PlainCompare

Metro Life Score

Lake Havasu City-Kingman, AZ

38.2
Life Score / 100
D
Grade (curved)
#351
of 387 metros
9%
of metros outranked

Data updated May 2026

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

The verdict

Lake Havasu City ranks #351 of 387 US metros, ahead of 9% - carried by its schools (66/100) and held back most by wages (20/100).

66
strongest: Schools
49
then: Environment
20
weakest: Wages
7
weighted dimensions

Where Lake Havasu City sits among all US metros

Composite Life Score vs the national field

38 9th percentile higher than 9% 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%). This entry sits in this band. 40–45: 53 US metros (14%). Above this entry. 45–50: 81 US metros (21%). Above this entry. 50–55: 67 US metros (17%). Above this entry. 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 Lake Havasu City Life Score

Lake Havasu City's composite score of 38.2 out of 100, a grade of D, places the metro at rank #351 of 387, ahead of 9% of US metros. The strongest inputs are Schools (66/100) and Environment (49/100), which pull the composite upward, while Wages (20/100) and Safety (22/100) drag it downward. (How the weighting works.)

BEA RPP 94.1 (rent-RPP 79.8). BLS median salary $57,908, 51,040 jobs (Cashiers, General and Operations Managers, Retail Salespersons). HUD 2BR FMR $1,365/mo (studio $1,053).

FBI UCR (AZ): 429 violent, 1786 property/100K. NCES: 17.0:1 ratio, 25.9% charter. DOL infant childcare $11,301/yr. EPA: 13 Superfund sites (AZ). Ranks #348-#354 below.

Dimension detail

How Lake Havasu City scores, dimension by dimension

Score Breakdown

Cost of Living Wages Rent Safety Schools Childcare Environment

Dimension Scores

Cost of Living 46/100 (20%)
Wages 20/100 (20%)
Rent 41/100 (15%)
Safety 22/100 (15%)
Schools 66/100 (10%)
Childcare 39/100 (10%)
Environment 49/100 (10%)

Key Data Points

94.1
Cost Index (RPP)
$57,908
Avg Median Salary
$1,365
2BR Fair Market Rent
429
Violent Crime/100K (AZ)
17.0:1
Student-Teacher Ratio
$11,301
Infant Childcare/yr (AZ)
13
Superfund Sites (AZ)
51,040
Total Employment

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

Compare Lake Havasu City With...

Lake Havasu City vs Sierra Vista Compare → Lake Havasu City vs Yuma Compare → Lake Havasu City vs Tucson Compare → Lake Havasu City vs Wildwood Compare → Lake Havasu City vs Waterloo Compare → Lake Havasu City vs Paducah Compare →

Ranking Context

Lake Havasu City outranks 9% of U.S. metros.

Rank Metro Score Grade
#348 Fresno, CA 38.3 D
#349 Dover, DE 38.5 C-
#350 Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX 38.6 C-
#351 Lake Havasu City-Kingman, AZ 38.2 D
#352 Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard, WA 38.2 D
#353 Prescott Valley-Prescott, AZ 38.0 D
#354 Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT Metropolitan Statistical Area 37.7 D

AZ Metro Scores

Sierra Vista-Douglas, AZ B 54.3 Yuma, AZ C+ 47.2 Tucson, AZ C+ 46.0 Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ C- 40.5 Prescott Valley-Prescott, AZ D 38.0 Flagstaff, AZ D 34.5

Using Lake Havasu City's Life Score

Lake Havasu 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 schools (66/100) and its weakest is wages (20/100) - weigh those against your own priorities. How the score is built
  • Put Lake Havasu City head-to-head against another metro before you decide, every dimension, side by side. Compare metros
  • See where Lake Havasu 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 Lake Havasu City's biggest strengths? ▼
Lake Havasu City's strongest dimensions are Schools (66/100), Environment (49/100), Cost of Living (46/100).
What are Lake Havasu City's weakest areas? ▼
Lake Havasu City's lowest-scoring dimensions are Wages (20/100), Safety (22/100), Childcare (39/100). Wages weighs heavily on the composite.
How expensive is Lake Havasu City compared to the national average? ▼
Lake Havasu City's Regional Price Parity is 94.1 (5.9% less than national); rent RPP 79.8.
What is the average salary in Lake Havasu City? ▼
Lake Havasu City median salary: $57,908, 51,040 jobs. Top: Cashiers, General and Operations Managers, Retail Salespersons.
How is the life score calculated? ▼
Lake Havasu City's 38.2/100 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.