PlainCompare

Metro Life Score

Dayton-Kettering-Beavercreek, OH

56.3
Life Score / 100
B+
Grade (curved)
#106
of 387 metros
73%
of metros outranked

Data updated May 2026

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

The verdict

Dayton ranks #106 of 387 US metros, ahead of 73% - carried by its schools (82/100) and held back most by environment (23/100).

82
strongest: Schools
73
then: Wages
23
weakest: Environment
7
weighted dimensions

Where Dayton sits among all US metros

Composite Life Score vs the national field

56 73th percentile higher than 73% 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 Dayton Life Score

Dayton's composite score of 56.3 out of 100, a grade of B+, places the metro at rank #106 of 387, ahead of 73% of US metros. The strongest inputs are Schools (82/100) and Wages (73/100), which pull the composite upward, while Environment (23/100) and Childcare (32/100) drag it downward. (How the weighting works.)

BEA RPP 92.7 (rent-RPP 72.7). BLS median salary $68,046, 365,260 jobs (Fast Food and Counter Workers, Registered Nurses, General and Operations Managers). HUD 2BR FMR $1,273/mo (studio $928).

FBI UCR (OH): 293 violent, 1545 property/100K. NCES: 18.2:1 ratio, 9.3% charter. DOL infant childcare $11,791/yr. EPA: 50 Superfund sites (OH). Ranks #103-#109 below.

Dimension detail

How Dayton scores, dimension by dimension

Score Breakdown

Cost of Living Wages Rent Safety Schools Childcare Environment

Dimension Scores

Cost of Living 57/100 (20%)
Wages 73/100 (20%)
Rent 53/100 (15%)
Safety 58/100 (15%)
Schools 82/100 (10%)
Childcare 32/100 (10%)
Environment 23/100 (10%)

Key Data Points

92.7
Cost Index (RPP)
$68,046
Avg Median Salary
$1,273
2BR Fair Market Rent
293
Violent Crime/100K (OH)
18.2:1
Student-Teacher Ratio
$11,791
Infant Childcare/yr (OH)
50
Superfund Sites (OH)
365,260
Total Employment

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

Compare Dayton With...

Dayton vs Wheeling Compare → Dayton vs Toledo Compare → Dayton vs Youngstown Compare → Dayton vs Wildwood Compare → Dayton vs Waterloo Compare → Dayton vs Paducah Compare →

Ranking Context

Dayton outranks 73% of U.S. metros.

Rank Metro Score Grade
#103 Johnstown, PA 56.4 B+
#104 Alexandria, LA 56.4 B+
#105 Raleigh-Cary, NC 56.5 B+
#106 Dayton-Kettering-Beavercreek, OH 56.3 B+
#107 Goldsboro, NC 56.2 B+
#108 Jackson, MI 56.2 B+
#109 Flint, MI 56.1 B+

OH Metro Scores

Wheeling, WV-OH A+ 68.2 Toledo, OH A+ 66.3 Youngstown-Warren, OH A 65.8 Weirton-Steubenville, WV-OH A 65.7 Sandusky, OH A- 61.4 Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH A- 60.5

Using Dayton's Life Score

Dayton 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 schools (82/100) and its weakest is environment (23/100) - weigh those against your own priorities. How the score is built
  • Put Dayton head-to-head against another metro before you decide, every dimension, side by side. Compare metros
  • See where Dayton 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 Dayton's biggest strengths? ▼
Dayton's strongest dimensions are Schools (82/100), Wages (73/100), Safety (58/100). Schools is top-tier nationally.
What are Dayton's weakest areas? ▼
Dayton's lowest-scoring dimensions are Environment (23/100), Childcare (32/100), Rent (53/100). Environment weighs heavily on the composite.
How expensive is Dayton compared to the national average? ▼
Dayton's Regional Price Parity is 92.7 (7.3% less than national); rent RPP 72.7.
What is the average salary in Dayton? ▼
Dayton median salary: $68,046, 365,260 jobs. Top: Fast Food and Counter Workers, Registered Nurses, General and Operations Managers.
How is the life score calculated? ▼
Dayton's 56.3/100 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.