PlainCompare

Metro Life Score

Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX

52.9
Life Score / 100
B
Grade (curved)
#155
of 387 metros
60%
of metros outranked

Data updated May 2026

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

The verdict

Houston ranks #155 of 387 US metros, ahead of 60% - carried by its rent (83/100) and held back most by cost of living (26/100).

83
strongest: Rent
76
then: Childcare
26
weakest: Cost of Living
7
weighted dimensions

Where Houston sits among all US metros

Composite Life Score vs the national field

53 60th percentile higher than 60% 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 Houston Life Score

Houston's composite score of 52.9 out of 100, a grade of B, places the metro at rank #155 of 387, ahead of 60% of US metros. The strongest inputs are Rent (83/100) and Childcare (76/100), which pull the composite upward, while Cost of Living (26/100) and Safety (33/100) drag it downward. (How the weighting works.)

BEA RPP 98.6 (rent-RPP 104.5). BLS median salary $69,330, 3,246,270 jobs (Fast Food and Counter Workers, General and Operations Managers, Retail Salespersons). HUD 2BR FMR $1,095/mo (studio $885).

FBI UCR (TX): 395 violent, 2058 property/100K. NCES: 14.7:1 ratio, 11.4% charter. DOL infant childcare $7,566/yr. EPA: 70 Superfund sites (TX). Ranks #152-#158 below.

Dimension detail

How Houston scores, dimension by dimension

Score Breakdown

Cost of Living Wages Rent Safety Schools Childcare Environment

Dimension Scores

Cost of Living 26/100 (20%)
Wages 74/100 (20%)
Rent 83/100 (15%)
Safety 33/100 (15%)
Schools 39/100 (10%)
Childcare 76/100 (10%)
Environment 41/100 (10%)

Key Data Points

98.6
Cost Index (RPP)
$69,330
Avg Median Salary
$1,095
2BR Fair Market Rent
395
Violent Crime/100K (TX)
14.7:1
Student-Teacher Ratio
$7,566
Infant Childcare/yr (TX)
70
Superfund Sites (TX)
3,246,270
Total Employment

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

Compare Houston With...

Houston vs Texarkana Compare → Houston vs Waco Compare → Houston vs San Antonio Compare → Houston vs Wildwood Compare → Houston vs Waterloo Compare → Houston vs Paducah Compare →

Ranking Context

Houston outranks 60% of U.S. metros.

Rank Metro Score Grade
#152 Baton Rouge, LA 53.2 B
#153 Auburn-Opelika, AL 53.3 B
#154 Eagle Pass, TX 53.4 B
#155 Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX 52.9 B
#156 Eau Claire, WI 52.9 B
#157 Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL 52.8 B
#158 Richmond, VA 52.8 B

TX Metro Scores

Texarkana, TX-AR A- 60.7 Waco, TX B+ 58.2 San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX B+ 57.6 McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, TX B 55.0 Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX B 54.9 Wichita Falls, TX B 53.9

Using Houston's Life Score

Houston 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 (83/100) and its weakest is cost of living (26/100) - weigh those against your own priorities. How the score is built
  • Put Houston head-to-head against another metro before you decide, every dimension, side by side. Compare metros
  • See where Houston 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 Houston's biggest strengths? ▼
Houston's strongest dimensions are Rent (83/100), Childcare (76/100), Wages (74/100). Rent is top-tier nationally.
What are Houston's weakest areas? ▼
Houston's lowest-scoring dimensions are Cost of Living (26/100), Safety (33/100), Schools (39/100). Cost of Living weighs heavily on the composite.
How expensive is Houston compared to the national average? ▼
Houston's Regional Price Parity is 98.6 (1.4% less than national); rent RPP 104.5.
What is the average salary in Houston? ▼
Houston median salary: $69,330, 3,246,270 jobs. Top: Fast Food and Counter Workers, General and Operations Managers, Retail Salespersons.
How is the life score calculated? ▼
Houston's 52.9/100 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.