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City cost of living 2026

Cost of living in Jacksonville, NC

The Jacksonville, NC metro area (212,954 people) ranks #124 of 149 for prices among the U.S. metro areas we cover. Here's what it costs to live there.

By Data reviewed Data: Census ACS, BEA, BLS, NOAA, IRS, FEMA (methodology)

New York, NY: price level 112.6Los Angeles, CA: price level 113.6Chicago, IL: price level 103.6Dallas, TX: price level 103.1Houston, TX: price level 98.6Miami, FL: price level 114.2Washington, D.C.: price level 108.9Atlanta, GA: price level 100.1Philadelphia, PA: price level 102.6Phoenix, AZ: price level 103.3Boston, MA: price level 108.3Riverside, CA: price level 106.4San Francisco, CA: price level 115.6Detroit, MI: price level 100.3Seattle, WA: price level 111.1Minneapolis, MN: price level 104.8Tampa, FL: price level 100.9San Diego, CA: price level 111.9Denver, CO: price level 105.8Orlando, FL: price level 101.4Charlotte, NC: price level 97.3Baltimore, MD: price level 104.5St. Louis, MO: price level 95.1San Antonio, TX: price level 94.7Austin, TX: price level 98.1Portland, OR: price level 105.4Sacramento, CA: price level 106.7Pittsburgh, PA: price level 94.7Las Vegas, NV: price level 100.2Cincinnati, OH: price level 95.4Kansas City, MO: price level 92.5Columbus, OH: price level 95.5Indianapolis, IN: price level 95.7Cleveland, OH: price level 93.9Nashville, TN: price level 96.3San Jose, CA: price level 110.4Virginia Beach, VA: price level 97.9Jacksonville, FL: price level 99.5Providence, RI: price level 101.8Milwaukee, WI: price level 96.9Raleigh, NC: price level 98.2Oklahoma City, OK: price level 90.4Louisville, KY: price level 93.1Richmond, VA: price level 97.9Memphis, TN: price level 92.2Salt Lake City, UT: price level 100.9Birmingham, AL: price level 91.6Fresno, CA: price level 102.2Grand Rapids, MI: price level 95.5Hartford, CT: price level 102.7Buffalo, NY: price level 95.8Tucson, AZ: price level 96.9Tulsa, OK: price level 89.2Rochester, NY: price level 97.0Omaha, NE: price level 91.9Honolulu, HI: price level 111.0Greenville, SC: price level 93.3Bridgeport, CT: price level 106.9New Orleans, LA: price level 92.6Knoxville, TN: price level 92.6Sarasota, FL: price level 102.4Albuquerque, NM: price level 95.5Bakersfield, CA: price level 100.9McAllen, TX: price level 85.9Albany, NY: price level 99.6Allentown, PA: price level 100.0Baton Rouge, LA: price level 90.8Worcester, MA: price level 102.5El Paso, TX: price level 89.9Columbia, SC: price level 93.7Charleston, SC: price level 101.0Cape Coral, FL: price level 102.3Lakeland, FL: price level 97.1Boise, ID: price level 98.4Oxnard, CA: price level 110.5Dayton, OH: price level 92.7Stockton, CA: price level 105.1Greensboro, NC: price level 92.9Colorado Springs, CO: price level 100.7Little Rock, AR: price level 89.4Provo, UT: price level 98.2Des Moines, IA: price level 91.7Daytona Beach, FL: price level 99.4Poughkeepsie, NY: price level 109.4Madison, WI: price level 97.3Winston-Salem, NC: price level 92.0Akron, OH: price level 93.4Ogden, UT: price level 100.3Wichita, KS: price level 88.9Palm Bay, FL: price level 100.0Syracuse, NY: price level 95.7Augusta, GA: price level 91.9Durham, NC: price level 97.6Harrisburg, PA: price level 98.7Jackson, MS: price level 89.0Fayetteville, AR: price level 91.4Spokane, WA: price level 100.3Toledo, OH: price level 91.5Chattanooga, TN: price level 91.5New Haven, CT: price level 104.6Reno, NV: price level 101.0Portland, ME: price level 101.9Port St. Lucie, FL: price level 100.2Huntsville, AL: price level 93.1Pensacola, FL: price level 97.7Lexington, KY: price level 92.9Killeen, TX: price level 91.1Springfield, MO: price level 88.6Santa Rosa, CA: price level 107.8Wilmington, NC: price level 96.4Fort Wayne, IN: price level 92.6Vallejo, CA: price level 108.5Santa Barbara, CA: price level 108.8Salinas, CA: price level 109.0Savannah, GA: price level 95.2Manchester, NH: price level 105.7Ocala, FL: price level 95.2Asheville, NC: price level 96.5Naples, FL: price level 103.2Myrtle Beach, SC: price level 93.6Anchorage, AK: price level 105.4Spartanburg, SC: price level 91.1Fayetteville, NC: price level 92.0Trenton, NJ: price level 103.2Eugene, OR: price level 101.6Fort Collins, CO: price level 101.1Ann Arbor, MI: price level 100.9Greeley, CO: price level 100.2Gainesville, FL: price level 96.7Clarksville, TN: price level 90.9Boulder, CO: price level 105.2Columbus, GA: price level 89.3Crestview, FL: price level 97.0Sioux Falls, SD: price level 90.6Olympia, WA: price level 103.7Norwich, CT: price level 100.4Bremerton, WA: price level 105.6Fargo, ND: price level 90.9Bend, OR: price level 103.6Daphne, AL: price level 94.7Prescott, AZ: price level 98.3Hilton Head Island, SC: price level 98.0Burlington, VT: price level 100.9Panama City, FL: price level 97.3Jacksonville, NC: price level 92.1Punta Gorda, FL: price level 100.5Billings, MT: price level 93.5The Villages, FL: price level 85.4Cheyenne, WY: price level 96.5

