PlainCompare

Metro Life Score

Sandusky, OH

61.4
Life Score / 100
A-
Grade (curved)
#39
of 387 metros
90%
of metros outranked

Data updated May 2026

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

The verdict

Sandusky ranks #39 of 387 US metros, ahead of 90% - carried by its schools (86/100) and held back most by wages (27/100).

86
strongest: Schools
80
then: Environment
27
weakest: Wages
7
weighted dimensions

Where Sandusky sits among all US metros

Composite Life Score vs the national field

61 Top 10% higher than 90% 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 Sandusky Life Score

Sandusky's composite score of 61.4 out of 100, a grade of A-, places the metro at rank #39 of 387, ahead of 90% of US metros. The strongest inputs are Schools (86/100) and Environment (80/100), which pull the composite upward, while Wages (27/100) and Childcare (31/100) drag it downward. (How the weighting works.)

BEA RPP 89.3 (rent-RPP 59.5). BLS median salary $59,410, 43,460 jobs (Fast Food and Counter Workers, Cashiers, Retail Salespersons). HUD 2BR FMR $1,106/mo (studio $854).

FBI UCR (OH): 293 violent, 1545 property/100K. NCES: 18.2:1 ratio, 9.3% charter. DOL infant childcare $11,791/yr. EPA: 50 Superfund sites (OH). Ranks #36-#42 below.

Dimension detail

How Sandusky scores, dimension by dimension

Score Breakdown

Cost of Living Wages Rent Safety Schools Childcare Environment

Dimension Scores

Cost of Living 79/100 (20%)
Wages 27/100 (20%)
Rent 80/100 (15%)
Safety 57/100 (15%)
Schools 86/100 (10%)
Childcare 31/100 (10%)
Environment 80/100 (10%)

Key Data Points

89.3
Cost Index (RPP)
$59,410
Avg Median Salary
$1,106
2BR Fair Market Rent
293
Violent Crime/100K (OH)
18.2:1
Student-Teacher Ratio
$11,791
Infant Childcare/yr (OH)
50
Superfund Sites (OH)
43,460
Total Employment

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

Compare Sandusky With...

Sandusky vs Wheeling Compare → Sandusky vs Toledo Compare → Sandusky vs Youngstown Compare → Sandusky vs Wildwood Compare → Sandusky vs Waterloo Compare → Sandusky vs Paducah Compare →

Ranking Context

Sandusky outranks 90% of U.S. metros.

Rank Metro Score Grade
#36 Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL 61.7 A
#37 Decatur, AL 61.9 A
#38 Charleston, WV 61.9 A
#39 Sandusky, OH 61.4 A-
#40 Elizabethtown, KY 61.4 A
#41 Lafayette, LA 61.2 A-
#42 Wausau, WI 61.1 A-

OH Metro Scores

Wheeling, WV-OH A+ 68.2 Toledo, OH A+ 66.3 Youngstown-Warren, OH A 65.8 Weirton-Steubenville, WV-OH A 65.7 Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH A- 60.5 Springfield, OH A- 60.1

Using Sandusky's Life Score

Sandusky 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 (27/100) - weigh those against your own priorities. How the score is built
  • Put Sandusky head-to-head against another metro before you decide, every dimension, side by side. Compare metros
  • See where Sandusky 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 Sandusky's biggest strengths? ▼
Sandusky's strongest dimensions are Schools (86/100), Environment (80/100), Rent (80/100). Schools is top-tier nationally.
What are Sandusky's weakest areas? ▼
Sandusky's lowest-scoring dimensions are Wages (27/100), Childcare (31/100), Safety (57/100). Wages weighs heavily on the composite.
How expensive is Sandusky compared to the national average? ▼
Sandusky's Regional Price Parity is 89.3 (10.7% less than national); rent RPP 59.5.
What is the average salary in Sandusky? ▼
Sandusky median salary: $59,410, 43,460 jobs. Top: Fast Food and Counter Workers, Cashiers, Retail Salespersons.
How is the life score calculated? ▼
Sandusky's 61.4/100 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.