PlainCompare

Metro Life Score

Lawton, OK

52.4
Life Score / 100
B-
Grade (curved)
#168
of 387 metros
57%
of metros outranked

Data updated May 2026

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

The verdict

Lawton ranks #168 of 387 US metros, ahead of 57% - carried by its cost of living (95/100) and held back most by wages (2/100).

95
strongest: Cost of Living
92
then: Rent
2
weakest: Wages
7
weighted dimensions

Where Lawton sits among all US metros

Composite Life Score vs the national field

52 57th percentile higher than 57% 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%). This entry sits in this band. 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 Lawton Life Score

Lawton's composite score of 52.4 out of 100, a grade of B-, places the metro at rank #168 of 387, ahead of 57% of US metros. The strongest inputs are Cost of Living (95/100) and Rent (92/100), which pull the composite upward, while Wages (2/100) and Safety (23/100) drag it downward. (How the weighting works.)

BEA RPP 85.9 (rent-RPP 57.4). BLS median salary $56,942, 36,440 jobs (Retail Salespersons, Fast Food and Counter Workers, Cashiers). HUD 2BR FMR $1,001/mo (studio $779).

FBI UCR (OK): 428 violent, 2008 property/100K. NCES: 16.1:1 ratio, 3.5% charter. DOL infant childcare $10,666/yr. EPA: 18 Superfund sites (OK). Ranks #165-#171 below.

Dimension detail

How Lawton scores, dimension by dimension

Score Breakdown

Cost of Living Wages Rent Safety Schools Childcare Environment

Dimension Scores

Cost of Living 95/100 (20%)
Wages 2/100 (20%)
Rent 92/100 (15%)
Safety 23/100 (15%)
Schools 61/100 (10%)
Childcare 45/100 (10%)
Environment 52/100 (10%)

Key Data Points

85.9
Cost Index (RPP)
$56,942
Avg Median Salary
$1,001
2BR Fair Market Rent
428
Violent Crime/100K (OK)
16.1:1
Student-Teacher Ratio
$10,666
Infant Childcare/yr (OK)
18
Superfund Sites (OK)
36,440
Total Employment

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

Compare Lawton With...

Lawton vs Tulsa Compare → Lawton vs Oklahoma City Compare → Lawton vs Enid Compare → Lawton vs Wildwood Compare → Lawton vs Waterloo Compare → Lawton vs Paducah Compare →

Ranking Context

Lawton outranks 57% of U.S. metros.

Rank Metro Score Grade
#165 Watertown-Fort Drum, NY 52.5 B
#166 Utica-Rome, NY 52.5 B
#167 Reno, NV 52.5 B
#168 Lawton, OK 52.4 B-
#169 Elkhart-Goshen, IN 52.4 B-
#170 Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC 52.1 B-
#171 Fort Wayne, IN 52.1 B-

OK Metro Scores

Tulsa, OK B 55.1 Oklahoma City, OK B 52.5 Enid, OK * B- 50.3 Fort Smith, AR-OK C 44.4

Using Lawton's Life Score

Lawton 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 cost of living (95/100) and its weakest is wages (2/100) - weigh those against your own priorities. How the score is built
  • Put Lawton head-to-head against another metro before you decide, every dimension, side by side. Compare metros
  • See where Lawton 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 Lawton's biggest strengths? ▼
Lawton's strongest dimensions are Cost of Living (95/100), Rent (92/100), Schools (61/100). Cost of Living is top-tier nationally.
What are Lawton's weakest areas? ▼
Lawton's lowest-scoring dimensions are Wages (2/100), Safety (23/100), Childcare (45/100). Wages weighs heavily on the composite.
How expensive is Lawton compared to the national average? ▼
Lawton's Regional Price Parity is 85.9 (14.1% less than national); rent RPP 57.4.
What is the average salary in Lawton? ▼
Lawton median salary: $56,942, 36,440 jobs. Top: Retail Salespersons, Fast Food and Counter Workers, Cashiers.
How is the life score calculated? ▼
Lawton's 52.4/100 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.