How we score

Per-factor percentiles

Every place, county, and state is ranked against its peers of the same type on 38 livability factors. A percentile of 90 means a region scores better than 90% of comparable regions on that factor. Cost, crime, commute, taxes, and other "lower is better" factors are inverted so a higher percentile always reads as better.

The overall score

The headline score is an equal-weighted average of the factors that have an unambiguous good direction — cost of living, safety, environment, schools, mobility, and amenities. Preference-dependent factors (income level, home value, climate targets, demographics) are shown as neutral context and never count toward the score. Demographic composition is shown for information only and is never used to rank a place.

Want a score tuned to your priorities? The interactive map lets you weight every factor yourself.

Data sources

U.S. Census ACS (demographics, housing, income, commute, broadband), NOAA Climate Normals (weather), FBI & Jacob Kaplan datasets (crime), EPA (air quality, walkability), FEMA National Risk Index (disaster risk), NCES (schools), Tax Foundation & state agencies (taxes), FAA (airport access), USGS PAD-US (parks), and OpenStreetMap (amenities).