Hover over or tap a dot to see its value.

Price level of the 149 metros we cover
See all 149 cities

Price level, from cheaper to pricier.

Salary to match $75k
$71,400
vs. an average-priced, no-income-tax area
Median rent
$1,389
per month · need $55,560 income
Median home
$262,000
need about $70,301 to buy

Compare Jacksonville, NC with your city

See what you'd need to earn in Jacksonville, NC to keep your lifestyle, after taxes and local prices. The calculator starts from Wilmington, NC, which sends the most households here of the metros we cover (IRS, 2022–2023), at about its median household income. Pick your own city and salary.

Equal salary in Jacksonville, NC: $75,800

Compare any two of 149 U.S. metro areas. All cities

To keep the same lifestyle, you need about $75,800 in Jacksonville, NC to match $80,000 in Wilmington, NC ($4,200 less), after 2026 taxes and local prices.

Single filer, W-2 salary. Both are in North Carolina, so state income tax is the same; neither city levies a resident income tax.

Take-home in Wilmington
$62,427
22.0% total tax
Take-home in Jacksonville, NC
$62,427
22.0% total tax
Prices in Jacksonville, NC
-4.5%
vs Wilmington (BEA 2024)
Renting: change after selected costs
+$2,268
per year, after taxes, rent and power; excludes food, transport, healthcare, child care and moving costs

What things cost in Jacksonville, NC

Price level by category (U.S. = 100)
Below the U.S. average
Overall92.1
Housing72.1
Goods96.6
Utilities87.2
Other services98.2

The vertical line marks the U.S. average (100). BEA Regional Price Parities 2024 for the metropolitan area.

Taxes in Jacksonville, NC

On a $75,000 salary (about the area's median household income), a single filer keeps $59,109 after 2026 federal tax ($7,670), Social Security and Medicare ($5,738) and North Carolina income tax ($2,484).

