Baton Rouge, the state capital · Photo: Spatms · CC BY-SA 4.0How Louisiana stacks up
Only three states charge homeowners less in property tax than Louisiana: the typical property-tax bill is $1,180. Hurricanes account for 57% of the damage FEMA expects natural hazards to do to Louisiana’s buildings each year. Overall it ranks 47th of 51, a D.
Each subject puts the official state figure beside a measure built from our town grades. How this works
Safety
48th of 51D6/100 Crime is a real weak spot. Measured by the FBI, violent crime here comes to 465 per 100,000 residents, 41% above the national figure. Many places report no crime of their own, so the town figures cover 40% of residents. Only 0% of residents live in a town in the national top quarter, led by Mandeville.
With property crime counted (property + 4 × violent), it places 7th highest.
Source: FBI Crime Data Explorer, state estimate 2025.
Measure: reported crime per resident over the engine’s three crime years (property + 4 × violent), as in our Safety grades. 23 Louisiana towns of 10,000+ against 3,410 nationally. Covers 40% of residents of Louisiana’s 10,000+ towns.
The big places weigh on the total
Covington leads its towns at #1,485 of 3,410 nationally, with Broussard and Baker close behind. Shreveport, Lafayette and Lake Charles sit at the high-crime end of the national ranking.
| State | Safest quarter | Most-crime quarter | Split |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Hampshire | 42% | 0% | |
| Rhode Island | 37% | 0% | |
| New Jersey | 35% | 20% | |
| Pennsylvania | 29% | 37% | |
| Maine | 29% | 15% | |
| Louisiana | 0% | 88% |
Read the town figures with care
Our town measure uses the crime each local police department reports to the FBI; towns without enough of the last three years are left out. In Louisiana, 40% of residents of 10,000+ towns are covered. Seven towns have too few years reported, among them New Orleans, Baton Rouge and Central. Metairie, St. George and Prairieville are among 25 places that report no crime of their own; county or state police patrol them, and their crimes aren’t counted by town. Among its neighbors, Arkansas counts the most (99%) and Mississippi the least (56%).
Schools
38th of 51C26/100 Weaker test results than most. Big places drag it down: New Orleans and Baton Rouge rank in the national bottom quarter. Compared with 31% nationally, 29% of its 4th and 8th graders test Proficient. Every neighbor scores higher, Texas, Arkansas and Mississippi among them.
On-time graduation, 82.6% (12th lowest), weighs equally with test results in the grade.
It spends $15,623 per pupil, 22nd lowest (context only; spending isn’t graded).
Source: NCES, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) 2024, public schools; EDFacts graduation rates; Census school finance.
Measure: graduation rate and test results, averaged; each district’s state-test proficiency is put on the NAEP yardstick (its result ÷ the state average × the state’s NAEP proficiency) so districts compare across states. 55 Louisiana towns of 10,000+ against 5,230 nationally.
Cost of living
11th of 51A−80/100 Cheaper than most states. Its larger towns trail the statewide figure, which also counts rural areas. At $1,180, the typical property-tax bill is the 4th lowest among the states. Town by town it lands near the middle, with Abbeville its best at #130 of 5,235.
Home values run 3.6 times the median household income, 19th lowest.
Source: Census ACS 2020–24 5-year.
Measure: our cost-of-living score: home value, rent and tax bill against area income, plus the share paying 30%+ for housing. 54 Louisiana towns of 10,000+ against 5,235 nationally.
Health
50th of 51D−3/100 Among the least healthy states. Few residents live in a top-quarter town; its best showing is Youngsville, #2,165 nationally. CDC estimates put 24% of adults in fair or poor health, the 4th highest share among the states. Every neighbor scores higher, Texas, Arkansas and Mississippi among them.
Source: CDC PLACES 2025 release (BRFSS model estimates).
Measure: our health score: seven CDC PLACES measures (general, physical and mental health, obesity, diabetes, smoking, inactivity). 54 Louisiana towns of 10,000+ against 5,218 nationally.
Housing
25th of 51B−52/100 Owners and renters in typical measure. Compared with 65% nationally, 67% of homes here are owner-occupied. Its larger places pull the town measure down: New Orleans and Baton Rouge sit in the national bottom quarter.
Source: Census ACS 2020–24 5-year.
Measure: share of occupied homes that are owner-occupied. 54 Louisiana towns of 10,000+ against 5,235 nationally.
Natural hazards
44th of 51D14/100 Higher hazard risk than most states. New Orleans and Metairie weigh on the town measure; 65% of residents live in bottom-quarter places. FEMA expects $272 of damage a year for every $100,000 of buildings, 76% above the national figure (4th highest). Hurricanes lead the list (57%), then inland flooding (34%).
