PlainCompare

Metro Life Score

Manchester-Nashua, NH

39.8
Life Score / 100
C-
Grade (curved)
#327
of 387 metros
16%
of metros outranked

Data updated May 2026

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

The verdict

Manchester ranks #327 of 387 US metros, ahead of 16% - carried by its safety (91/100) and held back most by schools (1/100).

91
strongest: Safety
83
then: Wages
1
weakest: Schools
7
weighted dimensions

Where Manchester sits among all US metros

Composite Life Score vs the national field

40 16th percentile higher than 16% 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 Manchester Life Score

Manchester's composite score of 39.8 out of 100, a grade of C-, places the metro at rank #327 of 387, ahead of 16% of US metros. The strongest inputs are Safety (91/100) and Wages (83/100), which pull the composite upward, while Schools (1/100) and Cost of Living (6/100) drag it downward. (How the weighting works.)

BEA RPP 105.7 (rent-RPP 134.2). BLS median salary $72,754, 193,340 jobs (Retail Salespersons, Registered Nurses, General and Operations Managers). HUD 2BR FMR $2,127/mo (studio $1,467).

FBI UCR (NH): 112 violent, 928 property/100K. NCES: 11.3:1 ratio, 7.8% charter. DOL infant childcare $14,934/yr. EPA: 22 Superfund sites (NH). Ranks #324-#330 below.

Dimension detail

How Manchester scores, dimension by dimension

Score Breakdown

Cost of Living Wages Rent Safety Schools Childcare Environment

Dimension Scores

Cost of Living 6/100 (20%)
Wages 83/100 (20%)
Rent 6/100 (15%)
Safety 91/100 (15%)
Schools 1/100 (10%)
Childcare 16/100 (10%)
Environment 56/100 (10%)

Key Data Points

105.7
Cost Index (RPP)
$72,754
Avg Median Salary
$2,127
2BR Fair Market Rent
112
Violent Crime/100K (NH)
11.3:1
Student-Teacher Ratio
$14,934
Infant Childcare/yr (NH)
22
Superfund Sites (NH)
193,340
Total Employment

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

Compare Manchester With...

Manchester vs Boston Compare → Manchester vs Wildwood Compare → Manchester vs Waterloo Compare → Manchester vs Paducah Compare →

Ranking Context

Manchester outranks 16% of U.S. metros.

Rank Metro Score Grade
#324 Elmira, NY 39.9 C-
#325 San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA 40.0 C-
#326 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN 40.1 C-
#327 Manchester-Nashua, NH 39.8 C-
#328 Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach, FL 39.8 C-
#329 Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA 39.7 C-
#330 Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL 39.6 C-

NH Metro Scores

Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH F 30.0

Using Manchester's Life Score

Manchester 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 safety (91/100) and its weakest is schools (1/100) - weigh those against your own priorities. How the score is built
  • Put Manchester head-to-head against another metro before you decide, every dimension, side by side. Compare metros
  • See where Manchester 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 Manchester's biggest strengths? ▼
Manchester's strongest dimensions are Safety (91/100), Wages (83/100), Environment (56/100). Safety is top-tier nationally.
What are Manchester's weakest areas? ▼
Manchester's lowest-scoring dimensions are Schools (1/100), Cost of Living (6/100), Rent (6/100). Schools weighs heavily on the composite.
How expensive is Manchester compared to the national average? ▼
Manchester's Regional Price Parity is 105.7 (5.7% more than national); rent RPP 134.2.
What is the average salary in Manchester? ▼
Manchester median salary: $72,754, 193,340 jobs. Top: Retail Salespersons, Registered Nurses, General and Operations Managers.
How is the life score calculated? ▼
Manchester's 39.8/100 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.