Understanding Benchmarks

Why do ratings need to be at least 10 points higher or lower than the benchmark to be considered different?

Great question! We use a 10-point difference to label a rating as "higher" or "lower" in order to provide communities with more meaningful and actionable data. Most ratings will typically be "similar" to the benchmark, but when they differ by 10 points or more, it highlights significant strengths or areas needing improvement. For even larger gaps, we use "much higher" or "much lower" labels when ratings differ by 20 points or more from the national average, marking areas where performance is exceptionally strong or weak.