Metro Life Score
Springfield, MO
Below-median composite Life Score — grade B-, 49th percentile of the national corpus.
- 49.7
- Life Score / 100
- B-
- Grade (curved)
- #198
- of 387 metros
- 49%
- composite percentile
Data updated August 2026
Verify: BEA · BLS · HUD · FBI · NCES · EPA · Census · Report a data issue · Data changelog
The verdict
Springfield is below-median composite Life Score — #198 of 387 (49.7/100, grade B-, 49th percentile). Carried by cost of living at 83/100; held back most by schools at 13/100.
- 49th
- composite percentile
- #198
- of 387 peers
- 83rd
- cost dimension percentile
- 26th
- wages dimension percentile
Life Score shape · MID · COST-LED · signature cost
Springfield: affordability leads the Life Score story
Springfield is a MID-band metro whose cost dimension sits at the 83rd percentile of 387 US metros (CHEAP) while composite is #198 (49.7/100, grade B-). Cost of Living at 83/100 carries the upside; Schools at 13/100 is the residual drag. According to PlainCompare's federal Life Score corpus ranking, Springfield, MO ranks #198 of 387 metros by composite Life Score (highest = #1) and #67 of 387 by cost-of-living dimension score (highest = #1). Methodology.
BEA RPP 88.6 (rent-RPP 65.6). BLS median salary $60,530, 216,300 jobs (General and Operations Managers, Stockers and Order Fillers, Home Health and Personal Care Aides). HUD 2BR FMR $1,095/mo (studio $877).
FBI UCR (MO): 463 violent, 1972 property/100K. NCES: 12.2:1 ratio, 3.5% charter. EPA: 39 Superfund sites (MO).
Where Springfield sits among all US metros
Composite Life Score vs the national field
50 49th percentile higher than 49% 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 49.7 is built
Springfield's Life Score, decomposed
Dimension detail
How Springfield scores, dimension by dimension
Score Breakdown
Dimension Scores
Key Data Points
Geography used: crime, schools, childcare, and environment cards above are MO state-level when metro-specific feeds are unavailable, see the scope key at the top of this page.
Compare Springfield With...
Ranking Context
Springfield outranks 49% of U.S. metros.
| Rank | Metro | Score | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|
| #195 | Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL | 49.8 | B- |
| #196 | Fort Smith, AR-OK | 49.8 | B- |
| #197 | Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX | 49.8 | B- |
| #198 | Springfield, MO | 49.7 | B- |
| #199 | Bangor, ME | 49.7 | B- |
| #200 | Bloomington, IN | 49.7 | B- |
| #201 | Corpus Christi, TX | 49.7 | B- |
Quality vs. Affordability
Springfield, MO is bottom 49% lowest-quality nationally and also top 17% most affordable -- a rarer combination among its composite-quality peers, where overall rank and affordability rank usually diverge more than this.
MO Metro Scores
Read with Springfield
Nearest composite peers and cost poles for Springfield (MID · COST-LED · CHEAP/LOW), replacing the fixed Explore/Guides strip.
Bangor, ME
ABS(composite) peer at 49.7 (Δ 0.0 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade B- vs this page's MID · COST-LED · CHEAP/LOW.
Bloomington, IN
ABS(composite) peer at 49.7 (Δ 0.0 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade B- vs this page's MID · COST-LED · CHEAP/LOW.
Corpus Christi, TX
ABS(composite) peer at 49.7 (Δ 0.0 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade B- vs this page's MID · COST-LED · CHEAP/LOW.
Harrisonburg, VA
ABS(composite) peer at 49.7 (Δ 0.0 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade B- vs this page's MID · COST-LED · CHEAP/LOW.
Owensboro, KY (cost pole)
ABS(cost_score) orthogonal peer at 83/100 (Δ 0); cost stamp CHEAP vs this metro's CHEAP.
Macon-Bibb County, GA (cost pole)
ABS(cost_score) orthogonal peer at 83/100 (Δ 0); cost stamp CHEAP vs this metro's CHEAP.
Springfield, MO relocation guide
Stamp-branched guide for MID · COST-LED · CHEAP/LOW - how to read federal Life Score inputs before a move.
Using Springfield's middle-third Life Score
Springfield scores 49.7/100 overall, but Cost of Living (82.9) and Schools (12.7) sit 70.2 points apart, so decide which of the two matters more to you before leaning on the total.
- Cost of Living is the strongest of Springfield's seven dimensions (weighted 20% 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
- St. Joseph is the nearest comparison this page can offer; put the two side by side on the same seven dimensions. Compare with St. Joseph
A middle-third composite is a weighted blend; individual dimensions can sit well above or below it.