PlainCompare

Metro Life Score

Durham-Chapel Hill, NC

54.7
Life Score / 100
B
Grade (curved)
#128
of 387 metros
67%
of metros outranked

Data updated May 2026

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

The verdict

Durham ranks #128 of 387 US metros, ahead of 67% - carried by its safety (95/100) and held back most by rent (20/100).

95
strongest: Safety
84
then: Wages
20
weakest: Rent
7
weighted dimensions

Where Durham sits among all US metros

Composite Life Score vs the national field

55 67th percentile higher than 67% 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%). This entry sits in this band. 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 Durham Life Score

Durham's composite score of 54.7 out of 100, a grade of B, places the metro at rank #128 of 387, ahead of 67% of US metros. The strongest inputs are Safety (95/100) and Wages (84/100), which pull the composite upward, while Rent (20/100) and Environment (26/100) drag it downward. (How the weighting works.)

BEA RPP 97.6 (rent-RPP 98.9). BLS median salary $71,457, 295,700 jobs (Software Developers, Retail Salespersons, Medical Secretaries and Administrative Assistants). HUD 2BR FMR $1,711/mo (studio $1,417).

FBI UCR (NC): 365 violent, 1930 property/100K. NCES: 15.8:1 ratio, 7.6% charter. DOL infant childcare $9,487/yr. EPA: 42 Superfund sites (NC). Ranks #125-#131 below.

Dimension detail

How Durham scores, dimension by dimension

Score Breakdown

Cost of Living Wages Rent Safety Schools Childcare Environment

Dimension Scores

Cost of Living 31/100 (20%)
Wages 84/100 (20%)
Rent 20/100 (15%)
Safety 95/100 (15%)
Schools 59/100 (10%)
Childcare 60/100 (10%)
Environment 26/100 (10%)

Key Data Points

97.6
Cost Index (RPP)
$71,457
Avg Median Salary
$1,711
2BR Fair Market Rent
365
Violent Crime/100K (NC)
15.8:1
Student-Teacher Ratio
$9,487
Infant Childcare/yr (NC)
42
Superfund Sites (NC)
295,700
Total Employment

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

Compare Durham With...

Durham vs Winston Compare → Durham vs Greenville Compare → Durham vs Rocky Mount Compare → Durham vs Wildwood Compare → Durham vs Waterloo Compare → Durham vs Paducah Compare →

Ranking Context

Durham outranks 67% of U.S. metros.

Rank Metro Score Grade
#125 Sebring, FL 54.8 B
#126 Jackson, MS 54.8 B
#127 Tallahassee, FL 54.9 B
#128 Durham-Chapel Hill, NC 54.7 B
#129 St. Louis, MO-IL 54.7 B
#130 Williamsport, PA 54.7 B
#131 Birmingham, AL 54.5 B

NC Metro Scores

Winston-Salem, NC A+ 69.8 Greenville, NC A+ 66.6 Rocky Mount, NC A+ 65.8 Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC A 63.4 Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC A- 59.2 Pinehurst-Southern Pines, NC B+ 58.6

Using Durham's Life Score

Durham 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 safety (95/100) and its weakest is rent (20/100) - weigh those against your own priorities. How the score is built
  • Put Durham head-to-head against another metro before you decide, every dimension, side by side. Compare metros
  • See where Durham 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 Durham's biggest strengths? ▼
Durham's strongest dimensions are Safety (95/100), Wages (84/100), Childcare (60/100). Safety is top-tier nationally.
What are Durham's weakest areas? ▼
Durham's lowest-scoring dimensions are Rent (20/100), Environment (26/100), Cost of Living (31/100). Rent weighs heavily on the composite.
How expensive is Durham compared to the national average? ▼
Durham's Regional Price Parity is 97.6 (2.4% less than national); rent RPP 98.9.
What is the average salary in Durham? ▼
Durham median salary: $71,457, 295,700 jobs. Top: Software Developers, Retail Salespersons, Medical Secretaries and Administrative Assistants.
How is the life score calculated? ▼
Durham's 54.7/100 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.