Metro Life Score
Omaha, NE-IA
Top-10% composite Life Score — grade A, 92nd percentile of the national corpus.
- 61.9
- Life Score / 100
- A
- Grade (curved)
- #32
- of 387 metros
- 92%
- composite percentile
Data updated August 2026
Verify: BEA · BLS · HUD · FBI · NCES · EPA · Census · Report a data issue · Data changelog
The verdict
Omaha is top-10% composite Life Score — #32 of 387 (61.9/100, grade A, 92nd percentile). Carried by safety at 89/100; held back most by schools at 17/100.
- 92nd
- composite percentile
- #32
- of 387 peers
- 63rd
- cost dimension percentile
- 77th
- wages dimension percentile
Life Score shape · TOP · SAFE-LED · signature composite
Omaha: top-third composite Life Score
Omaha clears the top third of US metros on composite Life Score (#32 of 387, 61.9/100, grade A, 91st percentile). Stamps TOP · SAFE-LED; cost MID (63rd) · wages HIGH (77th). Safety at 89/100 carries the lead; Schools (17/100) is the residual gap. According to PlainCompare's federal Life Score corpus ranking, Omaha, NE-IA ranks #32 of 387 metros by composite Life Score (highest = #1) and #142 of 387 by cost-of-living dimension score (highest = #1). Methodology.
BEA RPP 91.9 (rent-RPP 86.4). BLS median salary $70,611, 488,200 jobs (Fast Food and Counter Workers, Registered Nurses, Retail Salespersons). HUD 2BR FMR $1,368/mo (studio $1,090).
FBI UCR (NE): 217 violent, 1631 property/100K. NCES: 13.0:1 ratio, 0.0% charter. DOL infant childcare $9,863/yr. EPA: 19 Superfund sites (NE).
Where Omaha sits among all US metros
Composite Life Score vs the national field
62 Top 8% higher than 92% 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 61.9 is built
Omaha's Life Score, decomposed
Dimension detail
How Omaha scores, dimension by dimension
Score Breakdown
Dimension Scores
Key Data Points
Geography used: crime, schools, childcare, and environment cards above are NE state-level when metro-specific feeds are unavailable, see the scope key at the top of this page.
Compare Omaha With...
Ranking Context
Omaha outranks 92% of U.S. metros.
| Rank | Metro | Score | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|
| #29 | Iowa City, IA | 62.0 | A |
| #30 | Dalton, GA | 62.0 | A |
| #31 | Hammond, LA | 62.1 | A |
| #32 | Omaha, NE-IA | 61.9 | A |
| #33 | Texarkana, TX-AR | 61.9 | A |
| #34 | Toledo, OH | 61.8 | A |
| #35 | Jacksonville, FL | 61.7 | A |
Quality vs. Affordability
Omaha, NE-IA is top 8% highest-quality nationally but only top 37% most affordable among its composite-quality peers -- its Life Score is earned mostly outside the cost dimension, not through being a budget option.
NE Metro Scores
Read with Omaha
Nearest composite peers and cost poles for Omaha (TOP · SAFE-LED · MID/HIGH), replacing the fixed Explore/Guides strip.
Texarkana, TX-AR
ABS(composite) peer at 61.9 (Δ 0.0 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade A vs this page's TOP · SAFE-LED · MID/HIGH.
Dalton, GA
ABS(composite) peer at 62.0 (Δ 0.1 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade A vs this page's TOP · SAFE-LED · MID/HIGH.
Iowa City, IA
ABS(composite) peer at 62.0 (Δ 0.1 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade A vs this page's TOP · SAFE-LED · MID/HIGH.
Toledo, OH
ABS(composite) peer at 61.8 (Δ 0.1 vs this metro); lower Life Score · grade A vs this page's TOP · SAFE-LED · MID/HIGH.
Bay City, MI (cost pole)
ABS(cost_score) orthogonal peer at 63/100 (Δ 0); cost stamp MID vs this metro's MID.
Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC (cost pole)
ABS(cost_score) orthogonal peer at 64/100 (Δ 0); cost stamp MID vs this metro's MID.
Omaha, NE-IA relocation guide
Stamp-branched guide for TOP · SAFE-LED · MID/HIGH - how to read federal Life Score inputs before a move.
Using Omaha's top-third Life Score
Omaha scores 61.9/100 overall, but Safety (89.1) and Schools (16.6) sit 72.5 points apart, so decide which of the two matters more to you before leaning on the total.
- Safety is the strongest of Omaha'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
- Schools is the weakest (weighted 10% in the composite); if it is a dealbreaker, weigh it before the ranking does. Rank metros on the composite
- Lincoln is the nearest comparison this page can offer; put the two side by side on the same seven dimensions. Compare with Lincoln
A high composite is a weighted blend; it does not mean every dimension is strong.