Loading
Assembling your view…
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
The numbers are clear: 9 of 9 cities in North Carolina beat the national cost-of-living benchmark of 111. Greensboro stands out at 81 on the index, with rent of $1,382/month and household income of $58,884. Assembled from 2026 Census, Zillow, and BLS data.
#1 Ranked: Greensboro — cost index 81, rent $1,382/mo, income $58,884
Greensboro rent up 3% over the past year
9 of 9 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
The numbers are clear: 9 of 9 cities in North Carolina beat the national cost-of-living benchmark of 111. Greensboro stands out at 81 on the index, with rent of $1,382/month and household income of $58,884. Assembled from 2026 Census, Zillow, and BLS data.
What does daily life actually cost in Greensboro? Start with the 28% rent-to-income ratio — tight but manageable for most households. On the category level, Housing (index 81) is where the real savings show up, while Healthcare (index 96) is the line item most likely to surprise newcomers. Income at $58,884 and homes at $261,036 round out a profile that ranks #1 for clear reasons.
Rent data is sourced from Zillow's Observed Rent Index (ZORI), which tracks the median rent across all active listings — not just new leases. This gives a more representative and stable signal than asking prices alone. Greensboro: $1,382/mo, Fayetteville: $1,426/mo, Winston-Salem: $1,445/mo. The cheapest city here is $513 under the national median — that's $6,156/year in savings on rent alone.
Bottom line: Greensboro leads this ranking for clear, data-backed reasons — but the "best" city depends on your priorities. And as a general rule, click into any city below to see the full detail page with 12-month trend charts, profession-specific salary data, and a breakdown of all five cost categories. If you're seriously considering a move, use our salary calculator to model your specific income against these numbers.
| Rank | City | Cost Index | Median Rent | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Greensboro | 81 | $1,382 | Details |
| 2 | Fayetteville | 83 | $1,426 | Details |
| 3 | Winston-Salem | 84 | $1,445 | Details |
| 4 | High Point | 86 | $1,469 | Details |
| 5 | Raleigh | 92 | $1,567 | Details |
| 6 | Cary | 96 | $1,649 | Details |
| 7 | Durham | 96 | $1,651 | Details |
| 8 | Wilmington | 98 | $1,670 | Details |
| 9 | Charlotte | 100 | $1,705 | Details |
302,296 residents · North Carolina
Real talk: Here's Greensboro by the numbers — and there's a lot to like (and a little to watch). Cost index: 81. Rent: $1,382/month. Income: $58,884/year. Home price: $261,036. Population: 302,296. The strongest category is Housing at 81; the most expensive is Healthcare at 96. Translate that rent to annual numbers, and residents are saving renters $6,156 per year vs. the national median. For dual-income households, this multiplies into serious savings.
209,749 residents · North Carolina
Here's Fayetteville by the numbers — and there's a lot to like (and a little to watch). Cost index: 83. Rent: $1,426/month. Income: $56,395/year. Home price: $222,766. Population: 209,749. The strongest category is Housing at 83; the most expensive is Healthcare at 97. Translate that rent to annual numbers, and residents are saving renters $5,628 per year vs. the national median. That's not a marginal difference — it reshapes your monthly budget.
252,975 residents · North Carolina
What does daily life actually cost in Winston-Salem? Start with the 30% rent-to-income ratio — stretched, especially for single earners. On the category level, Housing (index 84) is where the real savings show up, while Healthcare (index 97) is the line item most likely to surprise newcomers. Income at $57,673 and homes at $260,277 round out a profile that ranks #3 for clear reasons.
116,926 residents · North Carolina
Here's High Point by the numbers — and there's a lot to like (and a little to watch). Cost index: 86. Rent: $1,469/month. Income: $61,228/year. Home price: $246,725. Population: 116,926. The strongest category is Housing at 86; the most expensive is Healthcare at 97. Translate that rent to annual numbers, and residents are saving renters $5,112 per year vs. the national median. That's a red flag worth investigating further.
482,295 residents · North Carolina
A closer look at Raleigh: the cost index of 92 breaks down to a Housing index of 92 (strongest category) and a Healthcare index of 98 (weakest). Median rent is $1,567/month — 17% below the national median — while household income sits at $82,424, meaning locals spend about 23% of income on rent. That's a healthy margin by any standard.
Cities are ranked by median 1-bedroom rent in ascending order using Zillow's Observed Rent Index (ZORI). We include all tracked cities in North Carolina 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.
Greensboro ranks #1 in North Carolina for this analysis with a cost index of 81 and median income of $58,884.
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.
Greensboro (ranked #1) has a cost index of 81 and rent of $1,382/mo, while Charlotte (ranked #9) has a cost index of 100 and rent of $1,705/mo — a 19-point difference in cost of living.
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 Greensboro is $1,382/month as of 2026, based on Zillow's Observed Rent Index. This is $513 below the national median of $1,895/month.
The median home price in Greensboro is $261,036, which is 4.4× the local median income. It's on the edge of affordability for median-income households. The national median home price is $467,370.
North Carolina has a 4.5% state income tax rate. Combined state and local sales tax averages 6.98%, and the effective property tax rate is 0.7%.
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.