PlainCompare

Metro Life Score

Ocala, FL

48.7
Life Score / 100
B-
Grade (curved)
#211
of 387 metros
45%
of metros outranked

Data updated May 2026

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

The verdict

Ocala ranks #211 of 387 US metros, ahead of 45% - carried by its safety (85/100) and held back most by wages (8/100).

85
strongest: Safety
84
then: Schools
8
weakest: Wages
7
weighted dimensions

Where Ocala sits among all US metros

Composite Life Score vs the national field

49 45th percentile higher than 45% 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%). This entry sits in this band. 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 Ocala Life Score

Ocala's composite score of 48.7 out of 100, a grade of B-, places the metro at rank #211 of 387, ahead of 45% of US metros. The strongest inputs are Safety (85/100) and Schools (84/100), which pull the composite upward, while Wages (8/100) and Rent (41/100) drag it downward. (How the weighting works.)

BEA RPP 95.2 (rent-RPP 86.2). BLS median salary $58,879, 110,400 jobs (Retail Salespersons, Fast Food and Counter Workers, Cashiers). HUD 2BR FMR $1,373/mo (studio $1,126).

FBI UCR (FL): 210 violent, 1030 property/100K. NCES: 17.8:1 ratio, 17.9% charter. DOL infant childcare $10,505/yr. EPA: 81 Superfund sites (FL). Ranks #208-#214 below.

Dimension detail

How Ocala scores, dimension by dimension

Score Breakdown

Cost of Living Wages Rent Safety Schools Childcare Environment

Dimension Scores

Cost of Living 42/100 (20%)
Wages 8/100 (20%)
Rent 41/100 (15%)
Safety 85/100 (15%)
Schools 84/100 (10%)
Childcare 49/100 (10%)
Environment 66/100 (10%)

Key Data Points

95.2
Cost Index (RPP)
$58,879
Avg Median Salary
$1,373
2BR Fair Market Rent
210
Violent Crime/100K (FL)
17.8:1
Student-Teacher Ratio
$10,505
Infant Childcare/yr (FL)
81
Superfund Sites (FL)
110,400
Total Employment

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

Compare Ocala With...

Ocala vs Wildwood Compare → Ocala vs Jacksonville Compare → Ocala vs Tallahassee Compare → Ocala vs Waterloo Compare → Ocala vs Paducah Compare →

Ranking Context

Ocala outranks 45% of U.S. metros.

Rank Metro Score Grade
#208 Sebastian-Vero Beach-West Vero Corridor, FL 48.9 B-
#209 Erie, PA 48.9 B-
#210 Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL 49.0 B-
#211 Ocala, FL 48.7 B-
#212 Ogden, UT 48.7 B-
#213 Waterbury-Shelton, CT 48.7 B-
#214 Providence-Warwick, RI-MA 48.6 B-

FL Metro Scores

Wildwood-The Villages, FL A+ 71.6 Jacksonville, FL B+ 59.0 Tallahassee, FL B 54.9 Sebring, FL B 54.8 Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL B 52.8 Homosassa Springs, FL B- 51.0

Using Ocala's Life Score

Ocala 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 (85/100) and its weakest is wages (8/100) - weigh those against your own priorities. How the score is built
  • Put Ocala head-to-head against another metro before you decide, every dimension, side by side. Compare metros
  • See where Ocala 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 Ocala's biggest strengths? ▼
Ocala's strongest dimensions are Safety (85/100), Schools (84/100), Environment (66/100). Safety is top-tier nationally.
What are Ocala's weakest areas? ▼
Ocala's lowest-scoring dimensions are Wages (8/100), Rent (41/100), Cost of Living (42/100). Wages weighs heavily on the composite.
How expensive is Ocala compared to the national average? ▼
Ocala's Regional Price Parity is 95.2 (4.8% less than national); rent RPP 86.2.
What is the average salary in Ocala? ▼
Ocala median salary: $58,879, 110,400 jobs. Top: Retail Salespersons, Fast Food and Counter Workers, Cashiers.
How is the life score calculated? ▼
Ocala's 48.7/100 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.