Metro Life Score
Scranton--Wilkes-Barre, PA
Below-median composite Life Score — grade B-, 47th percentile of the national corpus.
- 49.1
- Life Score / 100
- B-
- Grade (curved)
- #206
- of 387 metros
- 47%
- composite percentile
Data updated August 2026
Verify: BEA · BLS · HUD · FBI · NCES · EPA · Census · Report a data issue · Data changelog
The verdict
Scranton--Wilkes-Barre is below-median composite Life Score — #206 of 387 (49.1/100, grade B-, 47th percentile). Carried by safety at 74/100; held back most by schools at 22/100.
- 47th
- composite percentile
- #206
- of 387 peers
- 50th
- cost dimension percentile
- 35th
- wages dimension percentile
Life Score shape · MID · SAFE-LED · signature wages
Scranton--Wilkes-Barre: mid-wage metro with a distinct composite shape
Scranton--Wilkes-Barre is mid-curve on wages (≈35th percentile, LOW) with composite #206 (49.1/100, grade B-). Cost mark MID; profile SAFE-LED. Gap between strongest and weakest dimensions: 53 points. According to PlainCompare's federal Life Score corpus ranking, Scranton--Wilkes-Barre, PA ranks #206 of 387 metros by composite Life Score (highest = #1) and #195 of 387 by cost-of-living dimension score (highest = #1). Methodology.
BEA RPP 93.6 (rent-RPP 67.0). BLS median salary $61,803, 246,030 jobs (Stockers and Order Fillers, Home Health and Personal Care Aides, Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand). HUD 2BR FMR $1,252/mo (studio $863).
FBI UCR (PA): 250 violent, 1457 property/100K. NCES: 13.0:1 ratio, 6.0% charter. EPA: 127 Superfund sites (PA).
Where Scranton--Wilkes-Barre sits among all US metros
Composite Life Score vs the national field
49 47th percentile higher than 47% of 387 US metros
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 · August 2026
How the 49.1 is built
Scranton--Wilkes-Barre's Life Score, decomposed
Dimension detail
How Scranton--Wilkes-Barre scores, dimension by dimension
Score Breakdown
Dimension Scores
Key Data Points
Geography used: crime, schools, childcare, and environment cards above are PA state-level when metro-specific feeds are unavailable, see the scope key at the top of this page.
Compare Scranton--Wilkes-Barre With...
Ranking Context
Scranton--Wilkes-Barre outranks 47% of U.S. metros.
| Rank | Metro | Score | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|
| #203 | Reno, NV | 49.2 | B- |
| #204 | Indianapolis-Carmel-Greenwood, IN | 49.2 | B- |
| #205 | Cape Girardeau, MO-IL | 49.3 | B- |
| #206 | Scranton--Wilkes-Barre, PA | 49.1 | B- |
| #207 | Ocala, FL | 49.1 | B- |
| #208 | Columbia, MO | 49.0 | B- |
| #209 | Kalamazoo-Portage, MI | 49.0 | B- |
Quality vs. Affordability
Scranton--Wilkes-Barre, PA's quality rank (bottom 47% lowest-quality) and affordability rank (top 50% most affordable) sit close together -- an unusually proportionate metro where overall quality and cost-of-living move together.
PA Metro Scores
Read with Scranton--Wilkes-Barre
Nearest composite peers and cost poles for Scranton--Wilkes-Barre (MID · SAFE-LED · MID/LOW), replacing the fixed Explore/Guides strip.
Ocala, FL
ABS(composite) peer at 49.1 (Δ 0.0 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade B- vs this page's MID · SAFE-LED · MID/LOW.
Columbia, MO
ABS(composite) peer at 49.0 (Δ 0.1 vs this metro); lower Life Score · grade B- vs this page's MID · SAFE-LED · MID/LOW.
Indianapolis-Carmel-Greenwood, IN
ABS(composite) peer at 49.2 (Δ 0.1 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade B- vs this page's MID · SAFE-LED · MID/LOW.
Kalamazoo-Portage, MI
ABS(composite) peer at 49.0 (Δ 0.1 vs this metro); lower Life Score · grade B- vs this page's MID · SAFE-LED · MID/LOW.
Bloomington, IL (cost pole)
ABS(cost_score) orthogonal peer at 50/100 (Δ 0); cost stamp MID vs this metro's MID.
Roanoke, VA (cost pole)
ABS(cost_score) orthogonal peer at 49/100 (Δ 0); cost stamp MID vs this metro's MID.
Scranton--Wilkes-Barre, PA relocation guide
Stamp-branched guide for MID · SAFE-LED · MID/LOW - how to read federal Life Score inputs before a move.
Using Scranton--Wilkes-Barre's middle-third Life Score
Scranton--Wilkes-Barre scores 49.1/100 overall, but Safety (74.4) and Schools (21.5) sit 52.8 points apart, so decide which of the two matters more to you before leaning on the total.
- Safety is the strongest of Scranton--Wilkes-Barre's seven dimensions (weighted 15% in the composite); if it is your priority, this is where the metro earns its rank. See all seven dimensions
- Schools is the weakest (weighted 10% in the composite); if it is a dealbreaker, weigh it before the ranking does. Rank metros on the composite
- Johnstown is the nearest comparison this page can offer; put the two side by side on the same seven dimensions. Compare with Johnstown
A middle-third composite is a weighted blend; individual dimensions can sit well above or below it.