%)

Key Data Points

93.0
Cost Index (RPP)
$64,275
Avg Median Salary
$1,415
2BR Fair Market Rent
308
Violent Crime/100K (IN)
15.9:1
Student-Teacher Ratio
53
Superfund Sites (IN)
41,930
Total Employment

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

Compare Columbus With...

Columbus vs Terre Haute Compare → Columbus vs Muncie Compare → Columbus vs Louisville/Jefferson County Compare → Columbus vs Wildwood Compare → Columbus vs Waterloo Compare → Columbus vs Paducah Compare →

Ranking Context

Columbus outranks 41% of U.S. metros.

Rank Metro Score Grade
#226 Panama City-Panama City Beach, FL 47.5 C+
#227 Altoona, PA 47.5 C+
#228 Salem, OR 47.6 C+
#229 Columbus, IN 47.4 C+
#230 Memphis, TN-MS-AR 47.4 C+
#231 Jackson, TN 47.3 C+
#232 Pueblo, CO 47.3 C+

IN Metro Scores

Terre Haute, IN A 63.5 Muncie, IN A- 61.0 Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN A- 60.3 Kokomo, IN B+ 57.0 South Bend-Mishawaka, IN-MI B 55.2 Evansville, IN B 53.8

Using Columbus's Life Score

Columbus 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 wages (55/100) and its weakest is environment (20/100) - weigh those against your own priorities. How the score is built
  • Put Columbus head-to-head against another metro before you decide, every dimension, side by side. Compare metros
  • See where Columbus 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 Columbus's biggest strengths? ▼
Columbus's strongest dimensions are Wages (55/100), Schools (55/100), Cost of Living (54/100).
What are Columbus's weakest areas? ▼
Columbus's lowest-scoring dimensions are Environment (20/100), Rent (36/100), Safety (52/100). Environment weighs heavily on the composite.
How expensive is Columbus compared to the national average? ▼
Columbus's Regional Price Parity is 93.0 (7.0% less than national); rent RPP 75.5.
What is the average salary in Columbus? ▼
Columbus median salary: $64,275, 41,930 jobs. Top: Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators, Retail Salespersons, Machinists.
How is the life score calculated? ▼
Columbus's 47.4/100 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.