Should I Move To
Lubbock, Texas comes in at about 258,190 residents. Cost of living comes out affordable — 13% below the national average. Rent typically lands near $1,093/mo, and the median household income is about $58,734. Overall, 56/100 on our composite score, which works out to a C, putting it at #263 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.
Cost-of-living index of 87 (with 100 as the US baseline) — that's affordable territory. With median rent at $1,093/mo and median household income at $58,734, housing takes about 22% of gross income — right inside the standard 30%-of-income guideline. Homes typically value around $181,600.
Full cost-of-living breakdown →Expect hot-summer weather — summers near 92°F, winters around 29°F. Rain (and snow, in some seasons) totals about 18 inches annually. Walking covers most daily life if you live in a central neighborhood; a car is helpful for longer trips but not essential. Crime runs notably high by national standards. As always, neighborhood-level data tells a more nuanced story than the citywide figure. AQI runs about 31 — a "good" reading.
Verdict by lifestyle profile — same data, different priorities.
Lubbock is a tougher sell for families. The profile-weighted score is 52/100 — a C-. Its standout dimension is environmental quality (96/100); the soft spot is safety (11/100).
On the retirees profile, Lubbock sits squarely in the middle. The profile-weighted score is 57/100 — a C. Its standout dimension is environmental quality (96/100); the soft spot is safety (11/100).
On the remote workers profile, Lubbock sits squarely in the middle. The profile-weighted score is 64/100 — a C+. Its standout dimension is environmental quality (96/100); the soft spot is safety (11/100).
Lubbock is a tougher sell for young professionals. The profile-weighted score is 53/100 — a C-. Its standout dimension is environmental quality (96/100); the soft spot is safety (11/100).
Our overall score for Lubbock is 56/100 — a C, sitting at #263 in the national ranking. It's a weighted average across the seven UrbRank dimensions.
By the composite index, Lubbock sits at 87 — affordable, 13% below the national average. Median renter pays around $1,093 a month.
Lubbock runs hot-summer on the weather. Summer's near 92°F, winter's near 29°F; 18 inches of precipitation annually.
Walk Score: 70/100. Walking covers most daily life if you live in a central neighborhood; a car is helpful for longer trips but not essential.
Roughly 258,190 people live here, with 34% college-educated (bachelor's or higher) among adults 25+ with a median age of 30.
Drop Lubbock 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 Lubbock with other Texas cities scored on UrbRank.
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