The federal government declared 15 major disasters here between 2015 and 2025 (17th most).
What drives it: hurricane 57%, inland flooding 34%, tornado 3% of expected building damage.
Source: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (Dec. 2025): expected annual building loss over building value, all census tracts; FEMA disaster declarations.
Measure: FEMA National Risk Index: expected yearly building loss from 18 natural hazards, as a share of building value. 55 Louisiana towns of 10,000+ against 5,239 nationally.
Commute
26th of 51B−50/100 About average time to work. Getting to work takes 25.7 minutes on average (20th longest). Town after town lands in the national top quarter: 45% of residents live in one.
Source: Census ACS 2020–24 5-year.
Measure: average one-way commute of the town’s workers. 54 Louisiana towns of 10,000+ against 5,235 nationally.
Growth
39th of 51C−24/100 Growing slower than most states. Between 2010 and 2020 it grew 2.7%, the 10th slowest change among the states. Its larger places pull the town measure down: Baton Rouge and Shreveport sit in the national bottom quarter.
Builders took out permits for 3.3 homes per 1,000 residents in 2025, 14th fewest.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2010 and 2020 decennial counts; Census building permits.
Measure: population change between the 2010 and 2020 censuses. 54 Louisiana towns of 10,000+ against 5,079 nationally.
How Louisiana compares to its neighbors
Each of its neighbors (Texas, Arkansas and Mississippi) does better on safety, schools and health.
| Louisiana | Texas | Arkansas | Mississippi | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | D 847th of 51 | C 2638th of 51 | C− 2439th of 51 | B− 4827th of 51 |
| Safety | D 645th official · 0% in top towns | B− 5231st official · 7% in top towns | C− 1848th official · 5% in top towns | A− 8213th official · 17% in top towns |
| Schools | C 2636th official · 3% in top towns | B+ 7034th official · 15% in top towns | B− 5046th official · 9% in top towns | C+ 4437th official · 3% in top towns |
| Cost of living | A− 804th official · 17% in top towns | C− 2440th official · 4% in top towns | A+ 963rd official · 60% in top towns | A 885th official · 32% in top towns |
| Health | D− 348th official · 0% in top towns | C 2841st official · 15% in top towns | D− 348th official · 0% in top towns | D 848th official · 3% in top towns |
| Housing | B− 5225th official · 9% in top towns | D 1446th official · 7% in top towns | C− 1636th official · 3% in top towns | B 6015th official · 10% in top towns |
| Natural hazards | D 1448th official · 6% in top towns | B− 5423rd official · 10% in top towns | D 842nd official · 0% in top towns | D 643rd official · 0% in top towns |
| Commute | B− 5032nd official · 45% in top towns | C 2640th official · 16% in top towns | A− 8413th official · 76% in top towns | B− 5430th official · 52% in top towns |
| Growth | C− 2442nd official · 13% in top towns | A− 843rd official · 40% in top towns | B− 5036th official · 40% in top towns | D 1450th official · 16% in top towns |
Each cell: the subject’s grade and score, the state’s rank on the official figure (1st = the better end), and the share of residents of 10,000+ towns living in a nationally top-quarter town. Neighbor names open their report cards.
How this report card works
Two measures, side by side. The left card is the figure a state agency or federal survey publishes for the whole state, ranked against the other 49 states and D.C. The right card is built from our town grades: of everyone living in the state’s towns and cities of 10,000+, the share whose town falls in the national top quarter of 10,000+ towns. A state can do well on one and not the other; that difference is often the story.
Scores and grades. Each subject’s score (0–100) is the state’s standing among the 50 states and D.C.: the two measures’ percentiles averaged, then ranked again, the same method as our town grades. 100 is the best state, 0 the last. Letters use the town-grade scale (A+ from 95, A from 85, A− from 75 … D below 15). The overall score weighs safety 18, cost of living 18, schools 16, health 14, commute 10, housing 8, natural hazards 8, growth 8 (out of 100). D.C., a single city, is left out of the town measure and graded on official figures alone.
What it is not. A state figure averages everyone, so it cannot show whether a state is evenly good or a mix of very good and struggling places. The town measure shows the mix but leaves out towns under 10,000 and towns missing data. Neither says anything about any one neighborhood.
Schools use the Nation’s Report Card because each state’s own tests are set to different bars. Hazards use FEMA’s expected building damage, the same loss rate behind our town hazard grades. Sources are named under each figure. How grades work