Should I Move To
Roughly 99,692 people live in Albany, New York. Living here costs moderate relative to the rest of the country, essentially matching the national average. Median rent runs about $1,130/mo; the typical household pulls in $54,736. On the UrbRank Score it pulls a 42/100 — a D, putting it at #753 nationally.
UrbRank Score · General
Each dimension scored 0-100 against every other US city.
Based on overall cost of living vs. other US cities.
Inverse of violent + property crime rate per 100,000 residents.
Temperate summers & winters, moderate precipitation.
Walk Score — how feasible daily errands are on foot.
Unemployment rate plus household income vs. national median.
Air quality index (EPA AQS data).
Share of residents 25+ with a bachelor's degree or higher.
By the composite index, Albany sits at 103 — moderate when stacked against the rest of the country. Running the rent-to-income math ($1,130/mo against $54,736 median household income), housing eats roughly 25% of a typical paycheck — right inside the standard 30%-of-income guideline. Buying-side, the median home value is $213,400.
Full cost-of-living breakdown →The weather here is cold-winter: roughly 77°F in summer, 20°F in winter. Annual precipitation lands near 48 inches. Walkability varies a lot by neighborhood — denser pockets work fine on foot, the rest leans on driving. Crime runs notably high by national standards. As always, neighborhood-level data tells a more nuanced story than the citywide figure. AQI runs about 33 — a "good" reading.
Verdict by lifestyle profile — same data, different priorities.
For families, Albany isn't the strongest match. The profile-weighted score is 45/100 — a D. Its standout dimension is environmental quality (94/100); the soft spot is job market (10/100).
For retirees, Albany isn't the strongest match. The profile-weighted score is 43/100 — a D. Its standout dimension is environmental quality (94/100); the soft spot is job market (10/100).
For remote workers, Albany isn't the strongest match. The profile-weighted score is 50/100 — a D. Its standout dimension is environmental quality (94/100); the soft spot is job market (10/100).
For young professionals, Albany isn't the strongest match. The profile-weighted score is 33/100 — a F. Its standout dimension is environmental quality (94/100); the soft spot is job market (10/100).
Our overall score for Albany is 42/100 — a D, sitting at #753 in the national ranking. It's a weighted average across the seven UrbRank dimensions.
By the composite index, Albany sits at 103 — moderate, essentially matching the national average. Median renter pays around $1,130 a month.
Albany runs cold-winter on the weather. Summer's near 77°F, winter's near 20°F; 48 inches of precipitation annually.
Walk Score: 52/100. Walkability varies a lot by neighborhood — denser pockets work fine on foot, the rest leans on driving.
Roughly 99,692 people live here, with 43% college-educated (bachelor's or higher) among adults 25+ with a median age of 32.
Drop Albany into the comparison tool with any other US city and you'll get housing costs, salaries, demographics, and quality-of-life data lined up side by side. Profile-specific leaderboards (families, retirees, remote workers, young professionals) are linked from the navigation.
Every US city is scored 0-100 on seven dimensions using public data from the US Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, FBI Crime Data Explorer, EPA Air Quality System, NOAA NCEI, and Walk Score. Each dimension is a percentile rank against every other city — so a score of 80 means the city is in the top 20% nationally on that dimension.
The overall score is a weighted average. Five lifestyle profiles — general, families, retirees, remote workers, young professionals — weight the dimensions differently to reflect what each cares about. Families get more weight on safety and schools; young professionals get more weight on jobs and walkability; retirees get more weight on climate.
Compare Albany with other New York cities scored on UrbRank.
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