Data Sources and Methodology

Airports

Airport facilities are compiled from the Federal Aviation Administration's Airport Data and Information Portal.

Airline statistics are compiled from the Bureau of Transportation Statistics.

Airport scores (1-100) and ratings (0-5) are based on weekly flights, nonstop destinations and ontime performance.

Climate

Historical weather averages are derived from Climate Normals published by the National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI). The “Normals” represent the latest 30-year averages of climatological variables (including temperature and precipitation) recorded at about 9,800 weather stations.

Colleges and Universities

Information about U.S. Colleges and Universities is compiled from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard Data.

Crime

Our crime risk indices are based on data from the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) program. The UCR is an annual compilation of crime statistics from about 18,000 university and college, city, county, state, tribal, and federal law enforcement agencies. The UCR categorizes criminal offenses as either violent crime (murder, non-negligent manslaughter, rape, robbery, and aggravated assault) or property crime (burglary, larceny-theft, and motor vehicle theft).

Hospitals

Information about hospitals is compiled from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' Data Portal.

Call 911 if you have an emergency.

Natural Hazards

Natural hazards risk data are derived from historical severe weather warnings, watches and advisories issued by NOAA.

Population and Housing

Population and housing information are derived from the American Community Survey (ACS).

Politics

Our political data are derived from county-level presidential election results obtained from the MIT Election Lab.

Schools (K–12)

Public school locations and enrollment data are compiled from the Common Core of Data (CCD), the Department of Education's primary database on public elementary and secondary education in the United States.

Public school performance and graduation rates are from the U.S. Department of Education's EDFacts initiative.

Public school attendance zones are from the School Attendance Boundary Survey (SABS).

Be sure to confirm school assignments with the school district.

Private school data are compiled from the Private School Survey (PSS), a collection of basic information on private elementary and secondary schools in the United States.

Scores

Our scores (numbers between 1 and 100) are measures of the following categories of a community's livability:

Bikeability: Ability to get around on a bike, based on commuter preference
Walkability: Ability to get around on foot, based on commuter preference
Public Transit: Public transit accessibility, based on commuter preference
Commute: Average time spent by residents on commuting
Affordability: Cost of housing and related expenses, such as property taxes and utilities
Public Safety: Risk of violent crime, weighted by severity of offense
Airports: Average distance to airports, nonstop destinations, flights per week, and ontime performance
Hospitals: Average distance to hospitals, hospital rating, and medical services available
Colleges: Average distance to colleges and return on investment
Schools: Math and reading proficiency, and graduation rates