PlainCompare

Metro Life Score

Hattiesburg, MS

59.7
Life Score / 100
A-
Grade (curved)
#59
of 387 metros
85%
of metros outranked

Data updated May 2026

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

The verdict

Hattiesburg ranks #59 of 387 US metros, ahead of 85% - carried by its childcare (99/100) and held back most by wages (1/100).

99
strongest: Childcare
89
then: Cost of Living
1
weakest: Wages
7
weighted dimensions

Where Hattiesburg sits among all US metros

Composite Life Score vs the national field

60 Top 15% higher than 85% 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 Hattiesburg Life Score

Hattiesburg's composite score of 59.7 out of 100, a grade of A-, places the metro at rank #59 of 387, ahead of 85% of US metros. The strongest inputs are Childcare (99/100) and Cost of Living (89/100), which pull the composite upward, while Wages (1/100) and Schools (14/100) drag it downward. (How the weighting works.)

BEA RPP 87.6 (rent-RPP 60.1). BLS median salary $51,744, 54,020 jobs (Retail Salespersons, Registered Nurses, Cashiers). HUD 2BR FMR $1,047/mo (studio $766).

FBI UCR (MS): 143 violent, 953 property/100K. NCES: 13.3:1 ratio, 0.9% charter. DOL infant childcare $6,498/yr. EPA: 14 Superfund sites (MS). Ranks #56-#62 below.

Dimension detail

How Hattiesburg scores, dimension by dimension

Score Breakdown

Cost of Living Wages Rent Safety Schools Childcare Environment

Dimension Scores

Cost of Living 89/100 (20%)
Wages 1/100 (20%)
Rent 88/100 (15%)
Safety 89/100 (15%)
Schools 14/100 (10%)
Childcare 99/100 (10%)
Environment 39/100 (10%)

Key Data Points

87.6
Cost Index (RPP)
$51,744
Avg Median Salary
$1,047
2BR Fair Market Rent
143
Violent Crime/100K (MS)
13.3:1
Student-Teacher Ratio
$6,498
Infant Childcare/yr (MS)
14
Superfund Sites (MS)
54,020
Total Employment

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

Compare Hattiesburg With...

Hattiesburg vs Gulfport Compare → Hattiesburg vs Jackson Compare → Hattiesburg vs Memphis Compare → Hattiesburg vs Wildwood Compare → Hattiesburg vs Waterloo Compare → Hattiesburg vs Paducah Compare →

Ranking Context

Hattiesburg outranks 85% of U.S. metros.

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

MS Metro Scores

Gulfport-Biloxi, MS B+ 58.0 Jackson, MS B 54.8 Memphis, TN-MS-AR C+ 47.4

Using Hattiesburg's Life Score

Hattiesburg 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 childcare (99/100) and its weakest is wages (1/100) - weigh those against your own priorities. How the score is built
  • Put Hattiesburg head-to-head against another metro before you decide, every dimension, side by side. Compare metros
  • See where Hattiesburg 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 Hattiesburg's biggest strengths? ▼
Hattiesburg's strongest dimensions are Childcare (99/100), Cost of Living (89/100), Safety (89/100). Childcare is top-tier nationally.
What are Hattiesburg's weakest areas? ▼
Hattiesburg's lowest-scoring dimensions are Wages (1/100), Schools (14/100), Environment (39/100). Wages weighs heavily on the composite.
How expensive is Hattiesburg compared to the national average? ▼
Hattiesburg's Regional Price Parity is 87.6 (12.4% less than national); rent RPP 60.1.
What is the average salary in Hattiesburg? ▼
Hattiesburg median salary: $51,744, 54,020 jobs. Top: Retail Salespersons, Registered Nurses, Cashiers.
How is the life score calculated? ▼
Hattiesburg's 59.7/100 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.