Metro Life Score
Pittsburgh, PA
Above-median composite Life Score — grade B, 59th percentile of the national corpus.
- 51.9
- Life Score / 100
- B
- Grade (curved)
- #158
- of 387 metros
- 59%
- composite percentile
Data updated August 2026
Verify: BEA · BLS · HUD · FBI · NCES · EPA · Census · Report a data issue · Data changelog
The verdict
Pittsburgh is above-median composite Life Score — #158 of 387 (51.9/100, grade B, 59th percentile). Carried by safety at 75/100; held back most by schools at 21/100.
- 59th
- composite percentile
- #158
- of 387 peers
- 45th
- cost dimension percentile
- 57th
- wages dimension percentile
Life Score shape · MID · SAFE-LED · signature composite
Pittsburgh: mid-curve composite with a readable shape
Pittsburgh is a mid-curve MID · SAFE-LED metro (composite #158, 51.9/100, 59th percentile). Cost MID (45th) · wages MID (57th). Strongest safety 75/100; weakest schools 21/100; dimension gap 54. According to PlainCompare's federal Life Score corpus ranking, Pittsburgh, PA ranks #158 of 387 metros by composite Life Score (highest = #1) and #213 of 387 by cost-of-living dimension score (highest = #1). Methodology.
BEA RPP 94.7 (rent-RPP 72.0). BLS median salary $65,551, 1,098,020 jobs (Home Health and Personal Care Aides, General and Operations Managers, Registered Nurses). HUD 2BR FMR $1,299/mo (studio $1,001).
FBI UCR (PA): 250 violent, 1457 property/100K. NCES: 13.0:1 ratio, 6.0% charter. EPA: 127 Superfund sites (PA).
Where Pittsburgh sits among all US metros
Composite Life Score vs the national field
52 59th percentile higher than 59% 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 51.9 is built
Pittsburgh's Life Score, decomposed
Dimension detail
How Pittsburgh scores, dimension by dimension
Score Breakdown
Dimension Scores
Key Data Points
Geography used: crime, schools, childcare, and environment cards above are PA state-level when metro-specific feeds are unavailable, see the scope key at the top of this page.
Compare Pittsburgh With...
Ranking Context
Pittsburgh outranks 59% of U.S. metros.
| Rank | Metro | Score | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|
| #155 | Pueblo, CO | 52.0 | B |
| #156 | Akron, OH | 52.0 | B |
| #157 | Bay City, MI | 52.1 | B |
| #158 | Pittsburgh, PA | 51.9 | B |
| #159 | Salt Lake City-Murray, UT | 51.8 | B |
| #160 | Burlington-South Burlington, VT | 51.7 | B |
| #161 | Flint, MI | 51.7 | B |
Quality vs. Affordability
Pittsburgh, PA's quality rank (top 41% highest-quality) and affordability rank (bottom 45% least affordable) sit close together -- an unusually proportionate metro where overall quality and cost-of-living move together.
PA Metro Scores
Read with Pittsburgh
Nearest composite peers and cost poles for Pittsburgh (MID · SAFE-LED · MID/MID), replacing the fixed Explore/Guides strip.
Akron, OH
ABS(composite) peer at 52.0 (Δ 0.1 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade B vs this page's MID · SAFE-LED · MID/MID.
Pueblo, CO
ABS(composite) peer at 52.0 (Δ 0.1 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade B vs this page's MID · SAFE-LED · MID/MID.
Salt Lake City-Murray, UT
ABS(composite) peer at 51.8 (Δ 0.1 vs this metro); lower Life Score · grade B vs this page's MID · SAFE-LED · MID/MID.
Burlington-South Burlington, VT
ABS(composite) peer at 51.7 (Δ 0.2 vs this metro); lower Life Score · grade B vs this page's MID · SAFE-LED · MID/MID.
Chambersburg, PA (cost pole)
ABS(cost_score) orthogonal peer at 45/100 (Δ 0); cost stamp MID vs this metro's MID.
Daphne-Fairhope-Foley, AL (cost pole)
ABS(cost_score) orthogonal peer at 45/100 (Δ 0); cost stamp MID vs this metro's MID.
Pittsburgh, PA relocation guide
Stamp-branched guide for MID · SAFE-LED · MID/MID - how to read federal Life Score inputs before a move.
Using Pittsburgh's middle-third Life Score
Pittsburgh scores 51.9/100 overall, but Safety (74.9) and Schools (20.7) sit 54.1 points apart, so decide which of the two matters more to you before leaning on the total.
- Safety is the strongest of Pittsburgh'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
- Johnstown is the nearest comparison this page can offer; put the two side by side on the same seven dimensions. Compare with Johnstown
A middle-third composite is a weighted blend; individual dimensions can sit well above or below it.