PlainCompare

Metro Life Score

San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA

40.0
Life Score / 100
C-
Grade (curved)
#324
of 387 metros
16%
of metros outranked

Data updated May 2026

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

The verdict

San Jose ranks #324 of 387 US metros, ahead of 16% - carried by its wages (100/100) and held back most by rent (1/100).

100
strongest: Wages
96
then: Schools
1
weakest: Rent
7
weighted dimensions

Where San Jose sits among all US metros

Composite Life Score vs the national field

40 16th percentile higher than 16% 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%). This entry sits in this band. 45–50: 81 US metros (21%). Above this entry. 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 San Jose Life Score

San Jose's composite score of 40.0 out of 100, a grade of C-, places the metro at rank #324 of 387, ahead of 16% of US metros. The strongest inputs are Wages (100/100) and Schools (96/100), which pull the composite upward, while Rent (1/100) and Cost of Living (2/100) drag it downward. (How the weighting works.)

BEA RPP 110.4 (rent-RPP 211.9). BLS median salary $98,655, 1,111,780 jobs (Software Developers, Home Health and Personal Care Aides, Fast Food and Counter Workers). HUD 2BR FMR $2,902/mo (studio $2,205).

FBI UCR (CA): 477 violent, 1986 property/100K. NCES: 21.5:1 ratio, 12.8% charter. DOL infant childcare $17,920/yr. EPA: 116 Superfund sites (CA). Ranks #321-#327 below.

Dimension detail

How San Jose scores, dimension by dimension

Score Breakdown

Cost of Living Wages Rent Safety Schools Childcare Environment

Dimension Scores

Cost of Living 2/100 (20%)
Wages 100/100 (20%)
Rent 1/100 (15%)
Safety 9/100 (15%)
Schools 96/100 (10%)
Childcare 4/100 (10%)
Environment 80/100 (10%)

Key Data Points

110.4
Cost Index (RPP)
$98,655
Avg Median Salary
$2,902
2BR Fair Market Rent
477
Violent Crime/100K (CA)
21.5:1
Student-Teacher Ratio
$17,920
Infant Childcare/yr (CA)
116
Superfund Sites (CA)
1,111,780
Total Employment

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

Compare San Jose With...

San Jose vs El Centro Compare → San Jose vs Visalia Compare → San Jose vs Redding Compare → San Jose vs Wildwood Compare → San Jose vs Waterloo Compare → San Jose vs Paducah Compare →

Ranking Context

San Jose outranks 16% of U.S. metros.

Rank Metro Score Grade
#321 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN 40.1 C-
#322 Modesto, CA 40.2 C-
#323 Grants Pass, OR 40.3 C-
#324 San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA 40.0 C-
#325 Elmira, NY 39.9 C-
#326 Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach, FL 39.8 C-
#327 Manchester-Nashua, NH 39.8 C-

CA Metro Scores

El Centro, CA C+ 46.7 Visalia, CA C 45.2 Redding, CA C 43.7 Yuba City, CA C 43.3 Merced, CA C 42.8 Vallejo, CA C 41.9

Using San Jose's Life Score

San Jose 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 wages (100/100) and its weakest is rent (1/100) - weigh those against your own priorities. How the score is built
  • Put San Jose head-to-head against another metro before you decide, every dimension, side by side. Compare metros
  • See where San Jose 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 San Jose's biggest strengths? ▼
San Jose's strongest dimensions are Wages (100/100), Schools (96/100), Environment (80/100). Wages is top-tier nationally.
What are San Jose's weakest areas? ▼
San Jose's lowest-scoring dimensions are Rent (1/100), Cost of Living (2/100), Childcare (4/100). Rent weighs heavily on the composite.
How expensive is San Jose compared to the national average? ▼
San Jose's Regional Price Parity is 110.4 (10.4% more than national); rent RPP 211.9.
What is the average salary in San Jose? ▼
San Jose median salary: $98,655, 1,111,780 jobs. Top: Software Developers, Home Health and Personal Care Aides, Fast Food and Counter Workers.
How is the life score calculated? ▼
San Jose's 40.0/100 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.