Metro Life Score

Killeen-Temple, TX

Above-median composite Life Score — grade B, 66th percentile of the national corpus.

53.4
Life Score / 100
B
Grade (curved)
#133
of 387 metros
66%
composite percentile
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Data updated August 2026

The verdict

Killeen-Temple is above-median composite Life Score — #133 of 387 (53.4/100, grade B, 66th percentile). Carried by environment at 86/100; held back most by wages at 25/100.

66th
composite percentile
#133
of 387 peers
68th
cost dimension percentile
25th
wages dimension percentile

Life Score shape · UPPER · ENVIRO-LED · signature wages

Killeen-Temple: wage lag defines the peer set

Killeen-Temple is a UPPER-band metro where wages sit at only the 25th percentile (LOW) while cost is CHEAP (68th) and composite #133. Wages at 25/100 is the clearest drag; Environment (86/100) is the offset. According to PlainCompare's federal Life Score corpus ranking, Killeen-Temple, TX ranks #133 of 387 metros by composite Life Score (highest = #1) and #123 of 387 by cost-of-living dimension score (highest = #1). Methodology.

BEA RPP 91.1 (rent-RPP 77.9). BLS median salary $60,254, 141,070 jobs (Fast Food and Counter Workers, Registered Nurses, Stockers and Order Fillers). HUD 2BR FMR $1,233/mo (studio $983).

FBI UCR (TX): 395 violent, 2058 property/100K. NCES: 14.4:1 ratio, 11.1% charter. DOL infant childcare $7,566/yr. EPA: 70 Superfund sites (TX).

Where Killeen-Temple sits among all US metros

Composite Life Score vs the national field

53 66th percentile higher than 66% of 387 US metros

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 · August 2026

How the 53.4 is built

Killeen-Temple's Life Score, decomposed

Dimension detail

How Killeen-Temple scores, dimension by dimension

Score Breakdown

Cost of Living Wages Rent Safety Schools Childcare Environment

Dimension Scores

Cost of Living 68/100 (20%) Average
Wages 25/100 (20%) Average
Rent 60/100 (15%) Average
Safety 35/100 (15%) Average
Schools 43/100 (10%) Average
Childcare 76/100 (10%) Above average
Environment 86/100 (10%) Above average

Key Data Points

91.1
Cost Index (RPP)
$60,254
Avg Median Salary
$1,233
2BR Fair Market Rent
395
Violent Crime/100K (TX)
14.4:1
Student-Teacher Ratio
$7,566
Infant Childcare/yr (TX)
70
Superfund Sites (TX)
141,070
Total Employment

Geography used: crime, schools, childcare, and environment cards above are TX state-level when metro-specific feeds are unavailable, see the scope key at the top of this page.

Compare Killeen-Temple With...

Ranking Context

Killeen-Temple outranks 66% of U.S. metros.

Rank Metro Score Grade
#130 Valdosta, GA 53.7 B
#131 Huntsville, AL 53.7 B
#132 Wichita Falls, TX 53.8 B
#133 Killeen-Temple, TX 53.4 B
#134 Green Bay, WI 53.4 B
#135 El Paso, TX 53.3 B
#136 Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN 53.2 B

Quality vs. Affordability

Killeen-Temple, TX's quality rank (top 34% highest-quality) and affordability rank (top 32% most affordable) sit close together -- an unusually proportionate metro where overall quality and cost-of-living move together.

Killeen-Temple, TX (highlighted) among its 12 nearest composite-Life-Score peers, out of 387 tracked metros nationally. Crosshairs mark this peer neighborhood's own median composite score and cost-of-living score. Cost-of-living score is already inverted so higher = more affordable. 2×2 strategic matrix plotting 12 entities by Composite Life Score (X) and Cost-of-living score (higher = more affordable) (Y), with a crosshair dividing the plot into four quadrants. High quality, affordableAffordable, lower qualityHigh quality, pricierLower quality, pricier 52.85353.253.453.653.854 20406080100 Composite Life Score Cost-of-living score (higher = more affordable) Composite Life Score vs. cost-of-living score Terre Haute, IN-53.9, 87.8Terre Haute, INVirginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC-53.9, 29.5Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NCWichita Falls, TX-53.8, 76.7Wichita Falls, TXHuntsville, AL-53.7, 53.6Huntsville, ALValdosta, GA-53.7, 85.5Valdosta, GAGreen Bay, WI-53.4, 53.1Green Bay, WIKilleen-Temple, TX-53.4, 68.4Killeen-Temple, TXEl Paso, TX-53.3, 75.1El Paso, TXCincinnati, OH-KY-IN-53.2, 41.5Cincinnati, OH-KY-INSt. Louis, MO-IL-53.1, 42.7St. Louis, MO-ILBinghamton, NY-53, 55.2Binghamton, NYBrunswick-St. Simons, GA-53, 88.3Brunswick-St. Simons, GA
Killeen-Temple, TX (highlighted) among its 12 nearest composite-Life-Score peers, out of 387 tracked metros nationally. Crosshairs mark this peer neighborhood's own median composite score and cost-of-living score. Cost-of-living score is already inverted so higher = more affordable.

TX Metro Scores

Read with Killeen-Temple

Nearest composite peers and cost poles for Killeen-Temple (UPPER · ENVIRO-LED · CHEAP/LOW), replacing the fixed Explore/Guides strip.

Using Killeen-Temple's middle-third Life Score

Killeen-Temple scores 53.4/100 overall, but Environment (86.3) and Wages (24.9) sit 61.4 points apart, so decide which of the two matters more to you before leaning on the total.

  • Environment is the strongest of Killeen-Temple'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
  • Wages is the weakest (weighted 20% in the composite); if it is a dealbreaker, weigh it before the ranking does. Rank metros on the composite
  • Beaumont is the nearest comparison this page can offer; put the two side by side on the same seven dimensions. Compare with Beaumont

A middle-third composite is a weighted blend; individual dimensions can sit well above or below it.

Data sourced from official public datasets. See our methodology for details. Killeen-Temple Life Score 53.4/100 · signature wages · retrieved and formatted by PlainCompare