PlainCompare

Metro Life Score

Provo-Orem-Lehi, UT

49.2
Life Score / 100
B-
Grade (curved)
#206
of 387 metros
47%
of metros outranked

Data updated May 2026

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

The verdict

Provo ranks #206 of 387 US metros, ahead of 47% - carried by its schools (99/100) and held back most by cost of living (28/100).

99
strongest: Schools
76
then: Safety
28
weakest: Cost of Living
7
weighted dimensions

Where Provo sits among all US metros

Composite Life Score vs the national field

49 47th percentile higher than 47% 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 Provo Life Score

Provo's composite score of 49.2 out of 100, a grade of B-, places the metro at rank #206 of 387, ahead of 47% of US metros. The strongest inputs are Schools (99/100) and Safety (76/100), which pull the composite upward, while Cost of Living (28/100) and Childcare (29/100) drag it downward. (How the weighting works.)

BEA RPP 98.2 (rent-RPP 104.1). BLS median salary $63,856, 293,200 jobs (Fast Food and Counter Workers, Retail Salespersons, General and Operations Managers). HUD 2BR FMR $1,460/mo (studio $1,257).

FBI UCR (UT): 229 violent, 1435 property/100K. NCES: 21.4:1 ratio, 13.1% charter. DOL infant childcare $11,828/yr. EPA: 24 Superfund sites (UT). Ranks #203-#209 below.

Dimension detail

How Provo scores, dimension by dimension

Score Breakdown

Cost of Living Wages Rent Safety Schools Childcare Environment

Dimension Scores

Cost of Living 28/100 (20%)
Wages 34/100 (20%)
Rent 35/100 (15%)
Safety 76/100 (15%)
Schools 99/100 (10%)
Childcare 29/100 (10%)
Environment 73/100 (10%)

Key Data Points

98.2
Cost Index (RPP)
$63,856
Avg Median Salary
$1,460
2BR Fair Market Rent
229
Violent Crime/100K (UT)
21.4:1
Student-Teacher Ratio
$11,828
Infant Childcare/yr (UT)
24
Superfund Sites (UT)
293,200
Total Employment

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

Compare Provo With...

Provo vs Salt Lake City Compare → Provo vs Logan Compare → Provo vs Ogden Compare → Provo vs Wildwood Compare → Provo vs Waterloo Compare → Provo vs Paducah Compare →

Ranking Context

Provo outranks 47% of U.S. metros.

Rank Metro Score Grade
#203 Morristown, TN 49.3 B-
#204 Killeen-Temple, TX 49.3 B-
#205 Vineland, NJ 49.4 B-
#206 Provo-Orem-Lehi, UT 49.2 B-
#207 Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI 49.2 B-
#208 Bloomington, IL 49.1 B-
#209 Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL 49.0 B-

UT Metro Scores

Salt Lake City-Murray, UT B 53.8 Logan, UT-ID B- 50.7 Ogden, UT B- 48.7 St. George, UT C+ 48.0

Using Provo's Life Score

Provo 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 schools (99/100) and its weakest is cost of living (28/100) - weigh those against your own priorities. How the score is built
  • Put Provo head-to-head against another metro before you decide, every dimension, side by side. Compare metros
  • See where Provo 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 Provo's biggest strengths? ▼
Provo's strongest dimensions are Schools (99/100), Safety (76/100), Environment (73/100). Schools is top-tier nationally.
What are Provo's weakest areas? ▼
Provo's lowest-scoring dimensions are Cost of Living (28/100), Childcare (29/100), Wages (34/100). Cost of Living weighs heavily on the composite.
How expensive is Provo compared to the national average? ▼
Provo's Regional Price Parity is 98.2 (1.8% less than national); rent RPP 104.1.
What is the average salary in Provo? ▼
Provo median salary: $63,856, 293,200 jobs. Top: Fast Food and Counter Workers, Retail Salespersons, General and Operations Managers.
How is the life score calculated? ▼
Provo's 49.2/100 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.