PlainCompare

Metro Life Score

Gadsden, AL

59.6
Life Score / 100
A-
Grade (curved)
#60
of 387 metros
84%
of metros outranked

Data updated May 2026

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

The verdict

Gadsden ranks #60 of 387 US metros, ahead of 84% - carried by its rent (98/100) and held back most by wages (0/100).

98
strongest: Rent
97
then: Cost of Living
0
weakest: Wages
7
weighted dimensions

Where Gadsden sits among all US metros

Composite Life Score vs the national field

60 Top 16% higher than 84% 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 Gadsden Life Score

Gadsden's composite score of 59.6 out of 100, a grade of A-, places the metro at rank #60 of 387, ahead of 84% of US metros. The strongest inputs are Rent (98/100) and Cost of Living (97/100), which pull the composite upward, while Wages (0/100) and Environment (32/100) drag it downward. (How the weighting works.)

BEA RPP 85.7 (rent-RPP 53.7). BLS median salary $49,412, 27,240 jobs (Registered Nurses, Retail Salespersons, Cashiers). HUD 2BR FMR $927/mo (studio $639).

FBI UCR (AL): 376 violent, 1622 property/100K. NCES: 17.7:1 ratio, 1.2% charter. DOL infant childcare $6,896/yr. EPA: 16 Superfund sites (AL). Ranks #57-#63 below.

Dimension detail

How Gadsden scores, dimension by dimension

Score Breakdown

Cost of Living Wages Rent Safety Schools Childcare Environment

Dimension Scores

Cost of Living 97/100 (20%)
Wages 0/100 (20%)
Rent 98/100 (15%)
Safety 40/100 (15%)
Schools 70/100 (10%)
Childcare 91/100 (10%)
Environment 32/100 (10%)

Key Data Points

85.7
Cost Index (RPP)
$49,412
Avg Median Salary
$927
2BR Fair Market Rent
376
Violent Crime/100K (AL)
17.7:1
Student-Teacher Ratio
$6,896
Infant Childcare/yr (AL)
16
Superfund Sites (AL)
27,240
Total Employment

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

Compare Gadsden With...

Gadsden vs Tuscaloosa Compare → Gadsden vs Mobile Compare → Gadsden vs Decatur Compare → Gadsden vs Wildwood Compare → Gadsden vs Waterloo Compare → Gadsden vs Paducah Compare →

Ranking Context

Gadsden outranks 84% of U.S. metros.

Rank Metro Score Grade
#57 Hattiesburg, MS 59.7 A-
#58 Sheboygan, WI 59.8 A-
#59 Saginaw, MI 59.9 A-
#60 Gadsden, AL 59.6 A-
#61 Lincoln, NE 59.6 A-
#62 Dothan, AL 59.5 A-
#63 Florence-Muscle Shoals, AL 59.5 A-

AL Metro Scores

Tuscaloosa, AL A+ 66.3 Mobile, AL A 62.3 Decatur, AL A 61.9 Montgomery, AL A- 60.5 Dothan, AL A- 59.5 Florence-Muscle Shoals, AL A- 59.5

Using Gadsden's Life Score

Gadsden 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 rent (98/100) and its weakest is wages (0/100) - weigh those against your own priorities. How the score is built
  • Put Gadsden head-to-head against another metro before you decide, every dimension, side by side. Compare metros
  • See where Gadsden 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 Gadsden's biggest strengths? ▼
Gadsden's strongest dimensions are Rent (98/100), Cost of Living (97/100), Childcare (91/100). Rent is top-tier nationally.
What are Gadsden's weakest areas? ▼
Gadsden's lowest-scoring dimensions are Wages (0/100), Environment (32/100), Safety (40/100). Wages weighs heavily on the composite.
How expensive is Gadsden compared to the national average? ▼
Gadsden's Regional Price Parity is 85.7 (14.3% less than national); rent RPP 53.7.
What is the average salary in Gadsden? ▼
Gadsden median salary: $49,412, 27,240 jobs. Top: Registered Nurses, Retail Salespersons, Cashiers.
How is the life score calculated? ▼
Gadsden's 59.6/100 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.