What is the cost of living in Clarksville?

Clarksville has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 90.9, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 73.8, which is below the national average. The average 2-bedroom rent is $1,346/month.

What is the median salary in Clarksville?

The median salary in Clarksville is $58,587 annually (mean: $61,585). Top occupations include Fast Food and Counter Workers, Retail Salespersons, Stockers and Order Fillers.

How safe is Clarksville?

The violent crime rate in the Clarksville area is 602 per 100,000 population (state-level data). Property crime rate is 2058 per 100K.

What are the schools like in Clarksville?

The state of TN has 1,844 schools (state-level data, no metro-level federal count exists) with an average student-teacher ratio of 15.3:1. Charter schools make up 6.2% of all schools.

How much does childcare cost in Clarksville?

Infant center-based childcare in the Clarksville area averages $7,860 per year. Preschool averages $6,190/year. These are state-level averages.

Is Clarksville a good place to relocate?

Clarksville has a Life Score of 39.7/100 (F), based on 7 of 7 available dimensions among cost of living, wages, rent, crime, schools, childcare, and environment (missing dims omitted, weights renormalized). This places Clarksville in the bottom decile of scored metros; compare individual dimensions to see where the biggest gaps are.

Where does Clarksville sit among US metros on LiveAbility?

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite, Clarksville ranks #295 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). That ordinal matches the /rankings/livability listing. See /methodology#corpus-placement for the exact sort basis.

Relocation profile · Federal data

Clarksville, TN-KY

LiveAbility 43.8/100 places Clarksville #295 of 387 (bottom third of scored metros).

Compiled by PlainRelocate · June 15, 2026

90.9
Cost index (US=100): $1,346
2BR rent / mo: $58,587
Median salary: 43.8
LiveAbility Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, Clarksville ranks #295 of 387 US metros on the LiveAbility Score (43.8/100), with its strongest marks in cost of living and air quality.

#295
of 387 US metros · Below median: 7,227,750
metro-area population: 602
violent crimes per 100K (state-level): 1,844
schools in the state (NCES)

Weakest dimension: safety (4/100). Weigh every dimension against your own priorities, use the City Finder to re-rank by what matters to you.

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite (BEA, BLS, HUD, FBI, NCES, EPA, NOAA, and FEMA inputs), Clarksville ranks #295 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). Cost-of-living index 90.9 (100 = national average), median 2-bedroom rent $1,346/mo, median salary $58,587; LiveAbility Score 43.8/100, strongest in cost of living and air quality.

Signature: LiveAbility 43.8/100 places Clarksville #295 of 387 (bottom third of scored metros).

Purchasing power opens up: BEA RPP 90.9 lands in the cheaper third of scored metros (cuts at 91.5 / 97.0). Median 2BR rent $1,346/mo.

LiveAbility 43.8/100 puts Clarksville in the bottom third (#295 of 387).

BLS OEWS total employment in the Clarksville area is 95,950.

Clarksville vs all US metros by LiveAbility Score

Where this metro's LiveAbility Score falls among every scored US metro (composite placement, not a desirability verdict)

44 Top 76% higher than 24% of 387 US metros

Metros banded by LiveAbility Score (0–100)

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 and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source PlainRelocate LiveAbility Score · June 2026

Clarksville housing and rent

HUD Fair Market Rents for the Clarksville MSA; housing RPP 73.8 (100 = national average); 2BR $1,346/mo.

Studio

$1,090

/month

1 Bedroom

$1,094

/month

2 Bedroom

$1,346

/month

3 Bedroom

$1,871

/month

4 Bedroom

$2,258

/month

Clarksville wages and employment

Clarksville posts 95,950 total employment with median salary $58,587 against a cheaper-than-average RPP.

Median Salary

$58,587

Mean Salary

$61,585

Total Employment

95,950

Top Occupations by Employment

Occupation	Median Salary
Fast Food and Counter Workers	$26,990
Retail Salespersons	$29,100
Stockers and Order Fillers	$36,460
Cashiers	$28,230
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand	$37,070

Schools & Education

State-level education data for the Clarksville area from NCES.

Schools

1,844

Enrollment

994,264

Student:Teacher

15.3:1

Title I %

Childcare Costs

State-average childcare costs for the Clarksville area (DOL data).

Infant (Center)

$7,860

per year

Toddler (Center)

$6,190

per year

Preschool (Center)

$6,190

per year

Life Score Breakdown

Clarksville's composite Life Score is 39.7/100 (F), computed across 7 of 7 dimensions.

Cost

70/100

Strong

Wages

23/100

Weak

Rent

45/100

Average

Crime

4/100

Bottom decile

Schools

50/100

Average

Childcare

69/100

Strong

Environment

19/100

Bottom decile

LiveAbility Score

View full rankings →

Clarksville ranks #295 out of 387 metros with a LiveAbility Score of 43.8/100 - a composite of 8 of 8 quality-of-life dimensions from federal data. Customize the weights to match your priorities →

Strongest dimension: Cost of living (70/100)

Cost of living

70
Air quality

62
Climate

55
Schools

50
Housing

45
Low hazard

39
Job market

23
Safety

4

What this shows Clarksville's strongest dimensions are cost of living and air quality; its weakest among scored dims is safety at 4/100. Default weights: cost 18%, jobs & housing 15% each, safety & schools 12%, air & hazard 10%, climate 8%.

Compare Clarksville to

Wausau Weirton-Steubenville Wenatchee-East Wenatchee Wheeling Wichita Falls Wichita

Metros near Clarksville on cost, LiveAbility, or wages

Nearest out-of-state neighbors to Clarksville on BEA RPP, LiveAbility, or BLS median salary, a different lens than the size-ranked list.

Similar cost of living (BEA RPP)

Similar LiveAbility score

Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, HUD Fair Market Rents, BLS OES, FBI UCR, NCES, DOL, EPA June 2026

Clarksville cost figures follow BEA Regional Price Parities and HUD Fair Market Rents; Clarksville wages and LiveAbility inputs follow BLS OEWS plus the federal sources listed in methodology. This information is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Scores are federal-data percentiles, not a move recommendation. How this data is sourced.

Verify with BEA → · Verify with BLS → · Verify with HUD → · Verify with NOAA → · Verify with FEMA → · Verify with Census →

Thinking about Clarksville?

Clarksville runs a $58,587 median salary at a 90.9 cost index, ranking #295 of 387 nationally on LiveAbility.

See exactly what Clarksville's pay and cost figures mean for your own budget. Salary calculator
Put Clarksville head-to-head against another city on the same dimensions. Compare Clarksville
Abilene is the closest related metro in this corpus -- see how it stacks up. Abilene profile
A cheaper cost index and a higher LiveAbility score don't always point the same direction -- here's how to weigh the trade-off. Cost vs quality guide

Cost, salary and score figures are federal-data percentiles, not a move recommendation.