What is the cost of living in Lafayette-West Lafayette?

Lafayette-West Lafayette has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 93.4, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 76.4, which is below the national average. The average 2-bedroom rent is $1,242/month.

What is the median salary in Lafayette-West Lafayette?

The median salary in Lafayette-West Lafayette is $63,985 annually (mean: $67,552). Top occupations include Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators, Fast Food and Counter Workers, Retail Salespersons.

How safe is Lafayette-West Lafayette?

The violent crime rate in the Lafayette-West Lafayette area is 308 per 100,000 population (state-level data). Property crime rate is 1321 per 100K.

What are the schools like in Lafayette-West Lafayette?

The state of IN has 1,865 schools (state-level data, no metro-level federal count exists) with an average student-teacher ratio of 15.9:1. Charter schools make up 6.5% of all schools.

How much does childcare cost in Lafayette-West Lafayette?

Childcare cost data is not currently available for Lafayette-West Lafayette.

Is Lafayette-West Lafayette a good place to relocate?

Lafayette-West Lafayette has a Life Score of 45.7/100 (D), based on 6 of 7 available dimensions among cost of living, wages, rent, crime, schools, childcare, and environment (missing dims omitted, weights renormalized). This is a middle-of-the-pack score, where the composite lands for most US metros; look at individual dimensions to see the real trade-offs.

Where does Lafayette-West Lafayette sit among US metros on LiveAbility?

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite, Lafayette-West Lafayette ranks #225 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

Lafayette-West Lafayette, IN

LiveAbility 49.3/100 places Lafayette-West Lafayette #225 of 387 (middle third).

Compiled by PlainRelocate · June 15, 2026

93.4
Cost index (US=100): $1,242
2BR rent / mo: $63,985
Median salary: 49.3
LiveAbility Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, Lafayette-West Lafayette ranks #225 of 387 US metros on the LiveAbility Score (49.3/100), with its strongest marks in low hazard and housing.

#225
of 387 US metros · Near median: 6,924,275
metro-area population: 308
violent crimes per 100K (state-level): 1,865
schools in the state (NCES)

Weakest dimension: climate (32/100). 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), Lafayette-West Lafayette ranks #225 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). Cost-of-living index 93.4 (100 = national average), median 2-bedroom rent $1,242/mo, median salary $63,985; LiveAbility Score 49.3/100, strongest in low hazard and housing.

Signature: LiveAbility 49.3/100 places Lafayette-West Lafayette #225 of 387 (middle third).

Purchasing power sits mid-band: BEA RPP 93.4 between corpus terciles 91.5 and 97.0. Median 2BR rent $1,242/mo.

LiveAbility 49.3/100 keeps Lafayette-West Lafayette in the middle third (#225 of 387).

BLS OEWS total employment in the Lafayette-West Lafayette area is 90,750.

Lafayette-West Lafayette 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)

49 Top 58% higher than 42% 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

Lafayette-West Lafayette housing and rent

HUD Fair Market Rents for the Lafayette-West Lafayette MSA; housing RPP 76.4 (100 = national average); 2BR $1,242/mo.

Studio

$894

/month

1 Bedroom

$1,032

/month

2 Bedroom

$1,242

/month

3 Bedroom

$1,489

/month

4 Bedroom

$1,992

/month

Lafayette-West Lafayette wages and employment

Lafayette-West Lafayette posts 90,750 total employment with median salary $63,985.

Median Salary

$63,985

Mean Salary

$67,552

Total Employment

90,750

Top Occupations by Employment

Occupation	Median Salary
Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators	$63,140
Fast Food and Counter Workers	$28,230
Retail Salespersons	$30,670
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand	$37,310
Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners	$38,450

Schools & Education

State-level education data for the Lafayette-West Lafayette area from NCES.

Schools

1,865

Enrollment

1,033,761

Student:Teacher

15.9:1

Title I %

Life Score Breakdown

Lafayette-West Lafayette's composite Life Score is 45.7/100 (D), computed across 6 of 7 dimensions (missing dims omitted; remaining weights renormalized).

Cost

51/100

Average

Wages

37/100

Below average

Rent

59/100

Above average

Crime

49/100

Average

Schools

56/100

Above average

Environment

17/100

Bottom decile

LiveAbility Score

View full rankings →

Lafayette-West Lafayette ranks #225 out of 387 metros with a LiveAbility Score of 49.3/100 - a composite of 8 of 8 quality-of-life dimensions from federal data. Customize the weights to match your priorities →

Strongest dimension: Low hazard (73/100)

Low hazard

73
Housing

59
Cost of living

51
Safety

49
Air quality

48
Schools

44
Job market

37
Climate

32

What this shows Lafayette-West Lafayette's strongest dimensions are low hazard and housing; its weakest among scored dims is climate at 32/100. Default weights: cost 18%, jobs & housing 15% each, safety & schools 12%, air & hazard 10%, climate 8%.

Compare Lafayette-West Lafayette to

Auburn-Opelika Augusta-Richmond County Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos Bakersfield-Delano Baltimore-Columbia-Towson Bangor

Metros near Lafayette-West Lafayette on cost, LiveAbility, or wages

Nearest out-of-state neighbors to Lafayette-West Lafayette 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

Lafayette-West Lafayette cost figures follow BEA Regional Price Parities and HUD Fair Market Rents; Lafayette-West Lafayette 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 Lafayette-West Lafayette?

Lafayette-West Lafayette runs a $63,985 median salary at a 93.4 cost index, ranking #225 of 387 nationally on LiveAbility.

See exactly what Lafayette-West Lafayette's pay and cost figures mean for your own budget. Salary calculator
Put Lafayette-West Lafayette head-to-head against another city on the same dimensions. Compare Lafayette-West Lafayette
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.