What is the cost of living in Parkersburg-Vienna?

Parkersburg-Vienna has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 87.1, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 45.9, which is below the national average. The average 2-bedroom rent is $928/month.

What is the median salary in Parkersburg-Vienna?

The median salary in Parkersburg-Vienna is $56,041 annually (mean: $58,901). Top occupations include Retail Salespersons, Home Health and Personal Care Aides, Cooks, Fast Food.

How safe is Parkersburg-Vienna?

The violent crime rate in the Parkersburg-Vienna area is 242 per 100,000 population (state-level data). Property crime rate is 1089 per 100K.

What are the schools like in Parkersburg-Vienna?

The state of WV has 648 schools (state-level data, no metro-level federal count exists) with an average student-teacher ratio of 13.1:1. Charter schools make up 0.6% of all schools.

How much does childcare cost in Parkersburg-Vienna?

Infant center-based childcare in the Parkersburg-Vienna area averages $8,974 per year. Preschool averages $8,470/year. These are state-level averages.

Is Parkersburg-Vienna a good place to relocate?

Parkersburg-Vienna has a Life Score of 65.6/100 (C+), 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 Parkersburg-Vienna in the top decile of scored metros, a genuinely strong all-around profile.

Where does Parkersburg-Vienna sit among US metros on LiveAbility?

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite, Parkersburg-Vienna ranks #5 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

Parkersburg-Vienna, WV

LiveAbility 70.4/100 places Parkersburg-Vienna #5 of 387 (top third of scored metros).

Compiled by PlainRelocate · June 15, 2026

87.1
Cost index (US=100): $928
2BR rent / mo: $56,041
Median salary: 70.4
LiveAbility Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, Parkersburg-Vienna ranks #5 of 387 US metros on the LiveAbility Score (70.4/100), with its strongest marks in safety and housing.

#5
of 387 US metros · Exceptional: 1,769,979
metro-area population: 242
violent crimes per 100K (state-level): 648
schools in the state (NCES)

Weakest dimension: job market (11/100). 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), Parkersburg-Vienna ranks #5 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). Cost-of-living index 87.1 (100 = national average), median 2-bedroom rent $928/mo, median salary $56,041; LiveAbility Score 70.4/100, strongest in safety and housing.

Signature: LiveAbility 70.4/100 places Parkersburg-Vienna #5 of 387 (top third of scored metros).

Purchasing power opens up: BEA RPP 87.1 lands in the cheaper third of scored metros (cuts at 91.5 / 97.0). Median 2BR rent $928/mo.

LiveAbility 70.4/100 puts Parkersburg-Vienna in the top third (#5 of 387).

BLS OEWS total employment in the Parkersburg-Vienna area is 30,150.

Parkersburg-Vienna 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)

70 Top 1% higher than 99% 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

Parkersburg-Vienna housing and rent

HUD Fair Market Rents for the Parkersburg-Vienna MSA; housing RPP 45.9 (100 = national average); 2BR $928/mo.

Studio

$741

/month

1 Bedroom

$745

/month

2 Bedroom

$928

/month

3 Bedroom

$1,194

/month

4 Bedroom

$1,253

/month

Parkersburg-Vienna wages and employment

Parkersburg-Vienna posts 30,150 total employment with median salary $56,041 against a cheaper-than-average RPP.

Median Salary

$56,041

Mean Salary

$58,901

Total Employment

30,150

Top Occupations by Employment

Occupation	Median Salary
Retail Salespersons	$28,220
Home Health and Personal Care Aides	$26,920
Cooks, Fast Food	$22,780
Cashiers	$26,510
Registered Nurses	$79,000

Schools & Education

State-level education data for the Parkersburg-Vienna area from NCES.

Schools

648

Enrollment

242,956

Student:Teacher

13.1:1

Title I %

Childcare Costs

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

Infant (Center)

$8,974

per year

Toddler (Center)

$8,493

per year

Preschool (Center)

$8,470

per year

Life Score Breakdown

Parkersburg-Vienna's composite Life Score is 65.6/100 (C+), computed across 7 of 7 dimensions.

Cost

91/100

Elite

Wages

11/100

Bottom decile

Rent

98/100

Elite

Crime

99/100

Elite

Schools

22/100

Weak

Childcare

62/100

Above average

Environment

73/100

Strong

LiveAbility Score

View full rankings →

Parkersburg-Vienna ranks #5 out of 387 metros with a LiveAbility Score of 70.4/100 - a composite of 8 of 8 quality-of-life dimensions from federal data. Customize the weights to match your priorities →

Strongest dimension: Safety (99/100)

Safety

99
Housing

98
Cost of living

91
Schools

78
Low hazard

71
Air quality

54
Climate

50
Job market

11

What this shows Parkersburg-Vienna's strongest dimensions are safety and housing; its weakest among scored dims is job market at 11/100. Default weights: cost 18%, jobs & housing 15% each, safety & schools 12%, air & hazard 10%, climate 8%.

Compare Parkersburg-Vienna to

Portland-South Portland Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro Prescott Valley-Prescott Providence-Warwick Provo-Orem-Lehi Pueblo

Metros near Parkersburg-Vienna on cost, LiveAbility, or wages

Nearest out-of-state neighbors to Parkersburg-Vienna 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

Parkersburg-Vienna cost figures follow BEA Regional Price Parities and HUD Fair Market Rents; Parkersburg-Vienna 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 Parkersburg-Vienna?

Parkersburg-Vienna runs a $56,041 median salary at a 87.1 cost index, ranking #5 of 387 nationally on LiveAbility.

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