PlainCompare

Metro Life Score

Sierra Vista-Douglas, AZ

54.3
Life Score / 100
B
Grade (curved)
#137
of 387 metros
65%
of metros outranked

Data updated May 2026

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

The verdict

Sierra Vista ranks #137 of 387 US metros, ahead of 65% - carried by its environment (83/100) and held back most by safety (21/100).

83
strongest: Environment
79
then: Cost of Living
21
weakest: Safety
7
weighted dimensions

Where Sierra Vista sits among all US metros

Composite Life Score vs the national field

54 65th percentile higher than 65% 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 Sierra Vista Life Score

Sierra Vista's composite score of 54.3 out of 100, a grade of B, places the metro at rank #137 of 387, ahead of 65% of US metros. The strongest inputs are Environment (83/100) and Cost of Living (79/100), which pull the composite upward, while Safety (21/100) and Childcare (38/100) drag it downward. (How the weighting works.)

BEA RPP 89.2 (rent-RPP 61.9). BLS median salary $62,643, 28,720 jobs (Cashiers, Retail Salespersons, General and Operations Managers). HUD 2BR FMR $1,257/mo (studio $887).

FBI UCR (AZ): 429 violent, 1786 property/100K. NCES: 17.0:1 ratio, 25.9% charter. DOL infant childcare $11,301/yr. EPA: 13 Superfund sites (AZ). Ranks #134-#140 below.

Dimension detail

How Sierra Vista scores, dimension by dimension

Score Breakdown

Cost of Living Wages Rent Safety Schools Childcare Environment

Dimension Scores

Cost of Living 79/100 (20%)
Wages 40/100 (20%)
Rent 56/100 (15%)
Safety 21/100 (15%)
Schools 67/100 (10%)
Childcare 38/100 (10%)
Environment 83/100 (10%)

Key Data Points

89.2
Cost Index (RPP)
$62,643
Avg Median Salary
$1,257
2BR Fair Market Rent
429
Violent Crime/100K (AZ)
17.0:1
Student-Teacher Ratio
$11,301
Infant Childcare/yr (AZ)
13
Superfund Sites (AZ)
28,720
Total Employment

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

Compare Sierra Vista With...

Sierra Vista vs Yuma Compare → Sierra Vista vs Tucson Compare → Sierra Vista vs Phoenix Compare → Sierra Vista vs Wildwood Compare → Sierra Vista vs Waterloo Compare → Sierra Vista vs Paducah Compare →

Ranking Context

Sierra Vista outranks 65% of U.S. metros.

Rank Metro Score Grade
#134 Yakima, WA 54.4 B
#135 Monroe, MI 54.4 B
#136 Birmingham, AL 54.5 B
#137 Sierra Vista-Douglas, AZ 54.3 B
#138 Albany, GA 54.3 B
#139 Battle Creek, MI 54.3 B
#140 Canton-Massillon, OH 54.3 B

AZ Metro Scores

Yuma, AZ C+ 47.2 Tucson, AZ C+ 46.0 Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ C- 40.5 Lake Havasu City-Kingman, AZ D 38.2 Prescott Valley-Prescott, AZ D 38.0 Flagstaff, AZ D 34.5

Using Sierra Vista's Life Score

Sierra Vista 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 (83/100) and its weakest is safety (21/100) - weigh those against your own priorities. How the score is built
  • Put Sierra Vista head-to-head against another metro before you decide, every dimension, side by side. Compare metros
  • See where Sierra Vista 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 Sierra Vista's biggest strengths? ▼
Sierra Vista's strongest dimensions are Environment (83/100), Cost of Living (79/100), Schools (67/100). Environment is top-tier nationally.
What are Sierra Vista's weakest areas? ▼
Sierra Vista's lowest-scoring dimensions are Safety (21/100), Childcare (38/100), Wages (40/100). Safety weighs heavily on the composite.
How expensive is Sierra Vista compared to the national average? ▼
Sierra Vista's Regional Price Parity is 89.2 (10.8% less than national); rent RPP 61.9.
What is the average salary in Sierra Vista? ▼
Sierra Vista median salary: $62,643, 28,720 jobs. Top: Cashiers, Retail Salespersons, General and Operations Managers.
How is the life score calculated? ▼
Sierra Vista's 54.3/100 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.