PlainCompare

Metro Life Score

Dalton, GA

56.9
Life Score / 100
B+
Grade (curved)
#96
of 387 metros
75%
of metros outranked

Data updated May 2026

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

The verdict

Dalton ranks #96 of 387 US metros, ahead of 75% - carried by its childcare (96/100) and held back most by environment (22/100).

96
strongest: Childcare
92
then: Rent
22
weakest: Environment
7
weighted dimensions

Where Dalton sits among all US metros

Composite Life Score vs the national field

57 Top 25% higher than 75% 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%). Below this entry. 55–60: 68 US metros (18%). This entry sits in this band. 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 Dalton Life Score

Dalton's composite score of 56.9 out of 100, a grade of B+, places the metro at rank #96 of 387, ahead of 75% of US metros. The strongest inputs are Childcare (96/100) and Rent (92/100), which pull the composite upward, while Environment (22/100) and Wages (24/100) drag it downward. (How the weighting works.)

BEA RPP 89.8 (rent-RPP 63.3). BLS median salary $61,662, 59,390 jobs (Textile Winding, Twisting, and Drawing Out Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand, Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators). HUD 2BR FMR $1,009/mo (studio $726).

FBI UCR (GA): 300 violent, 1567 property/100K. NCES: 14.4:1 ratio, 4.2% charter. DOL infant childcare $6,591/yr. EPA: 23 Superfund sites (GA). Ranks #93-#99 below.

Dimension detail

How Dalton scores, dimension by dimension

Score Breakdown

Cost of Living Wages Rent Safety Schools Childcare Environment

Dimension Scores

Cost of Living 75/100 (20%)
Wages 24/100 (20%)
Rent 92/100 (15%)
Safety 55/100 (15%)
Schools 33/100 (10%)
Childcare 96/100 (10%)
Environment 22/100 (10%)

Key Data Points

89.8
Cost Index (RPP)
$61,662
Avg Median Salary
$1,009
2BR Fair Market Rent
300
Violent Crime/100K (GA)
14.4:1
Student-Teacher Ratio
$6,591
Infant Childcare/yr (GA)
23
Superfund Sites (GA)
59,390
Total Employment

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

Compare Dalton With...

Dalton vs Valdosta Compare → Dalton vs Warner Robins Compare → Dalton vs Rome Compare → Dalton vs Wildwood Compare → Dalton vs Waterloo Compare → Dalton vs Paducah Compare →

Ranking Context

Dalton outranks 75% of U.S. metros.

Rank Metro Score Grade
#93 Kokomo, IN 57.0 B+
#94 Rockford, IL 57.1 B+
#95 Wilmington, NC 57.2 B+
#96 Dalton, GA 56.9 B+
#97 Greensboro-High Point, NC 56.9 B+
#98 Madison, WI 56.9 B+
#99 Anniston-Oxford, AL 56.7 B+

GA Metro Scores

Valdosta, GA B+ 57.7 Warner Robins, GA B+ 55.6 Rome, GA B+ 55.5 Columbus, GA-AL B 55.1 Albany, GA B 54.3 Macon-Bibb County, GA B 54.0

Using Dalton's Life Score

Dalton 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 (96/100) and its weakest is environment (22/100) - weigh those against your own priorities. How the score is built
  • Put Dalton head-to-head against another metro before you decide, every dimension, side by side. Compare metros
  • See where Dalton 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 Dalton's biggest strengths? ▼
Dalton's strongest dimensions are Childcare (96/100), Rent (92/100), Cost of Living (75/100). Childcare is top-tier nationally.
What are Dalton's weakest areas? ▼
Dalton's lowest-scoring dimensions are Environment (22/100), Wages (24/100), Schools (33/100). Environment weighs heavily on the composite.
How expensive is Dalton compared to the national average? ▼
Dalton's Regional Price Parity is 89.8 (10.2% less than national); rent RPP 63.3.
What is the average salary in Dalton? ▼
Dalton median salary: $61,662, 59,390 jobs. Top: Textile Winding, Twisting, and Drawing Out Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand, Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators.
How is the life score calculated? ▼
Dalton's 56.9/100 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.