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Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Dollar for dollar, few states match Mississippi's value. 1 out of 1 cities undercut the national cost index of 111. Leading the pack: Jackson at index 75, where median rent of $1,283/month saves renters $7,344/year versus the national median.
Dollar for dollar, few states match Mississippi's value. 1 out of 1 cities undercut the national cost index of 111. Leading the pack: Jackson at index 75, where median rent of $1,283/month saves renters $7,344/year versus the national median.
Why Jackson ranks #1: the numbers tell a clear story. At 75 on the cost index, residents save roughly 36% less than the typical American. Rent sits at $1,283/month while the median household pulls in $43,238/year. The Housing category is particularly strong at 75, though Healthcare (95) lags behind. Home prices average $86,017 — $381,353 below the national median.
Zooming out, The 1 cities we track in Mississippi paint a clearly affordable picture. Average cost index: 75. Median rent: $1,283/month. Household income: $43,238. Mississippi is known for the most affordable state in America by most measures — and the data backs that reputation convincingly.
What to do with this data: use the ranking as a shortlist, then dig into the city profiles for trend lines and category breakdowns. The difference between #1 and #5 is often smaller than the difference between "good on paper" and "actually fits my life." Compare your top picks with our calculator to see real take-home numbers.
#1 Ranked: Jackson — cost index 75, rent $1,283/mo, income $43,238
1 of 1 cities come in below the national cost-of-living average of 111
Data sourced from Census Bureau, Zillow, BLS, and Tax Foundation — current as of 2026
143,709 residents · Mississippi
So, Jackson. Cost index of 75, rent at $1,283/month. It's lower than the national average. Median income is $43,238, which is below the national median. That's about what we'd expect given the state context.
Cities are ranked by median 1-bedroom rent in ascending order using Zillow's Observed Rent Index (ZORI). We include all tracked cities in Mississippi with verified rent data, giving you a complete picture of the rental landscape from cheapest to most expensive. All data is sourced from federal agencies and verified research institutions. Cost of living indices are normalized to 100 (national median) using Zillow rent as the primary signal, with sub-category adjustments derived from regional BLS price data. Rankings are updated monthly as new data is released.
Jackson ranks #1 in Mississippi for this analysis with a cost index of 75 and median income of $43,238.
Our cost of living index uses real Zillow rent data as the foundation, indexed to 100 (national median). Sub-categories (housing, food, transport, utilities, healthcare) are derived from the overall index with regional adjustments. Data is updated monthly.
City data is refreshed monthly from Census Bureau population estimates, Zillow rent and home price indices, BLS salary data, and Tax Foundation tax rates. Last updated: 2026.
The median 1-bedroom rent in Jackson is $1,283/month as of 2026, based on Zillow's Observed Rent Index. This is $612 below the national median of $1,895/month.
The median home price in Jackson is $86,017, which is 2.0× the local median income. That's within the standard 3.5× affordability rule for most local earners. The national median home price is $467,370.
Mississippi has a 5% state income tax rate. Combined state and local sales tax averages 7.07%, and the effective property tax rate is 0.63%.
This ranking was generated using data current as of early 2026. Population and income data comes from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey (5-year estimates). Rent and home price data is from Zillow's monthly releases. Tax rates are from the Tax Foundation's 2025 edition. Rankings are refreshed monthly.