PlainCompare

Metro Life Score

Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT

42.4
Life Score / 100
C
Grade (curved)
#297
of 387 metros
23%
of metros outranked

Data updated May 2026

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

The verdict

Hartford ranks #297 of 387 US metros, ahead of 23% - carried by its wages (94/100) and held back most by schools (9/100).

94
strongest: Wages
91
then: Safety
9
weakest: Schools
7
weighted dimensions

Where Hartford sits among all US metros

Composite Life Score vs the national field

42 23th percentile higher than 23% 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%). This entry sits in this band. 45–50: 81 US metros (21%). Above this entry. 50–55: 67 US metros (17%). Above this entry. 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 Hartford Life Score

Hartford's composite score of 42.4 out of 100, a grade of C, places the metro at rank #297 of 387, ahead of 23% of US metros. The strongest inputs are Wages (94/100) and Safety (91/100), which pull the composite upward, while Schools (9/100) and Childcare (10/100) drag it downward. (How the weighting works.)

BEA RPP 102.7 (rent-RPP 110.2). BLS median salary $77,770, 587,310 jobs (Home Health and Personal Care Aides, Retail Salespersons, Registered Nurses). HUD 2BR FMR $1,865/mo (studio $1,286).

FBI UCR (CT): 139 violent, 1397 property/100K. NCES: 12.1:1 ratio, 2.1% charter. DOL infant childcare $17,127/yr. EPA: 17 Superfund sites (CT). Ranks #294-#300 below.

Dimension detail

How Hartford scores, dimension by dimension

Score Breakdown

Cost of Living Wages Rent Safety Schools Childcare Environment

Dimension Scores

Cost of Living 12/100 (20%)
Wages 94/100 (20%)
Rent 12/100 (15%)
Safety 91/100 (15%)
Schools 9/100 (10%)
Childcare 10/100 (10%)
Environment 38/100 (10%)

Key Data Points

102.7
Cost Index (RPP)
$77,770
Avg Median Salary
$1,865
2BR Fair Market Rent
139
Violent Crime/100K (CT)
12.1:1
Student-Teacher Ratio
$17,127
Infant Childcare/yr (CT)
17
Superfund Sites (CT)
587,310
Total Employment

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

Compare Hartford With...

Hartford vs Waterbury Compare → Hartford vs Norwich Compare → Hartford vs New Haven Compare → Hartford vs Wildwood Compare → Hartford vs Waterloo Compare → Hartford vs Paducah Compare →

Ranking Context

Hartford outranks 23% of U.S. metros.

Rank Metro Score Grade
#294 Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN 42.5 C
#295 Corpus Christi, TX 42.6 C
#296 Merced, CA 42.8 C
#297 Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT 42.4 C
#298 Cleveland, TN 42.4 C
#299 Odessa, TX 42.4 C
#300 Rochester, NY 42.3 C

CT Metro Scores

Waterbury-Shelton, CT B- 48.7 Norwich-New London-Willimantic, CT C+ 46.0 New Haven, CT C 43.6 Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT Metropolitan Statistical Area D 37.7

Using Hartford's Life Score

Hartford 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 wages (94/100) and its weakest is schools (9/100) - weigh those against your own priorities. How the score is built
  • Put Hartford head-to-head against another metro before you decide, every dimension, side by side. Compare metros
  • See where Hartford 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 Hartford's biggest strengths? ▼
Hartford's strongest dimensions are Wages (94/100), Safety (91/100), Environment (38/100). Wages is top-tier nationally.
What are Hartford's weakest areas? ▼
Hartford's lowest-scoring dimensions are Schools (9/100), Childcare (10/100), Rent (12/100). Schools weighs heavily on the composite.
How expensive is Hartford compared to the national average? ▼
Hartford's Regional Price Parity is 102.7 (2.7% more than national); rent RPP 110.2.
What is the average salary in Hartford? ▼
Hartford median salary: $77,770, 587,310 jobs. Top: Home Health and Personal Care Aides, Retail Salespersons, Registered Nurses.
How is the life score calculated? ▼
Hartford's 42.4/100 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.