PlainCompare

Metro Life Score

Yuba City, CA

43.3
Life Score / 100
C
Grade (curved)
#288
of 387 metros
26%
of metros outranked

Data updated May 2026

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

The verdict

Yuba City ranks #288 of 387 US metros, ahead of 26% - carried by its environment (100/100) and held back most by childcare (2/100).

100
strongest: Environment
98
then: Schools
2
weakest: Childcare
7
weighted dimensions

Where Yuba City sits among all US metros

Composite Life Score vs the national field

43 26th percentile higher than 26% 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%). This entry sits in this band. 45–50: 81 US metros (21%). Above this entry. 50–55: 67 US metros (17%). Above this entry. 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 Yuba City Life Score

Yuba City's composite score of 43.3 out of 100, a grade of C, places the metro at rank #288 of 387, ahead of 26% of US metros. The strongest inputs are Environment (100/100) and Schools (98/100), which pull the composite upward, while Childcare (2/100) and Safety (7/100) drag it downward. (How the weighting works.)

BEA RPP 104.2 (rent-RPP 108.3). BLS median salary $70,660, 45,420 jobs (Home Health and Personal Care Aides, Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers, Fast Food and Counter Workers). HUD 2BR FMR $1,550/mo (studio $1,166).

FBI UCR (CA): 477 violent, 1986 property/100K. NCES: 21.5:1 ratio, 12.8% charter. DOL infant childcare $17,920/yr. EPA: 116 Superfund sites (CA). Ranks #285-#291 below.

Dimension detail

How Yuba City scores, dimension by dimension

Score Breakdown

Cost of Living Wages Rent Safety Schools Childcare Environment

Dimension Scores

Cost of Living 9/100 (20%)
Wages 82/100 (20%)
Rent 28/100 (15%)
Safety 7/100 (15%)
Schools 98/100 (10%)
Childcare 2/100 (10%)
Environment 100/100 (10%)

Key Data Points

104.2
Cost Index (RPP)
$70,660
Avg Median Salary
$1,550
2BR Fair Market Rent
477
Violent Crime/100K (CA)
21.5:1
Student-Teacher Ratio
$17,920
Infant Childcare/yr (CA)
116
Superfund Sites (CA)
45,420
Total Employment

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

Compare Yuba City With...

Yuba City vs El Centro Compare → Yuba City vs Visalia Compare → Yuba City vs Redding Compare → Yuba City vs Wildwood Compare → Yuba City vs Waterloo Compare → Yuba City vs Paducah Compare →

Ranking Context

Yuba City outranks 26% of U.S. metros.

Rank Metro Score Grade
#285 Chambersburg, PA 43.4 C
#286 Urban Honolulu, HI 43.6 C
#287 New Haven, CT 43.6 C
#288 Yuba City, CA 43.3 C
#289 Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA 43.1 C
#290 Hot Springs, AR 43.1 C
#291 Medford, OR 43.1 C

CA Metro Scores

El Centro, CA C+ 46.7 Visalia, CA C 45.2 Redding, CA C 43.7 Merced, CA C 42.8 Vallejo, CA C 41.9 Stockton-Lodi, CA C- 41.3

Using Yuba City's Life Score

Yuba City 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 (100/100) and its weakest is childcare (2/100) - weigh those against your own priorities. How the score is built
  • Put Yuba City head-to-head against another metro before you decide, every dimension, side by side. Compare metros
  • See where Yuba City 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 Yuba City's biggest strengths? ▼
Yuba City's strongest dimensions are Environment (100/100), Schools (98/100), Wages (82/100). Environment is top-tier nationally.
What are Yuba City's weakest areas? ▼
Yuba City's lowest-scoring dimensions are Childcare (2/100), Safety (7/100), Cost of Living (9/100). Childcare weighs heavily on the composite.
How expensive is Yuba City compared to the national average? ▼
Yuba City's Regional Price Parity is 104.2 (4.2% more than national); rent RPP 108.3.
What is the average salary in Yuba City? ▼
Yuba City median salary: $70,660, 45,420 jobs. Top: Home Health and Personal Care Aides, Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers, Fast Food and Counter Workers.
How is the life score calculated? ▼
Yuba City's 43.3/100 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.