Cost of living in North Dakota
Prices in North Dakota are 11.0% below the U.S. average, and it ranks #50 of 51 for the salary needed to live a typical American lifestyle (#1 is the most expensive). Here's what it takes in 2026.
These figures answer different questions: “typical lifestyle” preserves an illustrative level of buying power; “rent affordably” uses a 30% housing ratio; “buy” uses a lender-style housing ratio. They are not a complete minimum living-wage budget or an individual wage survey. Housing medians are Census ACS 2024; price levels are BEA 2024; taxes use 2026 rules.
What your salary is worth in North Dakota
Take-home in North Dakota: $68,251 a year
The default is a move from Minnesota, the state that sends the most movers to North Dakota (IRS 2022–2023), using its median household income as an illustrative single-earner salary. Household income can include several earners and other income; it is not a typical individual wage. A salary and filing status entered in another tool carry over. Pick North Dakota if you already live here.
$85,000 a year in North Dakota leaves you about $68,251 after taxes once you pay $9,870 federal income tax, $6,503 Social Security and Medicare and $377 North Dakota income tax.
Single filer, W-2 salary, standard deduction, 2026 rules, no city income tax. Buying power: your take-home at North Dakota prices vs. the U.S. median household income ($81,604) taxed the same way in a typical state.
Salary needed to live in North Dakota
Typical lifestyle. We take the U.S. median household income of $81,604, taxed as a single filer in a typical state, and find the North Dakota salary that buys the same after taxes at North Dakota prices (price level 89.0, where the U.S. = 100). At $70,500, a single filer here pays $6,680 federal income tax, $5,393 Social Security and Medicare, and $94 state income tax, keeping $58,333. A married couple filing jointly needs about $72,000 of combined pay, measured against a couple earning the U.S. median taxed jointly. That figure differs from the single-filer one only because of joint tax rates; it isn't a larger budget for two people. For that, see the salary needed for a couple or a family.
Renting. The median North Dakota rent is $980 a month, 34% below the U.S. median of $1,487. Keeping it to 30% of gross pay, a common affordability line, takes $39,200 a year.
Buying. The median North Dakota home is worth $266,100, 26% below the U.S. median. Using modeled housing costs at 28% of gross income, the planning benchmark is about $76,783 with 20% down, or $88,832 with 10% down (including mortgage insurance), with no HOA or other debt payments. These figures exclude maintenance, repairs and utilities; mortgage approval depends on the lender and loan program.
Taxes. Taxes pull North Dakota down the ranking: it's #44 of 51 for prices but #50 for the salary needed, because its state taxes are lighter than those of states with similar prices. North Dakota taxes wages at graduated rates that rise with income: about $94 at the typical-lifestyle salary, or 0.1% of pay, and a larger share of higher salaries. Homeowners pay a median $2,550 a year in property tax, about 0.96% of the median home's value, against 0.89% nationally.
Salary needed for a family in North Dakota
A family of four, two adults with children aged 4 and 9, needs about $143,800 a year in North Dakota to live like the single adult above, sized for four people. A single parent with one child needs about $111,300, and a couple without children about $91,100. For comparison, the median four-person household in North Dakota earned $133,762 in 2024 (Census ACS table B19019 (opens in new tab)). Our figure is higher because it starts from what the median U.S. household earns, whatever its size, and sizes that standard of living up for four people.
The single adult's typical-lifestyle salary above leaves $46,573 a year after taxes and rent for everything else: food, transportation, health care, utilities, savings and the rest. A bigger household needs more of that. We scale it with the Census Bureau's equivalence scale for household size, the one behind its Supplemental Poverty Measure (opens in new tab): 1.41 times as much for a couple, 1.51 for a single parent with one child and 2.16 for two adults with two children. Each household also pays the median rent for a home with enough bedrooms (two with children) and full-time center care for a child under 5, and its taxes use its own filing status and child tax credits.
