393 metro areas · 52 states

Cost of Living Comparison by City

Compare the cost of living between any two U.S. cities or states: pick both places below to see prices, salaries, the salary you need and home values side by side, then open the full comparison.

Cost of living calculator

Compare any two cities or states

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Popular state comparisons

Cost of labor vs. cost of living

Cost of living is what goods, services and rent cost in a place; cost of labor is what employers there pay for work. They move together but not one for one: prices in San Francisco, CA are 1.38 times those in Monroe, LA (BEA price parity 115.6 vs 83.6), while the average salary is 2.05 times higher ($100,220 vs $48,850).

The gaps differ from job to job, so a move pays off only when the pay rise for your own job beats the rise in prices. Compare both before you accept an offer: the pay for your job in each city is on its city page, and the price difference is in the comparisons below.

Popular city comparisons

Atlanta, GA

Austin, TX

Baltimore, MD

Boston, MA

Chicago, IL

Dallas, TX

Denver, CO

Detroit, MI

Houston, TX

Las Cruces, NM

Los Angeles, CA

Miami, FL

Minneapolis, MN

New York, NY

Philadelphia, PA

Phoenix, AZ

Riverside, CA

San Diego, CA

San Francisco, CA

Seattle, WA

Tampa, FL