PlainCompare

Metro Life Score

Lubbock, TX

52.7
Life Score / 100
B
Grade (curved)
#158
of 387 metros
59%
of metros outranked

Data updated May 2026

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

The verdict

Lubbock ranks #158 of 387 US metros, ahead of 59% - carried by its rent (95/100) and held back most by wages (15/100).

95
strongest: Rent
75
then: Childcare
15
weakest: Wages
7
weighted dimensions

Where Lubbock sits among all US metros

Composite Life Score vs the national field

53 59th percentile higher than 59% 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 Lubbock Life Score

Lubbock's composite score of 52.7 out of 100, a grade of B, places the metro at rank #158 of 387, ahead of 59% of US metros. The strongest inputs are Rent (95/100) and Childcare (75/100), which pull the composite upward, while Wages (15/100) and Safety (32/100) drag it downward. (How the weighting works.)

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: 14.7:1 ratio, 11.4% charter. DOL infant childcare $7,566/yr. EPA: 70 Superfund sites (TX). Ranks #155-#161 below.

Dimension detail

How Lubbock scores, dimension by dimension

Score Breakdown

Cost of Living Wages Rent Safety Schools Childcare Environment

Dimension Scores

Cost of Living 68/100 (20%)
Wages 15/100 (20%)
Rent 95/100 (15%)
Safety 32/100 (15%)
Schools 40/100 (10%)
Childcare 75/100 (10%)
Environment 55/100 (10%)

Key Data Points

91.3
Cost Index (RPP)
$57,428
Avg Median Salary
$973
2BR Fair Market Rent
395
Violent Crime/100K (TX)
14.7:1
Student-Teacher Ratio
$7,566
Infant Childcare/yr (TX)
70
Superfund Sites (TX)
159,410
Total Employment

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

Compare Lubbock With...

Lubbock vs Texarkana Compare → Lubbock vs Waco Compare → Lubbock vs San Antonio Compare → Lubbock vs Wildwood Compare → Lubbock vs Waterloo Compare → Lubbock vs Paducah Compare →

Ranking Context

Lubbock outranks 59% of U.S. metros.

Rank Metro Score Grade
#155 Richmond, VA 52.8 B
#156 Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL 52.8 B
#157 Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX 52.9 B
#158 Lubbock, TX 52.7 B
#159 York-Hanover, PA 52.7 B
#160 Columbia, SC 52.6 B
#161 Roanoke, VA 52.6 B

TX Metro Scores

Texarkana, TX-AR A- 60.7 Waco, TX B+ 58.2 San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX B+ 57.6 McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, TX B 55.0 Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX B 54.9 Wichita Falls, TX B 53.9

Using Lubbock's Life Score

Lubbock 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 rent (95/100) and its weakest is wages (15/100) - weigh those against your own priorities. How the score is built
  • Put Lubbock head-to-head against another metro before you decide, every dimension, side by side. Compare metros
  • See where Lubbock 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 Lubbock's biggest strengths? ▼
Lubbock's strongest dimensions are Rent (95/100), Childcare (75/100), Cost of Living (68/100). Rent is top-tier nationally.
What are Lubbock's weakest areas? ▼
Lubbock's lowest-scoring dimensions are Wages (15/100), Safety (32/100), Schools (40/100). Wages weighs heavily on the composite.
How expensive is Lubbock compared to the national average? ▼
Lubbock's Regional Price Parity is 91.3 (8.7% less than national); rent RPP 76.4.
What is the average salary in Lubbock? ▼
Lubbock median salary: $57,428, 159,410 jobs. Top: Fast Food and Counter Workers, Office Clerks, General, Registered Nurses.
How is the life score calculated? ▼
Lubbock's 52.7/100 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.