| Household | Salary needed | Taxes | Rent | Child care | Everything else |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single adult single filer | $70,500 | $12,167 | $11,760 all homes | none | $46,573 |
| Couple, no children married, joint | $91,100 | $13,541 | $11,760 all homes | none | $65,799 |
| Single parent, 1 child head of household; age 4 | $111,300 | $18,793 | $11,400 2 bedrooms | $10,855 | $70,252 |
| Family of 4 married, joint; ages 4 and 9 | $143,800 | $21,138 | $11,400 2 bedrooms | $10,855 | $100,407 |
This is a modeled lifestyle benchmark, not a minimum income requirement. Its starting budget uses national median household income as a single-adult reference before scaling for larger households; family estimates can therefore exceed what typical families earn. Use your own expenses in the personal move budget for an individual plan. Taxes: 2026 federal and North Dakota income tax with the standard deduction, Social Security and Medicare. Households with children get the federal child tax credit ($2,200 a child). The federal child and dependent care credit isn't counted; the income-based credit on the 4-year-old's care is $600 to $1,050 at these incomes (20% to 35% of $3,000), subject to work-related care and other eligibility rules and limited to the income tax owed. Any state exemption or deduction for dependents isn't included, so where the state has one, state tax for the households with children may be a little lower. The single parent files as head of household on both the federal and North Dakota returns.
Child care: full-time center care for the 4-year-old at Child Care Aware of America's 2025 North Dakota average price; the 9-year-old is in school, and before- and after-school care isn't counted. Rent: Census ACS 2024 median gross rent for all homes, or for two bedrooms with children (table B25031). These are the move calculator's own figures: see the family of 4 in the calculator.
What things cost in North Dakota
Overall, prices in North Dakota are 11.0% below the U.S. average. The widest gap is in housing rents (71.4, 28.6% below average); goods are closest to it, at 95.7.
The vertical line marks the U.S. average (100). BEA Regional Price Parities 2024 for the state.
| Measure | North Dakota | Compared with U.S. |
|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $980/mo | 34% lower ($1,487) |
| Median home value | $266,100 | 26% lower ($360,600) |
| Median property tax | $2,550/yr | 21% lower ($3,211) |
| Average electric bill | $126/mo | 16% lower ($151) |
| Infant child care (center) | $12,281/yr | 2025 state average |
Cost of living by metro area in North Dakota
Fargo, ND is the only one of the 149 U.S. metro areas we cover that is centered in North Dakota. A single filer needs about $72,300 there for a typical lifestyle, 3% more than the statewide $70,500.
| Metro area | Salary needed | Price level | Median rent |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fargo, ND | $72,300 | 90.9 | $997/mo |
| North Dakota statewide | $70,500 | 89.0 | $980/mo |
Salary needed: a single filer with North Dakota taxes and the metro's price level, the same method as the statewide figure. Price level: BEA Regional Price Parities 2024 (U.S. = 100). Rent: Census ACS 2024 median gross rent.
States with a similar cost of living
- South Dakota $70,000
- Mississippi $71,500
- Arkansas $71,600
- Louisiana $72,100
- Iowa $72,200
- Tennessee $73,000
Frequently asked questions
What is the cost of living in North Dakota?
North Dakota's price level is 89.0 (U.S. = 100), 11.0% below the national average, and it ranks #50 of 51 for the salary needed to live a typical lifestyle, where #1 is the most expensive. The median rent is $980 a month and the median home is worth $266,100.
How much do you need to make to live comfortably in North Dakota?
A single filer needs about $70,500 a year in North Dakota to match the buying power of the U.S. median household income ($81,604) in a typical state, after 2026 federal and state taxes and local prices. Filing jointly, a married couple needs about $72,000 of combined pay to match a couple earning that same $81,604 taxed jointly. It differs from the single-filer figure only because of joint tax rates; it isn't a budget for two people. Sized for two people, a couple needs about $91,100. Renting the median North Dakota home at 30% of income takes $39,200.
What salary do you need in North Dakota for a family of 4?
About $143,800 a year for two adults and two children (ages 4 and 9) filing jointly, for the same standard of living as the single adult's typical lifestyle in North Dakota, sized for four people. That pays $21,138 in 2026 taxes after the child tax credit, $11,400 in rent (the median for two bedrooms), $10,855 for full-time child care for the 4-year-old and $100,407 for everything else. A single parent with one child needs about $111,300, and a couple without children about $91,100. For comparison, the median four-person household in North Dakota earned $133,762 in 2024 (Census ACS).
Does North Dakota have a state income tax?
Yes. On $70,500 a single filer pays about $94 in North Dakota income tax in 2026.