Housing

MeasureJacksonville, NC area
Median rent$1,389/mo
Median home value$262,000
Median property tax$1,682/yr
Monthly cost to own the median home (20% down)$1,640
Median household income$73,004

Climate and jobs in Jacksonville, NC

In the Jacksonville, NC area the average January low is 35°F and the average July high 89°F, and the area has about 44 days a year at 90°F or hotter. Unemployment averaged 4.0% in 2025, below the U.S. rate (4.3%), and the median wage across all jobs was $40,230 a year, 21% below the U.S. median.

Climate in the Jacksonville, NC area: NOAA 1991–2020 normals
Climate1991–2020 average
January low35°F
July high89°F
Days 90°F or hotter44 a year
Precipitation57 in a year
Snowfall0.6 in a year
Jobs and pay in the Jacksonville, NC area compared with the U.S. (Bureau of Labor Statistics)
Jobs and payMetro areaU.S.
Unemployment rate, 2025 average4.0%4.3%
Median wage, all jobs (May 2025)$40,230$50,980
Wage and salary jobs (May 2025)52,570155.5 million

Climate: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020 averages at the New River MCAF station (USW00093727). Weather varies across a metro area, especially with elevation and distance from the coast. Jobs: unemployment from BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics; wages and job counts from BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, which count wage and salary jobs, not the self-employed; wages are before taxes. The 2025 average covers 11 months: October 2025 data were not collected during the federal government shutdown.

Retiring in Jacksonville, NC

A single retiree spends about $2,920 a month here if they own their home outright, or $3,876 renting, based on typical spending for households 65 and older (BLS 2024) adjusted for local prices. See where your budget goes furthest.

Where people move to and from Jacksonville, NC

Leaving Jacksonville, NC for… (households)
Wilmington613
San Diego392
Washington, D.C.366
Raleigh250
Riverside182
Virginia Beach134
Hilton Head Island125
Charlotte124
Moving to Jacksonville, NC from… (households)
Wilmington687
San Diego455
Washington, D.C.321
New York266
Raleigh248
Riverside198
Virginia Beach187
Los Angeles154

IRS county-to-county migration data, 2022–2023, aggregated to the 149 metro areas we cover.

Natural hazard risk

FEMA rates the Jacksonville, NC area among the highest for natural hazard risk (score 95 of 100), with expected losses of about $1,063 per resident per year. Disaster risk by county in North Carolina.

Highest relative risks (national percentile)
Higher risk than most U.S. counties
Hurricane99
Winter weather98
Lightning92
Heat wave88
Wildfire86

The vertical line marks the middle of U.S. counties (50).

Frequently asked questions

What salary do you need to live in Jacksonville, NC?

To match the buying power of $75,000 in an average-priced area with no state income tax, you need about $71,400 in Jacksonville, NC. Renting the median home at 30% of income takes $55,560, and buying the median home with 20% down takes about $70,301.

Is Jacksonville, NC expensive?

The Jacksonville, NC metro area's price level is 92.1 (U.S. = 100), #124 of the 149 metro areas we cover, from most to least expensive. Its housing price index is 72.1, 28% below the U.S. average.

Are people moving to Jacksonville, NC?

Counting moves to and from the other 148 metro areas we cover, Jacksonville, NC had a net gain of about 597 households in 2022–2023 (IRS county migration data).

What is the weather like in Jacksonville, NC?

In NOAA's 1991–2020 climate normals for the Jacksonville, NC area (New River MCAF weather station), the average January low is 35°F and the average July high 89°F. The area has about 44 days a year at 90°F or hotter and gets 57 inches of precipitation a year and about 0.6 inches of snow.

What are jobs and pay like in Jacksonville, NC?

The Jacksonville, NC metro area's unemployment rate averaged 4.0% in 2025, below the U.S. rate (4.3%). The median wage across all jobs was $40,230 a year in May 2025, 21% below the U.S. median of $50,980 (Bureau of Labor Statistics).

What natural disasters affect Jacksonville, NC?

FEMA's National Risk Index rates the area among the highest overall (score 95). The highest relative risks are hurricane, winter weather, lightning.

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