Metro Life Score
Wilmington, NC
Below-median composite Life Score — grade C+, 33rd percentile of the national corpus.
- 45.9
- Life Score / 100
- C+
- Grade (curved)
- #258
- of 387 metros
- 33%
- composite percentile
Data updated August 2026
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The verdict
Wilmington is below-median composite Life Score — #258 of 387 (45.9/100, grade C+, 33rd percentile). Carried by schools at 59/100; held back most by rent at 36/100.
- 33rd
- composite percentile
- #258
- of 387 peers
- 36th
- cost dimension percentile
- 51st
- wages dimension percentile
Life Score shape · LOWER · SCHOOL-STRONG · signature composite
Wilmington: bottom-third composite — where the drag concentrates
Wilmington sits in the bottom third of the metro corpus on composite (#258 of 387, 45.9/100, 33rd percentile). Stamps LOWER · SCHOOL-STRONG; Rent at 36/100 is the main drag; Schools (59/100) keeps the floor. Cost/wage marks DEAR/MID. According to PlainCompare's federal Life Score corpus ranking, Wilmington, NC ranks #258 of 387 metros by composite Life Score (highest = #1) and #247 of 387 by cost-of-living dimension score (highest = #1). Methodology.
BEA RPP 96.4 (rent-RPP 93.2). BLS median salary $64,296, 183,460 jobs (Retail Salespersons, Fast Food and Counter Workers, Registered Nurses). HUD 2BR FMR $1,426/mo (studio $1,242).
FBI UCR (NC): 365 violent, 1930 property/100K. NCES: 15.8:1 ratio, 7.6% charter. DOL infant childcare $9,487/yr. EPA: 42 Superfund sites (NC).
Where Wilmington sits among all US metros
Composite Life Score vs the national field
46 33rd percentile higher than 33% 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
Dimension detail
How Wilmington scores, dimension by dimension
Score Breakdown
Dimension Scores
Key Data Points
Geography used: crime, schools, childcare, and environment cards above are NC state-level when metro-specific feeds are unavailable, see the scope key at the top of this page.
Compare Wilmington With...
Ranking Context
Wilmington outranks 33% of U.S. metros.
| Rank | Metro | Score | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|
| #255 | Monroe, MI | 46.0 | C+ |
| #256 | Lewiston-Auburn, ME | 46.0 | C+ |
| #257 | Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach, FL | 46.0 | C+ |
| #258 | Wilmington, NC | 45.9 | C+ |
| #259 | Grand Junction, CO | 45.9 | C+ |
| #260 | Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA | 45.9 | C+ |
| #261 | Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI | 45.9 | C+ |
NC Metro Scores
Read with Wilmington
Nearest composite peers and cost poles for Wilmington (LOWER · SCHOOL-STRONG · DEAR/MID), replacing the fixed Explore/Guides strip.
Grand Junction, CO
ABS(composite) peer at 45.9 (Δ 0.0 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade C+ vs this page's LOWER · SCHOOL-STRONG · DEAR/MID.
Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA
ABS(composite) peer at 45.9 (Δ 0.0 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade C+ vs this page's LOWER · SCHOOL-STRONG · DEAR/MID.
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI
ABS(composite) peer at 45.9 (Δ 0.0 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade C+ vs this page's LOWER · SCHOOL-STRONG · DEAR/MID.
Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach, FL
ABS(composite) peer at 46.0 (Δ 0.1 vs this metro); higher Life Score · grade C+ vs this page's LOWER · SCHOOL-STRONG · DEAR/MID.
Kankakee, IL (cost pole)
ABS(cost_score) orthogonal peer at 37/100 (Δ 0); cost stamp DEAR vs this metro's DEAR.
Missoula, MT (cost pole)
ABS(cost_score) orthogonal peer at 36/100 (Δ 0); cost stamp DEAR vs this metro's DEAR.
Wilmington, NC relocation guide
Stamp-branched guide for LOWER · SCHOOL-STRONG · DEAR/MID - how to read federal Life Score inputs before a move.