Should I Move To
Roughly 181,288 people live in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Living here costs affordable relative to the rest of the country, 14% below the national average. Median rent runs about $1,066/mo; the typical household pulls in $57,703. On the UrbRank Score it pulls a 46/100 — a D, putting it at #641 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, Chattanooga sits at 86 — affordable when stacked against the rest of the country. Running the rent-to-income math ($1,066/mo against $57,703 median household income), housing eats roughly 22% of a typical paycheck — right inside the standard 30%-of-income guideline. Buying-side, the median home value is $230,500.
Full cost-of-living breakdown →The weather here is four-season: roughly 91°F in summer, 35°F in winter. Annual precipitation lands near 54 inches. Some neighborhoods are walkable; others aren't. A car is useful, but not required everywhere. Crime statistics are on the rougher end of the US distribution; the citywide aggregate hides safer pockets but the headline number isn't great. Air quality reads good (AQI 48).
Verdict by lifestyle profile — same data, different priorities.
For families, Chattanooga isn't the strongest match. It earns 50/100 (grade C-) on the families profile. Strongest on affordability (87/100); weakest on safety (4/100).
For retirees, Chattanooga isn't the strongest match. It earns 54/100 (grade C-) on the retirees profile. Strongest on affordability (87/100); weakest on safety (4/100).
For remote workers, Chattanooga is workable — not standout, not weak. It earns 58/100 (grade C) on the remote workers profile. Strongest on affordability (87/100); weakest on safety (4/100).
For young professionals, Chattanooga isn't the strongest match. It earns 52/100 (grade C-) on the young professionals profile. Strongest on affordability (87/100); weakest on safety (4/100).
Chattanooga, Tennessee pulls a 46/100 overall on the UrbRank Score (grade D), currently ranked #641 nationally. The composite weights seven lifestyle dimensions: affordability, safety, climate, walkability, jobs, environment, and education.
Chattanooga's cost-of-living index is 86 (with 100 as the US average), which lands in the affordable band — 14% below the national average. Median rent runs about $1,066/mo.
Four-season — summer averages around 91°F, winter averages around 35°F, with about 54 inches of precipitation a year.
Walk Score: 54/100. Some neighborhoods are walkable; others aren't. A car is useful, but not required everywhere.
Chattanooga has about 181,288 residents, 34% of adults 25+ holding a bachelor's degree or higher with a median age of 37.
Use UrbRank's comparison tool to put Chattanooga head-to-head against any other US city — housing, salaries, demographics, and quality-of-life metrics side by side. The leaderboard pages also show how Chattanooga stacks up for families, retirees, remote workers, and young professionals specifically.
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 Chattanooga with other Tennessee cities scored on UrbRank.
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