PlainCompare

Metro Life Score

Scranton--Wilkes-Barre, PA

51.9
Life Score / 100
B-
Grade (curved)
#172
of 387 metros
56%
of metros outranked

Data updated May 2026

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

The verdict

Scranton ranks #172 of 387 US metros, ahead of 56% - carried by its environment (82/100) and held back most by schools (18/100).

82
strongest: Environment
68
then: Safety
18
weakest: Schools
7
weighted dimensions

Where Scranton sits among all US metros

Composite Life Score vs the national field

52 56th percentile higher than 56% 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%). This entry sits in this band. 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 Scranton Life Score

Scranton's composite score of 51.9 out of 100, a grade of B-, places the metro at rank #172 of 387, ahead of 56% of US metros. The strongest inputs are Environment (82/100) and Safety (68/100), which pull the composite upward, while Schools (18/100) and Wages (40/100) drag it downward. (How the weighting works.)

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: 13.6:1 ratio, 6.0% charter. EPA: 127 Superfund sites (PA). Ranks #169-#175 below.

Dimension detail

How Scranton scores, dimension by dimension

Score Breakdown

Cost of Living Wages Rent Safety Schools Childcare Environment

Dimension Scores

Cost of Living 50/100 (20%)
Wages 40/100 (20%)
Rent 57/100 (15%)
Safety 68/100 (15%)
Schools 18/100 (10%)
Childcare -/100 (10%)
Environment 82/100 (10%)

Key Data Points

93.6
Cost Index (RPP)
$61,803
Avg Median Salary
$1,252
2BR Fair Market Rent
250
Violent Crime/100K (PA)
13.6:1
Student-Teacher Ratio
127
Superfund Sites (PA)
246,030
Total Employment

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

Compare Scranton With...

Scranton vs Johnstown Compare → Scranton vs Williamsport Compare → Scranton vs Pittsburgh Compare → Scranton vs Wildwood Compare → Scranton vs Waterloo Compare → Scranton vs Paducah Compare →

Ranking Context

Scranton outranks 56% of U.S. metros.

Rank Metro Score Grade
#169 College Station-Bryan, TX 52.0 B-
#170 Fort Wayne, IN 52.1 B-
#171 Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC 52.1 B-
#172 Scranton--Wilkes-Barre, PA 51.9 B-
#173 Joplin, MO-KS 51.7 B-
#174 Appleton, WI 51.6 B-
#175 Casper, WY 51.5 B-

PA Metro Scores

Johnstown, PA B+ 56.4 Williamsport, PA B 54.7 Pittsburgh, PA B 54.0 York-Hanover, PA B 52.7 State College, PA B- 49.9 Erie, PA B- 48.9

Using Scranton's Life Score

Scranton 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 environment (82/100) and its weakest is schools (18/100) - weigh those against your own priorities. How the score is built
  • Put Scranton head-to-head against another metro before you decide, every dimension, side by side. Compare metros
  • See where Scranton 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 Scranton's biggest strengths? ▼
Scranton's strongest dimensions are Environment (82/100), Safety (68/100), Rent (57/100). Environment is top-tier nationally.
What are Scranton's weakest areas? ▼
Scranton's lowest-scoring dimensions are Schools (18/100), Wages (40/100), Cost of Living (50/100). Schools weighs heavily on the composite.
How expensive is Scranton compared to the national average? ▼
Scranton's Regional Price Parity is 93.6 (6.4% less than national); rent RPP 67.0.
What is the average salary in Scranton? ▼
Scranton median salary: $61,803, 246,030 jobs. Top: Stockers and Order Fillers, Home Health and Personal Care Aides, Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand.
How is the life score calculated? ▼
Scranton's 51.9/100 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.