Interactive tools
City Tools
Free, interactive tools built on the same federal data behind all 28,702 city profiles — compare cities, check cost of living, and find places that fit your budget.
- 28,702
- Cities
- 3
- Tools
- Live
- Federal data
Compare cities side by side
Line up to four cities on population, income, housing, safety and climate.
Open tool → LookupCost-of-living lookup
Type a city to see rent, home value and income vs the typical US city.
Open tool → FinderAffordable-city finder
Filter by state and budget to find cities that fit your rent or home price.
Open tool →Where the cranes are: top cities by 2024 building permits
A live snapshot from the data behind the tools — hover or tap a bar
- Fort Worth, TX
Fort Worth, Texas
13,148 permits (2024)
- Houston, TX
Houston, Texas
11,898 permits (2024)
- Los Angeles, CA
Los Angeles, California
10,488 permits (2024)
- Austin, TX
Austin, Texas
9,444 permits (2024)
- Phoenix, AZ
Phoenix, Arizona
8,997 permits (2024)
- Atlanta, GA
Atlanta, Georgia
8,109 permits (2024)
- Nashville-Davidson metropolitan government (balance), TN
Nashville-Davidson metropolitan government (balance), Tennessee
6,799 permits (2024)
- San Diego, CA
San Diego, California
6,615 permits (2024)
- Jacksonville, FL
Jacksonville, Florida
6,398 permits (2024)
- San Antonio, TX
San Antonio, Texas
6,258 permits (2024)
- Columbus, OH
Columbus, Ohio
6,084 permits (2024)
- Dallas, TX
Dallas, Texas
6,038 permits (2024)
- Miami, FL
Miami, Florida
6,023 permits (2024)
- Seattle, WA
Seattle, Washington
5,895 permits (2024)
- Raleigh, NC 5,044
Raleigh, North Carolina
5,044 permits (2024)
- Oklahoma City, OK 4,398
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
4,398 permits (2024)
- Chicago, IL 4,371
Chicago, Illinois
4,371 permits (2024)
- Omaha, NE 4,360
Omaha, Nebraska
4,360 permits (2024)
- Celina, TX 4,357
Celina, Texas
4,357 permits (2024)
- Denver, CO 3,994
Denver, Colorado
3,994 permits (2024)
What this shows Fort Worth, Texas issued the most residential building permits of any US city in 2024 — a quick example of the kind of question these tools help you ask.
How do the PlainCities tools work?
Are these city tools free?
Yes. Every tool on PlainCities is free, with no account or sign-up. They read directly from public federal data.
What data power the tools?
Census ACS 5-Year estimates for population, income and housing; FBI UCR for crime; NOAA Climate Normals for weather; Census Building Permits Survey for construction. The same data shown on every city profile.
Can I link to a comparison or search result?
Yes — the tools keep your selection in the page URL, so you can bookmark or share a specific comparison or filtered result.