PlainCompare

Metro Life Score

Grand Forks, ND-MN

62.5
Life Score / 100
A
Grade (curved)
#31
of 387 metros
92%
of metros outranked

Data updated May 2026

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

The verdict

Grand Forks ranks #31 of 387 US metros, ahead of 92% - carried by its cost of living (92/100) and held back most by schools (3/100).

92
strongest: Cost of Living
84
then: Rent
3
weakest: Schools
7
weighted dimensions

Where Grand Forks sits among all US metros

Composite Life Score vs the national field

63 Top 8% higher than 92% 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%). Below this entry. 60–65: 40 US metros (10%). This entry sits in this band. 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 Grand Forks Life Score

Grand Forks's composite score of 62.5 out of 100, a grade of A, places the metro at rank #31 of 387, ahead of 92% of US metros. The strongest inputs are Cost of Living (92/100) and Rent (84/100), which pull the composite upward, while Schools (3/100) and Environment (34/100) drag it downward. (How the weighting works.)

BEA RPP 86.7 (rent-RPP 59.7). BLS median salary $66,228, 46,030 jobs (Retail Salespersons, Fast Food and Counter Workers, Home Health and Personal Care Aides). HUD 2BR FMR $1,089/mo (studio $863).

FBI UCR (ND): 257 violent, 1706 property/100K. NCES: 11.8:1 ratio, 0.0% charter. DOL infant childcare $10,925/yr. EPA: 2 Superfund sites (ND). Ranks #28-#34 below.

Dimension detail

How Grand Forks scores, dimension by dimension

Score Breakdown

Cost of Living Wages Rent Safety Schools Childcare Environment

Dimension Scores

Cost of Living 92/100 (20%)
Wages 67/100 (20%)
Rent 84/100 (15%)
Safety 67/100 (15%)
Schools 3/100 (10%)
Childcare 44/100 (10%)
Environment 34/100 (10%)

Key Data Points

86.7
Cost Index (RPP)
$66,228
Avg Median Salary
$1,089
2BR Fair Market Rent
257
Violent Crime/100K (ND)
11.8:1
Student-Teacher Ratio
$10,925
Infant Childcare/yr (ND)
2
Superfund Sites (ND)
46,030
Total Employment

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

Compare Grand Forks With...

Grand Forks vs Minot Compare → Grand Forks vs Fargo Compare → Grand Forks vs Bismarck Compare → Grand Forks vs Wildwood Compare → Grand Forks vs Waterloo Compare → Grand Forks vs Paducah Compare →

Ranking Context

Grand Forks outranks 92% of U.S. metros.

Rank Metro Score Grade
#28 Midland, MI 62.6 A
#29 Shreveport-Bossier City, LA 62.9 A
#30 Pocatello, ID 63.0 A
#31 Grand Forks, ND-MN 62.5 A
#32 Mobile, AL 62.3 A
#33 Iowa City, IA 62.2 A
#34 Topeka, KS 62.2 A

ND Metro Scores

Minot, ND A 63.2 Fargo, ND-MN B+ 57.2 Bismarck, ND B 54.0

Using Grand Forks's Life Score

Grand Forks 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 cost of living (92/100) and its weakest is schools (3/100) - weigh those against your own priorities. How the score is built
  • Put Grand Forks head-to-head against another metro before you decide, every dimension, side by side. Compare metros
  • See where Grand Forks 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 Grand Forks's biggest strengths? ▼
Grand Forks's strongest dimensions are Cost of Living (92/100), Rent (84/100), Wages (67/100). Cost of Living is top-tier nationally.
What are Grand Forks's weakest areas? ▼
Grand Forks's lowest-scoring dimensions are Schools (3/100), Environment (34/100), Childcare (44/100). Schools weighs heavily on the composite.
How expensive is Grand Forks compared to the national average? ▼
Grand Forks's Regional Price Parity is 86.7 (13.3% less than national); rent RPP 59.7.
What is the average salary in Grand Forks? ▼
Grand Forks median salary: $66,228, 46,030 jobs. Top: Retail Salespersons, Fast Food and Counter Workers, Home Health and Personal Care Aides.
How is the life score calculated? ▼
Grand Forks's 62.5/100 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.