Cost of living by state
Three practical ways to answer "how much do I need to make to live there?", calculated for all 50 states and DC with 2026 taxes.
Three ways to measure it
Typical lifestyle
The salary that gives a single filer the same after-tax buying power as the U.S. median household income of $81,604, taxed the same way, in a typical state. Each state page also sizes it for a couple, a single parent and a family of four.
Rent affordably
Income needed so the state's median rent is no more than 30% of gross pay.
Buy a median home
Income benchmark for the median-priced home with 20% down, using modeled housing costs at 28% of gross income. Mortgage approval depends on the lender and loan program.
All states, most expensive first
| State | Typical lifestyle | Family of 4 | Price level | Rent affordably | Buy a home |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | $99,200 | $185,600 | 110.7 | $84,160 | $201,898 |
| Hawaii | $98,500 | $188,100 | 110.0 | $77,680 | $218,513 |
| Washington, DC | $97,300 | $205,400 | 109.9 | $77,240 | $191,942 |
| New Jersey | $95,100 | $185,900 | 108.8 | $72,000 | $154,201 |
| Maryland | $95,000 | $186,800 | 105.0 | $68,840 | $121,641 |
| New York | $95,000 | $192,500 | 107.9 | $65,360 | $133,184 |
| Oregon | $94,100 | $188,400 | 103.4 | $63,880 | $134,176 |
| Massachusetts | $92,900 | $190,600 | 105.8 | $73,920 | $169,548 |
| Connecticut | $90,900 | $184,400 | 103.6 | $62,000 | $122,181 |
| Washington | $88,800 | $176,600 | 107.0 | $72,960 | $162,244 |
| Colorado | $88,500 | $171,200 | 103.1 | $72,880 | $152,405 |
| Rhode Island | $87,900 | $183,900 | 102.3 | $56,720 | $130,277 |
| Virginia | $87,600 | $170,200 | 101.1 | $65,840 | $109,145 |
| Delaware | $87,100 | $173,800 | 99.8 | $61,200 | $96,755 |
| Illinois | $86,400 | $176,600 | 100.0 | $52,880 | $89,823 |
| Minnesota | $85,900 | $179,700 | 98.6 | $51,640 | $99,582 |
| Utah | $84,800 | $159,100 | 98.9 | $63,720 | $140,843 |
| New Hampshire | $84,500 | $168,500 | 104.2 | $62,320 | $135,430 |
| Maine | $84,100 | $175,500 | 97.0 | $48,400 | $94,830 |
| Florida | $83,700 | $154,900 | 103.4 | $72,480 | $112,328 |
| Arizona | $83,600 | $158,700 | 100.7 | $66,880 | $110,313 |
| Alaska | $83,200 | $160,800 | 102.4 | $57,760 | $106,865 |
| Vermont | $83,000 | $178,500 | 98.0 | $52,760 | $104,280 |
| Pennsylvania | $82,000 | $167,100 | 97.6 | $50,080 | $80,370 |
| Georgia | $81,900 | $154,000 | 96.3 | $60,240 | $95,079 |
| Michigan | $81,600 | $167,800 | 96.2 | $46,720 | $74,224 |
| Idaho | $80,900 | $153,100 | 95.5 | $55,360 | $115,244 |
| Nevada | $80,600 | $153,500 | 100.0 | $68,360 | $117,731 |
| Montana | $80,000 | $166,800 | 94.6 | $47,080 | $115,669 |
| Wisconsin | $79,700 | $169,000 | 94.1 | $45,680 | $86,030 |
| Indiana | $79,500 | $163,600 | 93.3 | $44,160 | $67,974 |
| North Carolina | $79,000 | $154,300 | 94.3 | $53,520 | $89,940 |
| South Carolina | $78,800 | $155,000 | 93.7 | $50,880 | $79,734 |
| Texas | $77,900 | $148,600 | 97.1 | $59,000 | $95,892 |
| New Mexico | $76,800 | $137,800+ | 92.2 | $44,680 | $76,243 |
| Kansas | $76,300 | $153,400 | 90.1 | $43,160 | $73,599 |
| Ohio | $76,200 | $154,500 | 92.8 | $43,600 | $70,799 |
| Missouri | $75,600 | $154,000 | 90.8 | $42,680 | $72,646 |
| Kentucky | $75,000 | $153,400 | 90.2 | $39,920 | $63,564 |
| Nebraska | $74,900 | $152,900 | 90.1 | $44,080 | $82,486 |
| Alabama | $74,600 | $146,000 | 88.8 | $43,080 | $63,380 |
| West Virginia | $74,400 | $151,700 | 89.5 | $35,320 | $46,687 |
| Wyoming | $73,800 | $151,100 | 92.7 | $39,920 | $92,251 |
| Oklahoma | $73,100 | $143,900 | 87.8 | $41,760 | $65,813 |
| Tennessee | $73,000 | $143,400 | 91.9 | $51,360 | $88,036 |
| Iowa | $72,200 | $147,000 | 87.8 | $39,240 | $68,674 |
| Louisiana | $72,100 | $142,800 | 88.2 | $42,560 | $64,649 |
| Arkansas | $71,600 | $142,600 | 86.9 | $39,280 | $59,951 |
| Mississippi | $71,500 | $138,700 | 87.0 | $39,600 | $54,241 |
| North Dakota | $70,500 | $143,800 | 89.0 | $39,200 | $76,783 |
| South Dakota | $70,000 | $139,900 | 88.6 | $39,960 | $84,417 |
Typical lifestyle: one adult, taxed as a single filer. Family of 4: two adults filing jointly with children aged 4 and 9, the same lifestyle sized for four people, with rent for two bedrooms and full-time child care for the 4-year-old (New Mexico has no recent child care price, so its figure is a minimum); each state page shows how it's built. Price level: BEA Regional Price Parities 2024 (U.S. = 100). See methodology. For metro areas, see cost of living by city; for what a $75,000 salary is worth in each state, see the state rankings.