PlainCompare

Metro Life Score

Kalamazoo-Portage, MI

55.6
Life Score / 100
B+
Grade (curved)
#111
of 387 metros
71%
of metros outranked

Data updated May 2026

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

The verdict

Kalamazoo ranks #111 of 387 US metros, ahead of 71% - carried by its childcare (81/100) and held back most by safety (19/100).

81
strongest: Childcare
77
then: Schools
19
weakest: Safety
7
weighted dimensions

Where Kalamazoo sits among all US metros

Composite Life Score vs the national field

56 71th percentile higher than 71% 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 Kalamazoo Life Score

Kalamazoo's composite score of 55.6 out of 100, a grade of B+, places the metro at rank #111 of 387, ahead of 71% of US metros. The strongest inputs are Childcare (81/100) and Schools (77/100), which pull the composite upward, while Safety (19/100) and Cost of Living (44/100) drag it downward. (How the weighting works.)

BEA RPP 94.8 (rent-RPP 81.6). BLS median salary $64,013, 114,320 jobs (Registered Nurses, Fast Food and Counter Workers, Retail Salespersons). HUD 2BR FMR $1,162/mo (studio $838).

FBI UCR (MI): 431 violent, 1395 property/100K. NCES: 17.5:1 ratio, 10.9% charter. DOL infant childcare $7,444/yr. EPA: 90 Superfund sites (MI). Ranks #108-#114 below.

Dimension detail

How Kalamazoo scores, dimension by dimension

Score Breakdown

Cost of Living Wages Rent Safety Schools Childcare Environment

Dimension Scores

Cost of Living 44/100 (20%)
Wages 64/100 (20%)
Rent 72/100 (15%)
Safety 19/100 (15%)
Schools 77/100 (10%)
Childcare 81/100 (10%)
Environment 46/100 (10%)

Key Data Points

94.8
Cost Index (RPP)
$64,013
Avg Median Salary
$1,162
2BR Fair Market Rent
431
Violent Crime/100K (MI)
17.5:1
Student-Teacher Ratio
$7,444
Infant Childcare/yr (MI)
90
Superfund Sites (MI)
114,320
Total Employment

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

Compare Kalamazoo With...

Kalamazoo vs Midland Compare → Kalamazoo vs Saginaw Compare → Kalamazoo vs Niles Compare → Kalamazoo vs Wildwood Compare → Kalamazoo vs Waterloo Compare → Kalamazoo vs Paducah Compare →

Ranking Context

Kalamazoo outranks 71% of U.S. metros.

Rank Metro Score Grade
#108 Flint, MI 56.1 B+
#109 Jackson, MI 56.2 B+
#110 Goldsboro, NC 56.2 B+
#111 Kalamazoo-Portage, MI 55.6 B+
#112 Fond du Lac, WI 55.6 B+
#113 Warner Robins, GA 55.6 B+
#114 Rome, GA 55.5 B+

MI Metro Scores

Midland, MI A 62.6 Saginaw, MI A- 59.9 Niles, MI B+ 56.5 Jackson, MI B+ 56.2 Flint, MI B+ 56.1 Lansing-East Lansing, MI B+ 55.4

Using Kalamazoo's Life Score

Kalamazoo 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 (81/100) and its weakest is safety (19/100) - weigh those against your own priorities. How the score is built
  • Put Kalamazoo head-to-head against another metro before you decide, every dimension, side by side. Compare metros
  • See where Kalamazoo 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 Kalamazoo's biggest strengths? ▼
Kalamazoo's strongest dimensions are Childcare (81/100), Schools (77/100), Rent (72/100). Childcare is top-tier nationally.
What are Kalamazoo's weakest areas? ▼
Kalamazoo's lowest-scoring dimensions are Safety (19/100), Cost of Living (44/100), Environment (46/100). Safety weighs heavily on the composite.
How expensive is Kalamazoo compared to the national average? ▼
Kalamazoo's Regional Price Parity is 94.8 (5.2% less than national); rent RPP 81.6.
What is the average salary in Kalamazoo? ▼
Kalamazoo median salary: $64,013, 114,320 jobs. Top: Registered Nurses, Fast Food and Counter Workers, Retail Salespersons.
How is the life score calculated? ▼
Kalamazoo's 55.6/100 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.