Metro Life Score
Longview-Kelso, WA
Above-median composite Life Score — grade B-, 55th percentile of the national corpus.
- 50.8
- Life Score / 100
- B-
- Grade (curved)
- #174
- of 387 metros
- 55%
- composite percentile
Data updated August 2026
Verify: BEA · BLS · HUD · FBI · NCES · EPA · Census · Report a data issue · Data changelog
The verdict
Longview-Kelso is above-median composite Life Score — #174 of 387 (50.8/100, grade B-, 55th percentile). Carried by wages at 83/100; held back most by childcare at 13/100.
- 55th
- composite percentile
- #174
- of 387 peers
- 31st
- cost dimension percentile
- 83rd
- wages dimension percentile
Life Score shape · MID · WAGE-LED · signature wages
Longview-Kelso: pay power is the signature
Longview-Kelso stamps MID · WAGE-LED with wages at the 83rd percentile of the metro corpus (HIGH) — ahead of its cost mark (DEAR, 31st) and composite #174. Wages (83/100) amplifies the lead; Childcare (13/100) is the residual gap. According to PlainCompare's federal Life Score corpus ranking, Longview-Kelso, WA ranks #174 of 387 metros by composite Life Score (highest = #1) and #268 of 387 by cost-of-living dimension score (highest = #1). Methodology.
BEA RPP 97.5 (rent-RPP 82.5). BLS median salary $72,685, 34,650 jobs (Home Health and Personal Care Aides, Fast Food and Counter Workers, Retail Salespersons). HUD 2BR FMR $1,451/mo (studio $1,000).
FBI UCR (WA): 329 violent, 2498 property/100K. NCES: 17.7:1 ratio, 0.6% charter. DOL infant childcare $15,987/yr. EPA: 69 Superfund sites (WA).
Where Longview-Kelso sits among all US metros
Composite Life Score vs the national field
51 55th percentile higher than 55% of 387 US metros
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 50.8 is built
Longview-Kelso's Life Score, decomposed
Dimension detail
How Longview-Kelso scores, dimension by dimension
Score Breakdown
Dimension Scores
Key Data Points
Geography used: crime, schools, childcare, and environment cards above are WA state-level when metro-specific feeds are unavailable, see the scope key at the top of this page.
Compare Longview-Kelso With...
Ranking Context
Longview-Kelso outranks 55% of U.S. metros.
| Rank | Metro | Score | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|
| #171 | Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL | 51.0 | B- |
| #172 | Richmond, VA | 51.2 | B- |
| #173 | Fort Wayne, IN | 51.2 | B- |
| #174 | Longview-Kelso, WA | 50.8 | B- |
| #175 | Abilene, TX | 50.8 | B- |
| #176 | Gainesville, FL | 50.8 | B- |
| #177 | Logan, UT-ID | 50.8 | B- |
Quality vs. Affordability
Longview-Kelso, WA is top 45% highest-quality nationally but only bottom 31% least affordable among its composite-quality peers -- its Life Score is earned mostly outside the cost dimension, not through being a budget option.
WA Metro Scores
Read with Longview-Kelso
Nearest composite peers and cost poles for Longview-Kelso (MID · WAGE-LED · DEAR/HIGH), replacing the fixed Explore/Guides strip.
Abilene, TX
ABS(composite) peer at 50.8 (Δ 0.0 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade B- vs this page's MID · WAGE-LED · DEAR/HIGH.
Gainesville, FL
ABS(composite) peer at 50.8 (Δ 0.0 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade B- vs this page's MID · WAGE-LED · DEAR/HIGH.
Logan, UT-ID
ABS(composite) peer at 50.8 (Δ 0.0 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade B- vs this page's MID · WAGE-LED · DEAR/HIGH.
Midland, TX
ABS(composite) peer at 50.8 (Δ 0.0 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade B- vs this page's MID · WAGE-LED · DEAR/HIGH.
Dover, DE (cost pole)
ABS(cost_score) orthogonal peer at 31/100 (Δ 0); cost stamp DEAR vs this metro's DEAR.
Durham-Chapel Hill, NC (cost pole)
ABS(cost_score) orthogonal peer at 31/100 (Δ 0); cost stamp DEAR vs this metro's DEAR.
Longview-Kelso, WA relocation guide
Stamp-branched guide for MID · WAGE-LED · DEAR/HIGH - how to read federal Life Score inputs before a move.
Using Longview-Kelso's middle-third Life Score
Longview-Kelso scores 50.8/100 overall, but Wages (83.2) and Childcare (12.9) sit 70.2 points apart, so decide which of the two matters more to you before leaning on the total.
- Wages is the strongest of Longview-Kelso's seven dimensions (weighted 20% in the composite); if it is your priority, this is where the metro earns its rank. See all seven dimensions
- Childcare is the weakest (weighted 10% in the composite); if it is a dealbreaker, weigh it before the ranking does. Rank metros on the composite
- Yakima is the nearest comparison this page can offer; put the two side by side on the same seven dimensions. Compare with Yakima
A middle-third composite is a weighted blend; individual dimensions can sit well above or below it.