Cost of Living Comparison: Top 50 US Cities in 2025
Apples-to-apples comparison across major US cities—housing, taxes, utilities, groceries, transportation, healthcare—paired with EverydayBudd's Cost of Living and Salary tools.
Built to pair with EverydayBudd's Cost of Living and Salary / Take-Home calculators.
Introduction
Moving for a new job or better lifestyle? In 2025, prices and wages vary dramatically across metro areas. This guide shows you how to compare the true cost of living across the top 50 US cities—and how to make your salary go further by modeling after-tax pay, rent/mortgage, and everyday expenses.
Evaluate cities using total monthly budget (after-tax income minus housing, taxes, and core expenses), not list prices or headline salaries. A $95k offer in a lower-cost city can beat $130k in a high-cost metro once taxes and rent are included.
Understanding the Basics
Key Terms Explained
- COL Index (Cost of Living Index): A normalized score (100 = national average) comparing prices for a standard basket of goods/services across cities.
- RPP (Regional Price Parities): Measures local price levels vs. US average—useful for "what my money buys" comparisons.
- After-Tax Income: Take-home pay after federal, FICA, state & local taxes and pre-tax benefits.
- Housing Burden: Share of income spent on rent or mortgage + property tax + insurance + HOA. Target ≤ 30% where possible.
- Transportation Mix: Car (payment, fuel, insurance, parking) vs. transit (passes, time cost).
- Healthcare Out-of-Pocket: Premiums + deductibles + typical usage.
- Quality Adjusters: Crime, schools, commute, air quality, and amenities—factors that don't show up in simple price indices.
Step-by-Step Guide
Use these steps alongside the EverydayBudd Cost of Living and Take-Home Salary calculators for precise, city-by-city comparisons.
Step 1 — Select cities & salary
Pick your current metro and 2–3 target cities. Enter your salary or offer and pay frequency.
Step 2 — Model taxes & take-home
- Choose filing status and state/local residency.
- Include pre-tax benefits (401(k), HSA/FSA, commuter) to see the impact on taxes.
- Compare effective tax rate across cities (some have local wage taxes or no state income tax).
Step 3 — Estimate housing
- For renting: set bedroom count, neighborhood tier, and utilities.
- For buying: enter home price, down payment, rate/APR, property taxes, insurance, PMI/MIP, and HOA with the Mortgage Calculator.
- Capture commute/parking if urban core vs. suburb differs.
Step 4 — Add core living costs
Enter monthly estimates for groceries, dining, utilities, internet/mobile, health insurance OOP, childcare/tuition, and entertainment. Use the built-in city presets, then adjust to your lifestyle.
Step 5 — Transportation choices
Toggle car vs. transit: loan/lease, insurance, fuel/EV charging, maintenance, tolls, or transit passes. In dense cities, add rideshare and parking line items.
Step 6 — Run the comparison
The tool calculates for each city:
- Net monthly income (after tax)
- Total monthly expenses
- Savings runway and % of income saved
- Break-even salary required to maintain your current lifestyle
Step 7 — Scenario testing
- Remote vs. on-site (no local tax vs. city tax)
- Roommates vs. solo housing
- Car-free vs. car-required lifestyle
- Public vs. private school assumptions
- Neighborhood tiers (budget / median / premium)
Compare Cities Side by Side
Model after-tax income, housing, transit, healthcare, and more—then find your best-fit city.
Advanced Strategies
- Salary-to-COL ratio: Divide after-tax income by the city's COL index to compare real purchasing power. Target ≥ 1.10 for lifestyle upgrades.
- Tax-efficient benefits: In higher-tax states, increase pre-tax contributions to reduce taxable income while preserving cash flow.
- Rent vs. buy break-even: Compare all-in rent vs PITI + HOA − (principal paid), and include closing costs and expected tenure. If < 5–7 years in a high-cost market, renting may win.
- Neighborhood arbitrage: Live one transit stop or one county away for lower rent or property taxes but similar amenities.
- Transportation hack: In transit-rich metros, dropping a car can save $6k–$12k/yr. Add that to housing to compete for a better location.
- Remote work optimization: If allowed, establish tax residency in no-income-tax or lower-tax states while keeping a big-city salary (ensure compliance with employer and nexus rules).
- Childcare & school planning: Big swing factor—compare waitlists, vouchers, public vs. charter, and after-school costs before signing a lease.
- Healthcare networks: Premiums are only half the story—check in-network providers and typical deductible/out-of-pocket in each city.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Comparing gross salaries only. Always model after-tax pay.
- Underestimating housing add-ons: utilities, parking, pet rent, renter's insurance, amenity fees.
- Ignoring city/local taxes & fees: wage/income taxes, sales/use, lodging, utilities.
- Assuming national averages fit your lifestyle—adjust for car ownership, roommates, dining out, childcare.
- Forgetting moving costs: deposits, broker fees, movers, furniture, overlap rent (often 1–2 months of expenses).
- Not stress-testing—run scenarios with ±10–15% swings in rent/rates and add a surprise-expense fund.
Frequently Asked Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
Conclusion & Next Steps
You don't need guesswork to pick a city—just a consistent method.
Action Items
- Enter your current and target cities in the EverydayBudd Cost of Living tool.
- Add realistic housing, transit, taxes, healthcare, and childcare numbers.
- Compare after-tax income, monthly spend, and break-even salary.
- Shortlist 2–3 neighborhoods and run rent vs. buy scenarios with the Mortgage Calculator.
- Re-run numbers when an offer arrives; negotiate salary using COL-adjusted data.
Related Tools & Guides
Ready to Pick Your City?
Run side-by-side comparisons, then negotiate with COL-adjusted salary targets.
References
- Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS): Consumer Price Index (CPI-U) and expenditure weights
- Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA): Regional Price Parities (RPP) and personal income
- US Census Bureau (ACS): Median rents, household incomes, commuting modes
- HUD: Fair Market Rents and income limits
- IRS & State Departments of Revenue: State/local tax rules and brackets
- Transit Agencies & AAA: Fare schedules; automobile ownership and operating cost estimates