Metro Life Score
Lubbock, TX
Top-quartile composite Life Score — grade B+, 75th percentile of the national corpus.
- 55.8
- Life Score / 100
- B+
- Grade (curved)
- #97
- of 387 metros
- 75%
- composite percentile
Data updated August 2026
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The verdict
Lubbock is top-quartile composite Life Score — #97 of 387 (55.8/100, grade B+, 75th percentile). Carried by rent at 95/100; held back most by wages at 11/100.
- 75th
- composite percentile
- #97
- of 387 peers
- 67th
- cost dimension percentile
- 11th
- wages dimension percentile
Life Score shape · UPPER · BALANCED · signature wages
Lubbock: wage lag defines the peer set
Lubbock is a UPPER-band metro where wages sit at only the 11th percentile (LOW) while cost is CHEAP (67th) and composite #97. Wages at 11/100 is the clearest drag; Rent (95/100) is the offset. According to PlainCompare's federal Life Score corpus ranking, Lubbock, TX ranks #97 of 387 metros by composite Life Score (highest = #1) and #126 of 387 by cost-of-living dimension score (highest = #1). Methodology.
BEA RPP 91.3 (rent-RPP 76.4). BLS median salary $57,428, 159,410 jobs (Fast Food and Counter Workers, Office Clerks, General, Registered Nurses). HUD 2BR FMR $973/mo (studio $681).
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 Lubbock sits among all US metros
Composite Life Score vs the national field
56 Top 25% higher than 75% 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 55.8 is built
Lubbock's Life Score, decomposed
Dimension detail
How Lubbock scores, dimension by dimension
Score Breakdown
Dimension Scores
Key Data Points
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 Lubbock With...
Ranking Context
Lubbock outranks 75% of U.S. metros.
| Rank | Metro | Score | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|
| #94 | Montgomery, AL | 55.9 | B+ |
| #95 | Amarillo, TX | 55.9 | B+ |
| #96 | Tulsa, OK | 56.0 | B+ |
| #97 | Lubbock, TX | 55.8 | B+ |
| #98 | Muncie, IN | 55.7 | B+ |
| #99 | Lima, OH | 55.6 | B+ |
| #100 | Wichita, KS | 55.6 | B+ |
Quality vs. Affordability
Lubbock, TX's quality rank (top 25% highest-quality) and affordability rank (top 33% most affordable) sit close together -- an unusually proportionate metro where overall quality and cost-of-living move together.
TX Metro Scores
Read with Lubbock
Nearest composite peers and cost poles for Lubbock (UPPER · BALANCED · CHEAP/LOW), replacing the fixed Explore/Guides strip.
Muncie, IN
ABS(composite) peer at 55.7 (Δ 0.1 vs this metro); lower Life Score · grade B+ vs this page's UPPER · BALANCED · CHEAP/LOW.
Amarillo, TX
ABS(composite) peer at 55.9 (Δ 0.1 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade B+ vs this page's UPPER · BALANCED · CHEAP/LOW.
Montgomery, AL
ABS(composite) peer at 55.9 (Δ 0.1 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade B+ vs this page's UPPER · BALANCED · CHEAP/LOW.
Lima, OH
ABS(composite) peer at 55.6 (Δ 0.2 vs this metro); lower Life Score · grade B+ vs this page's UPPER · BALANCED · CHEAP/LOW.
Peoria, IL (cost pole)
ABS(cost_score) orthogonal peer at 68/100 (Δ 0); cost stamp CHEAP vs this metro's CHEAP.
Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR (cost pole)
ABS(cost_score) orthogonal peer at 67/100 (Δ 0); cost stamp CHEAP vs this metro's CHEAP.
Lubbock, TX relocation guide
Stamp-branched guide for UPPER · BALANCED · CHEAP/LOW - how to read federal Life Score inputs before a move.
Using Lubbock's top-third Life Score
Lubbock scores 55.8/100 overall, but Rent (95.3) and Wages (11.1) sit 84.2 points apart, so decide which of the two matters more to you before leaning on the total.
- Rent is the strongest of Lubbock's seven dimensions (weighted 15% 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 high composite is a weighted blend; it does not mean every dimension is strong.