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Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Young professionals don't just need cheap — they need opportunity. We scored 3 cities across Indiana on income, market size, and transport costs. Indianapolis ($62,995 median income, 879,293 people) ranks #1 for 2026.
#1 Ranked: Indianapolis — cost index 92, rent $1,356/mo, income $62,995
Young-professional scoring: income $62,995, population 879,293 (job market depth), transport index 88
Data sourced from Census Bureau, Zillow, BLS, and Tax Foundation — current as of 2026
| Rank | City | Cost Index | Median Rent | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Indianapolis | 92 | $1,356 | Details |
| 2 | Fort Wayne | 90 | $1,160 | Details |
| 3 | Evansville | 85 | $1,010 | Details |
Young professionals don't just need cheap — they need opportunity. We scored 3 cities across Indiana on income, market size, and transport costs. Indianapolis ($62,995 median income, 879,293 people) ranks #1 for 2026.
For young professionals, we weight income potential highest (20pts) — early career earnings compound over decades. And more often than not, population comes next (15pts) as a proxy for job market depth: more employers means more opportunity. Transport costs (10pts) matter because most early-career workers are car-dependent. Indianapolis leads with $62,995 — and yes, that's adjusted for the region — median income and 879,293 residents.
Indianapolis comes in at #1. Rent is $1,356 a month. Household income is $62,995. The cost of living index is 92. It lines up with what you'd expect.
Bottom line: Indianapolis leads this ranking for clear, data-backed reasons — but the "best" city depends on your priorities. 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.
879,293 residents · Indiana
The #1 spot goes to Indianapolis, and the breakdown explains why. Renters here pay $1,356/month — saving renters $6,468 per year compared to the national average. Meanwhile, Housing is the standout at index 80, making it one of the cheapest in the country for that category. The weak spot? Healthcare at 95. A 26% rent-to-income ratio keeps most households inside the safe zone.
269,994 residents · Indiana
What does daily life actually cost in Fort Wayne? Start with the 23% rent-to-income ratio — that's the kind of margin that lets people build savings. On the category level, Housing (index 74) is where the real savings show up, while Healthcare (index 92) is the line item most likely to surprise newcomers. Income at $60,293 and homes at $238,593 round out a profile that ranks #2 for clear reasons (that's pre-tax, of course).
115,332 residents · Indiana
A closer look at Evansville: the cost index of 85 breaks down to a Housing index of 63 (strongest category) and a Healthcare index of 88 (weakest). And in most cases, median rent is $1,010/month — 47% below the national median — while household income sits at $52,251, meaning locals spend about 23% of income on rent. That's a healthy margin by any standard.
Our persona scoring model weights cost of living, income, rent, healthcare costs, tax burden, and population size differently based on what matters most to young professionals. Each factor contributes 10-25 points to a 0-100 composite score. Cities with the highest composite rank first. 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.
Indianapolis ranks #1 in Indiana for this analysis with a cost index of 92 and median income of $62,995.
Indianapolis scores highest for young professionals due to its below-average cost of living, median rent of $1,356/mo, and competitive median income of $62,995.
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.
Indianapolis (ranked #1) has a cost index of 92 and rent of $1,356/mo, while Evansville (ranked #3) has a cost index of 85 and rent of $1,010/mo — a 7-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 Indianapolis is $1,356/month as of 2026, based on Zillow's Observed Rent Index. This is $539 below the national median of $1,895/month.
The median home price in Indianapolis is $226,528, which is 3.6× the local median income. It's on the edge of affordability for median-income households. The national median home price is $467,370.
Indiana has a 3.05% state income tax rate. Combined state and local sales tax averages 7%, and the effective property tax rate is 0.78%.
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.