What is the cost of living in Rome?

Rome has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 90.2, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 60.3, which is below the national average. The average 2-bedroom rent is $1,192/month.

What is the median salary in Rome?

The median salary in Rome is $59,418 annually (mean: $63,534). Top occupations include Registered Nurses, Fast Food and Counter Workers, Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand.

The violent crime rate in the Rome area is 300 per 100,000 population (state-level data). Property crime rate is 1567 per 100K.

What are the schools like in Rome?

The state of GA has 2,315 schools (state-level data, no metro-level federal count exists) with an average student-teacher ratio of 14.4:1. Charter schools make up 4.2% of all schools.

How much does childcare cost in Rome?

Infant center-based childcare in the Rome area averages $6,591 per year. Preschool averages $6,034/year. These are state-level averages.

Is Rome a good place to relocate?

Rome has a Life Score of 51.8/100 (D), based on 7 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 Rome sit among US metros on LiveAbility?

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite, Rome ranks #71 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

Rome, GA

LiveAbility 58.9/100 places Rome #71 of 387 (top third of scored metros).

Compiled by PlainRelocate · June 15, 2026

90.2
Cost index (US=100): $1,192
2BR rent / mo: $59,418
Median salary: 58.9
LiveAbility Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, Rome ranks #71 of 387 US metros on the LiveAbility Score (58.9/100), with its strongest marks in climate and air quality.

#71
of 387 US metros · Above median: 11,180,878
metro-area population: 300
violent crimes per 100K (state-level): 2,315
schools in the state (NCES)

Weakest dimension: job market (12/100). 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), Rome ranks #71 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). Cost-of-living index 90.2 (100 = national average), median 2-bedroom rent $1,192/mo, median salary $59,418; LiveAbility Score 58.9/100, strongest in climate and air quality.

Signature: LiveAbility 58.9/100 places Rome #71 of 387 (top third of scored metros).

Purchasing power opens up: BEA RPP 90.2 lands in the cheaper third of scored metros (cuts at 91.5 / 97.0). Median 2BR rent $1,192/mo.

LiveAbility 58.9/100 puts Rome in the top third (#71 of 387).

BLS OEWS total employment in the Rome area is 36,420.

Rome 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)

59 Top 18% higher than 82% 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

Rome housing and rent

HUD Fair Market Rents for the Rome MSA; housing RPP 60.3 (100 = national average); 2BR $1,192/mo.

Studio

$822

/month

1 Bedroom

$923

/month

2 Bedroom

$1,192

/month

3 Bedroom

$1,541

/month

4 Bedroom

$1,626

/month

Rome wages and employment

Rome posts 36,420 total employment with median salary $59,418 against a cheaper-than-average RPP.

Median Salary

$59,418

Mean Salary

$63,534

Total Employment

36,420

Top Occupations by Employment

Occupation	Median Salary
Registered Nurses	$83,880
Fast Food and Counter Workers	$26,890
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand	$33,590
Retail Salespersons	$30,590
Cashiers	$28,280

Schools & Education

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

Schools

2,315

Enrollment

1,738,641

Student:Teacher

14.4:1

Title I %

Childcare Costs

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

Infant (Center)

$6,591

per year

Toddler (Center)

$6,153

per year

Preschool (Center)

$6,034

per year

Life Score Breakdown

Rome's composite Life Score is 51.8/100 (D), computed across 7 of 7 dimensions.

Cost

74/100

Strong

Wages

12/100

Bottom decile

Rent

65/100

Strong

Crime

54/100

Average

Schools

34/100

Weak

Childcare

95/100

Elite

Environment

40/100

Below average

LiveAbility Score

View full rankings →

Rome ranks #71 out of 387 metros with a LiveAbility Score of 58.9/100 - a composite of 8 of 8 quality-of-life dimensions from federal data. Customize the weights to match your priorities →

Strongest dimension: Climate (90/100)

Climate

90
Air quality

80
Cost of living

74
Schools

66
Housing

65
Safety

54
Low hazard

45
Job market

12

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

Compare Rome to

Waco Walla Walla Warner Robins Washington-Arlington-Alexandria Waterbury-Shelton Waterloo-Cedar Falls

Metros near Rome on cost, LiveAbility, or wages

Nearest out-of-state neighbors to Rome 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

Rome cost figures follow BEA Regional Price Parities and HUD Fair Market Rents; Rome 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 Rome?

Rome runs a $59,418 median salary at a 90.2 cost index, ranking #71 of 387 nationally on LiveAbility.

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