PlainCompare

Metro Life Score

Punta Gorda, FL

46.0
Life Score / 100
C+
Grade (curved)
#256
of 387 metros
34%
of metros outranked

Data updated May 2026

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

The verdict

Punta Gorda ranks #256 of 387 US metros, ahead of 34% - carried by its schools (86/100) and held back most by wages (19/100).

86
strongest: Schools
84
then: Safety
19
weakest: Wages
7
weighted dimensions

Where Punta Gorda sits among all US metros

Composite Life Score vs the national field

46 34th percentile higher than 34% 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 Punta Gorda Life Score

Punta Gorda's composite score of 46.0 out of 100, a grade of C+, places the metro at rank #256 of 387, ahead of 34% of US metros. The strongest inputs are Schools (86/100) and Safety (84/100), which pull the composite upward, while Wages (19/100) and Cost of Living (20/100) drag it downward. (How the weighting works.)

BEA RPP 100.5 (rent-RPP 113.3). BLS median salary $60,552, 49,740 jobs (Retail Salespersons, Waiters and Waitresses, Cashiers). HUD 2BR FMR $1,470/mo (studio $1,159).

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 #253-#259 below.

Dimension detail

How Punta Gorda scores, dimension by dimension

Score Breakdown

Cost of Living Wages Rent Safety Schools Childcare Environment

Dimension Scores

Cost of Living 20/100 (20%)
Wages 19/100 (20%)
Rent 33/100 (15%)
Safety 84/100 (15%)
Schools 86/100 (10%)
Childcare 47/100 (10%)
Environment 73/100 (10%)

Key Data Points

100.5
Cost Index (RPP)
$60,552
Avg Median Salary
$1,470
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)
49,740
Total Employment

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

Compare Punta Gorda With...

Punta Gorda vs Wildwood Compare → Punta Gorda vs Jacksonville Compare → Punta Gorda vs Tallahassee Compare → Punta Gorda vs Waterloo Compare → Punta Gorda vs Paducah Compare →

Ranking Context

Punta Gorda outranks 34% of U.S. metros.

Rank Metro Score Grade
#253 Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV 46.1 C+
#254 Salisbury, MD 46.1 C+
#255 Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL 46.4 C+
#256 Punta Gorda, FL 46.0 C+
#257 Kenosha, WI 46.0 C+
#258 Norwich-New London-Willimantic, CT 46.0 C+
#259 Tucson, AZ 46.0 C+

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 Punta Gorda's Life Score

Punta Gorda 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 (86/100) and its weakest is wages (19/100) - weigh those against your own priorities. How the score is built
  • Put Punta Gorda head-to-head against another metro before you decide, every dimension, side by side. Compare metros
  • See where Punta Gorda 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 Punta Gorda's biggest strengths? ▼
Punta Gorda's strongest dimensions are Schools (86/100), Safety (84/100), Environment (73/100). Schools is top-tier nationally.
What are Punta Gorda's weakest areas? ▼
Punta Gorda's lowest-scoring dimensions are Wages (19/100), Cost of Living (20/100), Rent (33/100). Wages weighs heavily on the composite.
How expensive is Punta Gorda compared to the national average? ▼
Punta Gorda's Regional Price Parity is 100.5 (0.5% more than national); rent RPP 113.3.
What is the average salary in Punta Gorda? ▼
Punta Gorda median salary: $60,552, 49,740 jobs. Top: Retail Salespersons, Waiters and Waitresses, Cashiers.
How is the life score calculated? ▼
Punta Gorda's 46.0/100 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.