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City cost of living 2026

Cost of living in Syracuse, NY

The Syracuse, NY metro area (655,189 people) ranks #97 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
$76,700
vs. an average-priced, no-income-tax area
Median rent
$1,114
per month · need $44,560 income
Median home
$217,600
need about $70,689 to buy

Compare Syracuse with your city

See what you'd need to earn in Syracuse to keep your lifestyle, after taxes and local prices. The calculator starts from New York, NY, 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 Syracuse: $78,200

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

To keep the same lifestyle, you need about $78,200 in Syracuse, NY to match $100,000 in New York, NY ($21,800 less), after 2026 taxes and local prices.

Single filer, W-2 salary. Both are in New York, so state income tax is the same; includes New York City resident tax $3,441 (inside city limits).

Take-home in New York
$70,467
29.5% total tax
Take-home in Syracuse
$73,908
26.1% total tax
Prices in Syracuse
-15.0%
vs New York (BEA 2024)
Renting: change after selected costs
+$12,285
per year, after taxes, rent and power; excludes food, transport, healthcare, child care and moving costs

What things cost in Syracuse

Price level by category (U.S. = 100)
Below the U.S. average Above the U.S. average At the U.S. average
Overall95.7
Housing80.7
Goods99.7
Utilities133.4
Other services97.8

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

Taxes in Syracuse

On a $75,000 salary (about the area's median household income), a single filer keeps $57,816 after 2026 federal tax ($7,670), Social Security and Medicare ($5,738) and New York income tax ($3,453), plus $324 in state payroll programs.

Housing

MeasureSyracuse area
Median rent$1,114/mo
Median home value$217,600
Median property tax$4,643/yr
Monthly cost to own the median home (20% down)$1,649
Median household income$76,313

Climate and jobs in Syracuse

In the Syracuse area the average January low is 17°F and the average July high 82°F, and the area has about 10 days a year at 90°F or hotter. Unemployment averaged 3.7% in 2025, below the U.S. rate (4.3%), and the median wage across all jobs was $52,990 a year, 4% above the U.S. median.

Climate in the Syracuse area: NOAA 1991–2020 normals
Climate1991–2020 average
January low17°F
July high82°F
Days 90°F or hotter10 a year
Precipitation40 in a year
Snowfall128 in a year
Jobs and pay in the Syracuse area compared with the U.S. (Bureau of Labor Statistics)
Jobs and payMetro areaU.S.
Unemployment rate, 2025 average3.7%4.3%
Median wage, all jobs (May 2025)$52,990$50,980
Wage and salary jobs (May 2025)300,130155.5 million

Climate: NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020 averages at the Syracuse Hancock International Airport station (USW00014771). 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 Syracuse

A single retiree spends about $3,367 a month here if they own their home outright, or $3,803 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 Syracuse

Leaving Syracuse for… (households)
New York591
Rochester507
Albany220
Buffalo219
Boston185
Tampa165
Washington, D.C.161
Charlotte137
Moving to Syracuse from… (households)
New York632
Rochester462
Buffalo172
Albany170
Miami115
Boston104
Tampa102
Poughkeepsie74

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

Natural hazard risk

FEMA rates the Syracuse area among the highest for natural hazard risk (score 83.8 of 100), with expected losses of about $231 per resident per year. Disaster risk by county in New York.

Highest relative risks (national percentile)
Higher risk than most U.S. counties
Winter weather94
Ice storm92
Riverine flooding91
Strong wind87
Lightning85

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

Frequently asked questions

What salary do you need to live in Syracuse?

To match the buying power of $75,000 in an average-priced area with no state income tax, you need about $76,700 in Syracuse. Renting the median home at 30% of income takes $44,560, and buying the median home with 20% down takes about $70,689.

Is Syracuse expensive?

The Syracuse metro area's price level is 95.7 (U.S. = 100), #97 of the 149 metro areas we cover, from most to least expensive. Its housing price index is 80.7, 19% below the U.S. average.

Are people moving to Syracuse?

Counting moves to and from the other 148 metro areas we cover, Syracuse had a net loss of about 1,339 households in 2022–2023 (IRS county migration data).

What is the weather like in Syracuse?

In NOAA's 1991–2020 climate normals for the Syracuse area (Syracuse Hancock International Airport weather station), the average January low is 17°F and the average July high 82°F. The area has about 10 days a year at 90°F or hotter and gets 40 inches of precipitation a year and about 128 inches of snow.

What are jobs and pay like in Syracuse?

The Syracuse metro area's unemployment rate averaged 3.7% in 2025, below the U.S. rate (4.3%). The median wage across all jobs was $52,990 a year in May 2025, 4% above the U.S. median of $50,980 (Bureau of Labor Statistics).

What natural disasters affect Syracuse?

FEMA's National Risk Index rates the area among the highest overall (score 83.8). The highest relative risks are winter weather, ice storm, riverine flooding.

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