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Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
No second income to fall back on. Our model scored 1 cities in New Hampshire on solo-living metrics. Manchester leads at index 111 with rent of $1,976/mo (that's pre-tax, of course).
#1 Ranked: Manchester — cost index 111, rent $1,976/mo, income $77,415
Singles scoring: rent $1,976/mo (solo housing), cost index 111, population 115,474 — livability on one income
Data sourced from Census Bureau, Zillow, BLS, and Tax Foundation — current as of 2026
No second income to fall back on. Our model scored 1 cities in New Hampshire on solo-living metrics. Manchester leads at index 111 with rent of $1,976/mo (that's pre-tax, of course).
Manchester comes in at #1. Rent is $1,976 — we had to double-check this one — a month. Household income is $77,415. The cost of living index is 111. Nothing too surprising there (though the trend is moving in the right direction).
Single-income living means absorbing 100% of housing costs. Our model weights rent under $1,300 — we had to double-check this one — (20pts), cost of living (15pts), and city population (10pts) — because a social scene matters when you're on your own. Manchester at $1,976/mo in a city of 115,474 hits the right balance (that's pre-tax, of course).
Zooming out, State context matters: New Hampshire's 1 cities average a 111 cost index with $1,976/month median rent and $77,415 household income. No income tax in a traditionally expensive region. The table is nice. The insights below it are nicer.
Straight up: Bottom line: Manchester 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.
| Rank | City | Cost Index | Median Rent | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Manchester | 111 | $1,976 | Details |
115,474 residents · New Hampshire
So, Manchester. Cost index of 111, rent at $1,976/month. It's lower than the national average. Median income is $77,415, which is below the national median. That's about what we'd expect given the state context.
Manchester ranks #1 in New Hampshire for this analysis with a cost index of 111 and median income of $77,415.
Manchester scores highest for singles due to its strong income potential, median rent of $1,976/mo, and competitive median income of $77,415.
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 Manchester is $1,976/month as of 2026, based on Zillow's Observed Rent Index. This is $81 above the national median of $1,895/month.
The median home price in Manchester is $427,321, which is 5.5× the local median income. Most median-income households would stretch to buy at this ratio. The national median home price is $467,370.
New Hampshire has a 0% state income tax rate — one of the states with no income tax. Combined state and local sales tax averages 0%, and the effective property tax rate is 1.57%.
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.