PlainCompare

Metro Life Score

Iowa City, IA

62.2
Life Score / 100
A
Grade (curved)
#33
of 387 metros
91%
of metros outranked

Data updated May 2026

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

The verdict

Iowa City ranks #33 of 387 US metros, ahead of 91% - carried by its rent (74/100) and held back most by environment (42/100).

74
strongest: Rent
72
then: Safety
42
weakest: Environment
7
weighted dimensions

Where Iowa City sits among all US metros

Composite Life Score vs the national field

62 Top 9% higher than 91% 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 Iowa City Life Score

Iowa City's composite score of 62.2 out of 100, a grade of A, places the metro at rank #33 of 387, ahead of 91% of US metros. The strongest inputs are Rent (74/100) and Safety (72/100), which pull the composite upward, while Environment (42/100) and Schools (45/100) drag it downward. (How the weighting works.)

BEA RPP 91.5 (rent-RPP 84.0). BLS median salary $66,752, 83,600 jobs (Registered Nurses, Fast Food and Counter Workers, Retail Salespersons). HUD 2BR FMR $1,141/mo (studio $880).

FBI UCR (IA): 238 violent, 1286 property/100K. NCES: 14.8:1 ratio, 0.3% charter. DOL infant childcare $8,306/yr. EPA: 25 Superfund sites (IA). Ranks #30-#36 below.

Dimension detail

How Iowa City scores, dimension by dimension

Score Breakdown

Cost of Living Wages Rent Safety Schools Childcare Environment

Dimension Scores

Cost of Living 67/100 (20%)
Wages 59/100 (20%)
Rent 74/100 (15%)
Safety 72/100 (15%)
Schools 45/100 (10%)
Childcare 64/100 (10%)
Environment 42/100 (10%)

Key Data Points

91.5
Cost Index (RPP)
$66,752
Avg Median Salary
$1,141
2BR Fair Market Rent
238
Violent Crime/100K (IA)
14.8:1
Student-Teacher Ratio
$8,306
Infant Childcare/yr (IA)
25
Superfund Sites (IA)
83,600
Total Employment

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

Compare Iowa City With...

Iowa City vs Waterloo Compare → Iowa City vs Sioux City Compare → Iowa City vs Ames Compare → Iowa City vs Wildwood Compare → Iowa City vs Paducah Compare →

Ranking Context

Iowa City outranks 91% of U.S. metros.

Rank Metro Score Grade
#30 Mobile, AL 62.3 A
#31 Grand Forks, ND-MN 62.5 A
#32 Midland, MI 62.6 A
#33 Iowa City, IA 62.2 A
#34 Topeka, KS 62.2 A
#35 Charleston, WV 61.9 A
#36 Decatur, AL 61.9 A

IA Metro Scores

Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA A+ 71.5 Sioux City, IA-NE-SD A+ 66.7 Ames, IA A 65.2 Cedar Rapids, IA A 64.2 Dubuque, IA A 63.5 Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL A 61.7

Using Iowa City's Life Score

Iowa City 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 (74/100) and its weakest is environment (42/100) - weigh those against your own priorities. How the score is built
  • Put Iowa City head-to-head against another metro before you decide, every dimension, side by side. Compare metros
  • See where Iowa City 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 Iowa City's biggest strengths? ▼
Iowa City's strongest dimensions are Rent (74/100), Safety (72/100), Cost of Living (67/100). Rent is top-tier nationally.
What are Iowa City's weakest areas? ▼
Iowa City's lowest-scoring dimensions are Environment (42/100), Schools (45/100), Wages (59/100).
How expensive is Iowa City compared to the national average? ▼
Iowa City's Regional Price Parity is 91.5 (8.5% less than national); rent RPP 84.0.
What is the average salary in Iowa City? ▼
Iowa City median salary: $66,752, 83,600 jobs. Top: Registered Nurses, Fast Food and Counter Workers, Retail Salespersons.
How is the life score calculated? ▼
Iowa City's 62.2/100 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.