Should I Move To
Norfolk, Virginia comes in at about 236,973 residents. Cost of living comes out moderate — essentially matching the national average. Rent typically lands near $1,188/mo, and the median household income is about $60,998. Overall, 54/100 on our composite score, which works out to a C-, putting it at #347 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 98 (with 100 as the US baseline) — that's moderate territory. With median rent at $1,188/mo and median household income at $60,998, housing takes about 23% of gross income — right inside the standard 30%-of-income guideline. Homes typically value around $254,200.
Full cost-of-living breakdown →Expect four-season weather — summers near 85°F, winters around 34°F. Rain (and snow, in some seasons) totals about 48 inches annually. You'll need a car for most things, though the central core is more walkable than the citywide score suggests. Crime runs notably high by national standards. As always, neighborhood-level data tells a more nuanced story than the citywide figure. AQI runs about 36 — a "good" reading.
Verdict by lifestyle profile — same data, different priorities.
Norfolk is a tougher sell for families. The profile-weighted score is 51/100 — a C-. Its standout dimension is climate (93/100); the soft spot is safety (8/100).
On the retirees profile, Norfolk sits squarely in the middle. The profile-weighted score is 60/100 — a C+. Its standout dimension is climate (93/100); the soft spot is safety (8/100).
On the remote workers profile, Norfolk sits squarely in the middle. The profile-weighted score is 64/100 — a C+. Its standout dimension is climate (93/100); the soft spot is safety (8/100).
Norfolk is a tougher sell for young professionals. The profile-weighted score is 47/100 — a D. Its standout dimension is climate (93/100); the soft spot is safety (8/100).
Our overall score for Norfolk is 54/100 — a C-, sitting at #347 in the national ranking. It's a weighted average across the seven UrbRank dimensions.
By the composite index, Norfolk sits at 98 — moderate, essentially matching the national average. Median renter pays around $1,188 a month.
Norfolk runs four-season on the weather. Summer's near 85°F, winter's near 34°F; 48 inches of precipitation annually.
Walk Score: 47/100. You'll need a car for most things, though the central core is more walkable than the citywide score suggests.
Roughly 236,973 people live here, with 32% college-educated (bachelor's or higher) among adults 25+ with a median age of 32.
Drop Norfolk 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 Norfolk with other Virginia cities scored on UrbRank.
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