Where should you move?
Compare any two U.S. metros on cost, jobs, rent, safety, schools and more, every number straight from federal data, with a clear verdict on which move makes sense.
Compares 387 US metros across 9 federal DBs (cost/rent/crime/wages/schools/childcare/enviro) with verdicts, salary calcs & weighted scorers.
The national picture
As of June 2026, across 387 US metros scored on cost, jobs, housing, safety, schools and environment, the most livable affordable places to relocate right now are led by Grand Forks, Minot and Charleston.
- 387
- US metros scored
- 9
- Federal data sources
- 74.4
- Top LiveAbility Score (Grand Forks)
- 8
- Quality-of-life dimensions
LiveAbility weights cost 18%, jobs & housing 15% each, safety & schools 12%, air & hazard 10%, climate 8% - fully adjustable in the City Finder.
According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, Bureau of Labor Statistics, and seven other federal agencies, PlainRelocate scores 387 U.S. metros and 51 states across cost of living, wages, rent, safety, schools, childcare, and environment. As of June 2026, the highest LiveAbility Scores currently belong to Grand Forks, Minot, and Charleston, led by Grand Forks at 74.4 out of 100.
Top 10 US metros to relocate to
By LiveAbility Score, a composite of 8 federal data dimensions
- Grand Forks
Grand Forks
74.4 /100
- Minot
Minot
73.6 /100
- Charleston
Charleston
73.2 /100
- Fargo
Fargo
71.5 /100
- Parkersburg-Vienna
Parkersburg-Vienna
70.4 /100
- Florence
Florence
70 /100
- Greenville
Greenville
69.2 /100
- Wheeling
Wheeling
68.8 /100
- Bismarck
Bismarck
68.2 /100
- Beckley
Beckley
67.9 /100
What this shows These metros balance affordability with a functional job market, safety and quality of life. Grand Forks leads at 74.4/100. See the full ranking of all 387 metros, or re-rank by your own priorities.
How LiveAbility Scores are distributed
Where Grand Forks, the top-ranked metro, sits among all 387 scored metros nationally.
Grand Forks has liveability score of 74.4. Distribution: 0 US metros at 0-10; 0 US metros at 10-20; 21 US metros at 20-30; 41 US metros at 30-40; 110 US metros at 40-50; 159 US metros at 50-60; 50 US metros at 60-70; 6 US metros at 70-80; 0 US metros at 80-90; 0 US metros at 90-100.
Find Your City
Set your priorities, affordability, safety, schools, and discover the best metros for you.
Salary Calculator
See what your salary is worth in a new city after adjusting for cost of living differences.
Metro Rankings
See which metros score highest across all 7 dimensions with our composite life scores.
Popular Relocations
7 Dimensions, One Decision
Every relocation report draws from official federal databases to give you a complete picture.
Make Data-Driven Relocation Decisions
Moving to a new city is one of life's biggest decisions. PlainRelocate helps you make it with confidence by comparing metros across the 7 dimensions that matter most: cost of living, rent, crime rates, median wages, school quality, childcare costs, and environmental health.
All data comes directly from official federal sources, the Bureau of Economic Analysis, HUD, FBI, Bureau of Labor Statistics, National Center for Education Statistics, Department of Labor, and EPA. No opinions, no bias, just government data presented plainly.
How It Works
Select your current metro and a destination to get an instant relocation report. You'll see a side-by-side comparison of every dimension, a salary adjustment calculator, and a clear verdict based on the data. You can also use the City Finder to discover metros that match your priorities, or browse our rankings to see how all 387 metros stack up.
Relocation Guides
Make data-driven relocation decisions.
How the Data Works
Seven federal sources, one complete metro picture.
Cost vs Quality of Life
Why salary alone doesn't determine financial wellbeing.
Find Your Ideal Metro
From 387 metros to your perfect match.
Best Cities for Remote Workers
Cross-DB ranking: low cost, good schools, low crime, clean air.
Cheapest Places with Good Schools
Where cost of living is low and school quality is above average.
Live Data Products
Browse the full 387-metro × 51-state dataset, every score, ranking, and comparison is recomputed from BLS, BEA, HUD, FBI, ACF, and Census source data on every page load. Methodology.
Livability Score Rankings
All 387 US metros ranked by composite livability score (cost, safety, air quality, jobs, schools, housing, climate). Recomputed every page load from the metro_composite table.
BrowseAll 387 Metro Profiles
Per-metro relocation profile, wages, cost-of-living index, rent, crime rates, school metrics, air quality, climate. Federal-data-grounded, no editorial fabrication.
BrowseAll 51 State Overviews
State-level retirement scores, cost of living, tax burden, and aggregate metro stats. Refreshed with every ETL run from the states table.
Start your move
Three ways to turn this data into a decision.
- Compare the two metros you are weighing, same dimensions, side by side, with a verdict. Compare metros
- Set your own priorities and let the data surface the metros that fit them. Find your city
- See what your salary is actually worth after cost-of-living adjustment. Salary calculator
Every figure is a federal-data measurement, not advice. Always visit before you move.
About this data
How PlainRelocate works, and why you can trust these scores
What this site is
PlainRelocate compares 387 US metros across cost of living, jobs, housing, safety, schools, childcare, air quality, climate and natural-hazard risk, so you can weigh a move using published federal data instead of guesswork.
Editorial process
- Source. Pull the latest release from each of nine federal agencies: BEA Regional Price Parities, BLS wages, HUD Fair Market Rents, FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, NCES school data, DOL childcare costs, EPA air-quality data, NOAA climate normals, and FEMA disaster declarations.
- Verify. Each dimension is scored relative to national averages using the agency-published figures as-is, with metro definitions from the U.S. Census Bureau. We publish the raw figures, no proprietary rankings or undisclosed sources.
- Publish. Combine the nine dimensions into a per-metro LiveAbility score, and rebuild the database as each agency releases new data, since individual dimensions can carry slightly different vintages at any given moment.
Editorial independence & corrections
The PlainRelocate editorial team is independent and accepts no payment, sponsorship, or promoted placement from any city, developer, or relocation service. Found an error or a stale figure? File a correction via the contact page, and we respond within 72 hours and publish corrections with a visible revision note. See our methodology for full source attribution and refresh cadence.
Frequently asked
What data does PlainRelocate provide?
PlainRelocate combines nine federal data sources to compare 387 metros and 51 states across cost of living, rent, crime, schools, jobs, childcare costs, and environmental quality.
How are relocation scores calculated?
Each metro is scored across seven thematic dimensions using official federal data from BEA, HUD, FBI, BLS, NCES, DOL, EPA, NOAA, and FEMA, then ranked relative to national averages.
Where does the data come from?
Data comes from nine federal agencies: Bureau of Economic Analysis, HUD, FBI, Bureau of Labor Statistics, National Center for Education Statistics, Department of Labor, EPA, NOAA, and FEMA.