Metro Life Score
Idaho Falls, ID
Top-5% composite Life Score — grade A, 95th percentile of the national corpus.
- 63.2
- Life Score / 100
- A
- Grade (curved)
- #21
- of 387 metros
- 95%
- composite percentile
Data updated August 2026
Verify: BEA · BLS · HUD · FBI · NCES · EPA · Census · Report a data issue · Data changelog
The verdict
Idaho Falls is top-5% composite Life Score — #21 of 387 (63.2/100, grade A, 95th percentile). Carried by environment at 91/100; held back most by cost of living at 46/100.
- 95th
- composite percentile
- #21
- of 387 peers
- 45th
- cost dimension percentile
- 47th
- wages dimension percentile
Life Score shape · TOP · RENT-SQUEEZE · signature composite
Idaho Falls: top-third composite Life Score
Idaho Falls clears the top third of US metros on composite Life Score (#21 of 387, 63.2/100, grade A, 95th percentile). Stamps TOP · RENT-SQUEEZE; cost MID (45th) · wages MID (47th). Environment at 91/100 carries the lead; Cost of Living (46/100) is the residual gap. According to PlainCompare's federal Life Score corpus ranking, Idaho Falls, ID ranks #21 of 387 metros by composite Life Score (highest = #1) and #211 of 387 by cost-of-living dimension score (highest = #1). Methodology.
BEA RPP 94.4 (rent-RPP 84.0). BLS median salary $63,842, 72,210 jobs (Home Health and Personal Care Aides, Fast Food and Counter Workers, General and Operations Managers). HUD 2BR FMR $1,305/mo (studio $1,034).
FBI UCR (ID): 235 violent, 754 property/100K. NCES: 16.7:1 ratio, 9.9% charter. DOL infant childcare $7,315/yr. EPA: 12 Superfund sites (ID).
Where Idaho Falls sits among all US metros
Composite Life Score vs the national field
63 Top 5% higher than 95% of 387 US metros
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 · August 2026
How the 63.2 is built
Idaho Falls's Life Score, decomposed
Dimension detail
How Idaho Falls scores, dimension by dimension
Score Breakdown
Dimension Scores
Key Data Points
Geography used: crime, schools, childcare, and environment cards above are ID state-level when metro-specific feeds are unavailable, see the scope key at the top of this page.
Compare Idaho Falls With...
Ranking Context
Idaho Falls outranks 95% of U.S. metros.
| Rank | Metro | Score | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|
| #18 | Decatur, AL | 63.4 | A |
| #19 | Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX | 63.4 | A |
| #20 | Alexandria, LA | 63.4 | A |
| #21 | Idaho Falls, ID | 63.2 | A |
| #22 | Dubuque, IA | 62.9 | A |
| #23 | Hattiesburg, MS | 62.9 | A |
| #24 | Bowling Green, KY | 62.8 | A |
Quality vs. Affordability
Idaho Falls, ID is top 5% highest-quality nationally but only bottom 46% least affordable among its composite-quality peers -- its Life Score is earned mostly outside the cost dimension, not through being a budget option.
ID Metro Scores
Read with Idaho Falls
Nearest composite peers and cost poles for Idaho Falls (TOP · RENT-SQUEEZE · MID/MID), replacing the fixed Explore/Guides strip.
Alexandria, LA
ABS(composite) peer at 63.4 (Δ 0.2 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade A vs this page's TOP · RENT-SQUEEZE · MID/MID.
Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX
ABS(composite) peer at 63.4 (Δ 0.2 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade A vs this page's TOP · RENT-SQUEEZE · MID/MID.
Decatur, AL
ABS(composite) peer at 63.4 (Δ 0.2 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade A vs this page's TOP · RENT-SQUEEZE · MID/MID.
Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN
ABS(composite) peer at 63.5 (Δ 0.3 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade A vs this page's TOP · RENT-SQUEEZE · MID/MID.
Chambersburg, PA (cost pole)
ABS(cost_score) orthogonal peer at 45/100 (Δ 0); cost stamp MID vs this metro's MID.
Elmira, NY (cost pole)
ABS(cost_score) orthogonal peer at 46/100 (Δ 0); cost stamp MID vs this metro's MID.
Idaho Falls, ID relocation guide
Stamp-branched guide for TOP · RENT-SQUEEZE · MID/MID - how to read federal Life Score inputs before a move.
Using Idaho Falls's top-third Life Score
Idaho Falls scores 63.2/100 overall, but Environment (90.7) and Cost of Living (45.6) sit 45.1 points apart, so decide which of the two matters more to you before leaning on the total.
- Environment is the strongest of Idaho Falls's seven dimensions (weighted 10% in the composite); if it is your priority, this is where the metro earns its rank. See all seven dimensions
- Cost of Living is the weakest (weighted 20% in the composite); if it is a dealbreaker, weigh it before the ranking does. Rank metros on the composite
- Pocatello is the nearest comparison this page can offer; put the two side by side on the same seven dimensions. Compare with Pocatello
A high composite is a weighted blend; it does not mean every dimension is strong.