PlainCompare

Metro Life Score

New Haven, CT

43.6
Life Score / 100
C
Grade (curved)
#285
of 387 metros
26%
of metros outranked

Data updated May 2026

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

The verdict

New Haven ranks #285 of 387 US metros, ahead of 26% - carried by its wages (94/100) and held back most by cost of living (8/100).

94
strongest: Wages
90
then: Safety
8
weakest: Cost of Living
7
weighted dimensions

Where New Haven sits among all US metros

Composite Life Score vs the national field

44 26th percentile higher than 26% 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%). This entry sits in this band. 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 New Haven Life Score

New Haven's composite score of 43.6 out of 100, a grade of C, places the metro at rank #285 of 387, ahead of 26% of US metros. The strongest inputs are Wages (94/100) and Safety (90/100), which pull the composite upward, while Cost of Living (8/100) and Rent (9/100) drag it downward. (How the weighting works.)

BEA RPP 104.6 (rent-RPP 124.3). BLS median salary $78,194, 261,300 jobs (Registered Nurses, Stockers and Order Fillers, Home Health and Personal Care Aides). HUD 2BR FMR $1,969/mo (studio $1,372).

FBI UCR (CT): 139 violent, 1397 property/100K. NCES: 12.1:1 ratio, 2.1% charter. DOL infant childcare $17,127/yr. EPA: 17 Superfund sites (CT). Ranks #282-#288 below.

Dimension detail

How New Haven scores, dimension by dimension

Score Breakdown

Cost of Living Wages Rent Safety Schools Childcare Environment

Dimension Scores

Cost of Living 8/100 (20%)
Wages 94/100 (20%)
Rent 9/100 (15%)
Safety 90/100 (15%)
Schools 10/100 (10%)
Childcare 10/100 (10%)
Environment 64/100 (10%)

Key Data Points

104.6
Cost Index (RPP)
$78,194
Avg Median Salary
$1,969
2BR Fair Market Rent
139
Violent Crime/100K (CT)
12.1:1
Student-Teacher Ratio
$17,127
Infant Childcare/yr (CT)
17
Superfund Sites (CT)
261,300
Total Employment

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

Compare New Haven With...

New Haven vs Waterbury Compare → New Haven vs Norwich Compare → New Haven vs Hartford Compare → New Haven vs Wildwood Compare → New Haven vs Waterloo Compare → New Haven vs Paducah Compare →

Ranking Context

New Haven outranks 26% of U.S. metros.

Rank Metro Score Grade
#282 Redding, CA 43.7 C
#283 Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA 43.7 C
#284 Ann Arbor, MI 44.0 C
#285 New Haven, CT 43.6 C
#286 Urban Honolulu, HI 43.6 C
#287 Chambersburg, PA 43.4 C
#288 Yuba City, CA 43.3 C

CT Metro Scores

Waterbury-Shelton, CT B- 48.7 Norwich-New London-Willimantic, CT C+ 46.0 Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT C 42.4 Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT Metropolitan Statistical Area D 37.7

Using New Haven's Life Score

New Haven 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 wages (94/100) and its weakest is cost of living (8/100) - weigh those against your own priorities. How the score is built
  • Put New Haven head-to-head against another metro before you decide, every dimension, side by side. Compare metros
  • See where New Haven 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 New Haven's biggest strengths? ▼
New Haven's strongest dimensions are Wages (94/100), Safety (90/100), Environment (64/100). Wages is top-tier nationally.
What are New Haven's weakest areas? ▼
New Haven's lowest-scoring dimensions are Cost of Living (8/100), Rent (9/100), Schools (10/100). Cost of Living weighs heavily on the composite.
How expensive is New Haven compared to the national average? ▼
New Haven's Regional Price Parity is 104.6 (4.6% more than national); rent RPP 124.3.
What is the average salary in New Haven? ▼
New Haven median salary: $78,194, 261,300 jobs. Top: Registered Nurses, Stockers and Order Fillers, Home Health and Personal Care Aides.
How is the life score calculated? ▼
New Haven's 43.6/100 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.