Cost of Living by City (2026)
Cost of living for 45 major US cities: index vs the national average, median rent, home prices, monthly costs and what a salary is really worth.
Every city below is scored against a US average of 100 using Regional Price Parities from the Bureau of Economic Analysis, then paired with Census median rent, home value and household income.
A city at 110 is roughly 10% more expensive than the national average — so $100,000 of income there buys about what $91,000 buys nationally. That difference is usually larger than the salary gap between two cities, which is why a bigger offer in a pricier metro can leave you worse off.
| City | Cost-of-living index | vs US average |
|---|---|---|
| Wichita, KS | 89 | -11% |
| Tulsa, OK | 89 | -11% |
| El Paso, TX | 90 | -10% |
| Oklahoma City, OK | 90 | -10% |
| Omaha, NE | 92 | -8% |
| Memphis, TN | 92 | -8% |
| Kansas City, MO | 92 | -8% |
| New Orleans, LA | 93 | -7% |
| Louisville, KY | 93 | -7% |
| San Antonio, TX | 95 | -5% |
| Albuquerque, NM | 96 | -4% |
| Columbus, OH | 96 | -4% |
| Indianapolis, IN | 96 | -4% |
| Nashville, TN | 96 | -4% |
| Milwaukee, WI | 97 | -3% |
| Tucson, AZ | 97 | -3% |
| Charlotte, NC | 97 | -3% |
| Austin, TX | 98 | -2% |
| Raleigh, NC | 98 | -2% |
| Houston, TX | 99 | -1% |
| Jacksonville, FL | 100 | -0% |
| Atlanta, GA | 100 | +0% |
| Las Vegas, NV | 100 | +0% |
| Detroit, MI | 100 | +0% |
| Colorado Springs, CO | 101 | +1% |
| Fresno, CA | 102 | +2% |
| Philadelphia, PA | 103 | +3% |
| Dallas, TX | 103 | +3% |
| Fort Worth, TX | 103 | +3% |
| Phoenix, AZ | 103 | +3% |
| Chicago, IL | 104 | +4% |
| Baltimore, MD | 104 | +4% |
| Minneapolis, MN | 105 | +5% |
| Portland, OR | 105 | +5% |
| Denver, CO | 106 | +6% |
| Sacramento, CA | 107 | +7% |
| Boston, MA | 108 | +8% |
| Washington, DC | 109 | +9% |
| San Jose, CA | 110 | +10% |
| Seattle, WA | 111 | +11% |
| San Diego, CA | 112 | +12% |
| New York, NY | 113 | +13% |
| Los Angeles, CA | 114 | +14% |
| Miami, FL | 114 | +14% |
| San Francisco, CA | 116 | +16% |