PlainCompare

Metro Life Score

Pocatello, ID

63.0
Life Score / 100
A
Grade (curved)
#28
of 387 metros
93%
of metros outranked

Data updated May 2026

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

The verdict

Pocatello ranks #28 of 387 US metros, ahead of 93% - carried by its childcare (87/100) and held back most by wages (15/100).

87
strongest: Childcare
81
then: Cost of Living
15
weakest: Wages
7
weighted dimensions

Where Pocatello sits among all US metros

Composite Life Score vs the national field

63 Top 7% higher than 93% 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%). Below this entry. 50–55: 67 US metros (17%). Below this entry. 55–60: 68 US metros (18%). Below this entry. 60–65: 40 US metros (10%). This entry sits in this band. 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 Pocatello Life Score

Pocatello's composite score of 63.0 out of 100, a grade of A, places the metro at rank #28 of 387, ahead of 93% of US metros. The strongest inputs are Childcare (87/100) and Cost of Living (81/100), which pull the composite upward, while Wages (15/100) and Schools (66/100) drag it downward. (How the weighting works.)

BEA RPP 88.9 (rent-RPP 66.4). BLS median salary $59,267, 29,080 jobs (Fast Food and Counter Workers, Home Health and Personal Care Aides, Customer Service Representatives). HUD 2BR FMR $1,173/mo (studio $809).

FBI UCR (ID): 235 violent, 754 property/100K. NCES: 17.1:1 ratio, 9.8% charter. DOL infant childcare $7,315/yr. EPA: 12 Superfund sites (ID). Ranks #25-#31 below.

Dimension detail

How Pocatello scores, dimension by dimension

Score Breakdown

Cost of Living Wages Rent Safety Schools Childcare Environment

Dimension Scores

Cost of Living 81/100 (20%)
Wages 15/100 (20%)
Rent 69/100 (15%)
Safety 74/100 (15%)
Schools 66/100 (10%)
Childcare 87/100 (10%)
Environment 71/100 (10%)

Key Data Points

88.9
Cost Index (RPP)
$59,267
Avg Median Salary
$1,173
2BR Fair Market Rent
235
Violent Crime/100K (ID)
17.1:1
Student-Teacher Ratio
$7,315
Infant Childcare/yr (ID)
12
Superfund Sites (ID)
29,080
Total Employment

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

Compare Pocatello With...

Pocatello vs Twin Falls Compare → Pocatello vs Lewiston Compare → Pocatello vs Idaho Falls Compare → Pocatello vs Wildwood Compare → Pocatello vs Waterloo Compare → Pocatello vs Paducah Compare →

Ranking Context

Pocatello outranks 93% of U.S. metros.

Rank Metro Score Grade
#25 Minot, ND 63.2 A
#26 Rochester, MN 63.4 A
#27 Owensboro, KY 63.4 A
#28 Pocatello, ID 63.0 A
#29 Shreveport-Bossier City, LA 62.9 A
#30 Midland, MI 62.6 A
#31 Grand Forks, ND-MN 62.5 A

ID Metro Scores

Twin Falls, ID * A- 60.8 Lewiston, ID-WA A- 60.4 Idaho Falls, ID B+ 58.4 Logan, UT-ID B- 50.7 Boise City, ID C+ 47.9 Coeur d'Alene, ID C+ 46.9

Using Pocatello's Life Score

Pocatello 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 childcare (87/100) and its weakest is wages (15/100) - weigh those against your own priorities. How the score is built
  • Put Pocatello head-to-head against another metro before you decide, every dimension, side by side. Compare metros
  • See where Pocatello 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 Pocatello's biggest strengths? ▼
Pocatello's strongest dimensions are Childcare (87/100), Cost of Living (81/100), Safety (74/100). Childcare is top-tier nationally.
What are Pocatello's weakest areas? ▼
Pocatello's lowest-scoring dimensions are Wages (15/100), Schools (66/100), Rent (69/100). Wages weighs heavily on the composite.
How expensive is Pocatello compared to the national average? ▼
Pocatello's Regional Price Parity is 88.9 (11.1% less than national); rent RPP 66.4.
What is the average salary in Pocatello? ▼
Pocatello median salary: $59,267, 29,080 jobs. Top: Fast Food and Counter Workers, Home Health and Personal Care Aides, Customer Service Representatives.
How is the life score calculated? ▼
Pocatello's 63.0/100 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.