Metro Life Score
Spartanburg, SC
Below-median composite Life Score — grade C+, 32nd percentile of the national corpus.
- 45.7
- Life Score / 100
- C+
- Grade (curved)
- #262
- of 387 metros
- 32%
- composite percentile
Data updated August 2026
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The verdict
Spartanburg is below-median composite Life Score — #262 of 387 (45.7/100, grade C+, 32nd percentile). Carried by childcare at 69/100; held back most by environment at 8/100.
- 32nd
- composite percentile
- #262
- of 387 peers
- 69th
- cost dimension percentile
- 43rd
- wages dimension percentile
Life Score shape · LOWER · BALANCED · signature cost
Spartanburg: affordability leads the Life Score story
Spartanburg is a LOWER-band metro whose cost dimension sits at the 69th percentile of 387 US metros (CHEAP) while composite is #262 (45.7/100, grade C+). Childcare at 69/100 carries the upside; Environment at 8/100 is the residual drag. According to PlainCompare's federal Life Score corpus ranking, Spartanburg, SC ranks #262 of 387 metros by composite Life Score (highest = #1) and #121 of 387 by cost-of-living dimension score (highest = #1). Methodology.
BEA RPP 91.1 (rent-RPP 68.0). BLS median salary $63,034, 158,460 jobs (Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators, Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand, Cashiers). HUD 2BR FMR $1,187/mo (studio $1,034).
FBI UCR (SC): 439 violent, 1988 property/100K. NCES: 13.8:1 ratio, 7.2% charter. DOL infant childcare $7,732/yr. EPA: 34 Superfund sites (SC).
Where Spartanburg sits among all US metros
Composite Life Score vs the national field
46 32nd percentile higher than 32% 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 45.7 is built
Spartanburg's Life Score, decomposed
Dimension detail
How Spartanburg scores, dimension by dimension
Score Breakdown
Dimension Scores
Key Data Points
Geography used: crime, schools, childcare, and environment cards above are SC state-level when metro-specific feeds are unavailable, see the scope key at the top of this page.
Compare Spartanburg With...
Ranking Context
Spartanburg outranks 32% of U.S. metros.
| Rank | Metro | Score | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|
| #259 | Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL | 45.8 | C+ |
| #260 | Wilmington, NC | 45.9 | C+ |
| #261 | Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI | 45.9 | C+ |
| #262 | Spartanburg, SC | 45.7 | C+ |
| #263 | Bakersfield-Delano, CA | 45.7 | C+ |
| #264 | Morristown, TN | 45.7 | C+ |
| #265 | Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI | 45.5 | C+ |
Quality vs. Affordability
Spartanburg, SC is bottom 33% lowest-quality nationally and also top 31% most affordable -- a rarer combination among its composite-quality peers, where overall rank and affordability rank usually diverge more than this.
SC Metro Scores
Read with Spartanburg
Nearest composite peers and cost poles for Spartanburg (LOWER · BALANCED · CHEAP/MID), replacing the fixed Explore/Guides strip.
Bakersfield-Delano, CA
ABS(composite) peer at 45.7 (Δ 0.0 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade C+ vs this page's LOWER · BALANCED · CHEAP/MID.
Morristown, TN
ABS(composite) peer at 45.7 (Δ 0.0 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade C+ vs this page's LOWER · BALANCED · CHEAP/MID.
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL
ABS(composite) peer at 45.8 (Δ 0.1 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade C+ vs this page's LOWER · BALANCED · CHEAP/MID.
Grand Junction, CO
ABS(composite) peer at 45.9 (Δ 0.2 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade C+ vs this page's LOWER · BALANCED · CHEAP/MID.
Bismarck, ND (cost pole)
ABS(cost_score) orthogonal peer at 69/100 (Δ 0); cost stamp CHEAP vs this metro's CHEAP.
Staunton-Stuarts Draft, VA (cost pole)
ABS(cost_score) orthogonal peer at 69/100 (Δ 0); cost stamp CHEAP vs this metro's CHEAP.
Spartanburg, SC relocation guide
Stamp-branched guide for LOWER · BALANCED · CHEAP/MID - how to read federal Life Score inputs before a move.
Using Spartanburg's bottom-third Life Score
Spartanburg scores 45.7/100 overall, but Childcare (69.4) and Environment (8.3) sit 61.1 points apart, so decide which of the two matters more to you before leaning on the total.
- Childcare is the strongest of Spartanburg's seven dimensions (weighted 10% in the composite); if it is your priority, this is where the metro earns its rank. See all seven dimensions
- Environment is the weakest (weighted 10% in the composite); if it is a dealbreaker, weigh it before the ranking does. Rank metros on the composite
- Florence is the nearest comparison this page can offer; put the two side by side on the same seven dimensions. Compare with Florence
A low composite is a weighted blend; individual dimensions can still be strong.