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Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
High income and low costs rarely coexist — but Frisco pulls it off. At $146,158 median household income and a 102 cost index, residents enjoy purchasing power that 98% exceeds the national average. We found this pattern across 280 cities in Michigan using 2026 data.
High income and low costs rarely coexist — but Frisco pulls it off. At $146,158 median household income and a 102 cost index, residents enjoy purchasing power that 98% exceeds the national average. We found this pattern across 280 cities in Michigan using 2026 data.
The ranking uses a composite of 2026 data from Census Bureau population/income surveys, Zillow rent and home price indices, BLS salary benchmarks, and Tax Foundation tax rates. Frisco (index 102, rent $1,751); Allen (index 95, rent $1,634); Cary (index 96, rent $1,649). Each city profile below links to the full detail page with 12-month trends, salary breakdowns, and cost category comparisons.
A closer look at Frisco: the cost index of 102 breaks down to a Healthcare index of 100 (strongest category) and a Housing index of 102 (weakest). Median rent is $1,751/month — 8% below the national median — while household income sits at $146,158, meaning locals spend about 14% of income on rent. That's a healthy margin by any standard.
Frisco: high income, low cost — a rare combo. Frisco earns above the national median ($146,158 vs $80,367) while keeping costs below average (index 102 vs 111). That combination is exceptionally rare — only 40 of 288 cities share it.
In plain English: Bottom line: Frisco 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.
#1 Ranked: Frisco — cost index 102, rent $1,751/mo, income $146,158
Frisco: high income, low cost — a rare combo
168 of 280 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
225,007 residents · Texas
Dive into Frisco's numbers: cost index 102 (9 points below national average), rent $1,751/month, income $146,158, and a home price of $653,858. The city's cost profile isn't flat — Healthcare is the cheapest category at 100, while Housing runs 102. With 225,007 residents, it balances mid-size city convenience with manageable costs.
111,620 residents · Texas
What does daily life actually cost in Allen? Start with the 15% rent-to-income ratio — that's the kind of margin that lets people build savings. On the category level, Housing (index 95) is where the real savings show up, while Healthcare (index 99) is the line item most likely to surprise newcomers. Income at $129,130 and homes at $497,016 round out a profile that ranks #2 for clear reasons.
180,010 residents · North Carolina
Dive into Cary's numbers: cost index 96 (15 points below national average), rent $1,649/month, income $129,399, and a home price of $620,401. The city's cost profile isn't flat — Housing is the cheapest category at 96, while Healthcare runs 99. With 180,010 residents, it balances mid-size city convenience with manageable costs. Hard to argue with that.
213,509 residents · Texas
Why Mckinney ranks #4: the numbers tell a clear story. At 98 on the cost index, residents save roughly 13% less than the typical American. Rent sits at $1,675/month while the median household pulls in $120,273/year. The Housing category is particularly strong at 98, though Healthcare (100) lags behind. Home prices average $483,340 — $15,970 above the national median.
150,245 residents · Illinois
A closer look at Naperville: the cost index of 126 — which, honestly, is lower than you'd expect here — breaks down to a Healthcare index of 105 (strongest category) and a Housing index of 126 (weakest). Median rent is $2,157/month — 14% above the national median — while household income sits at $150,937, meaning locals spend about 17% of income on rent. That's a healthy margin by any standard.
We pull all cities outside Michigan and rank them by value ratio (income ÷ cost index). Cities offering lower costs or higher income than Michigan's averages surface first. Population and rent data provide additional context. 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.
Frisco ranks #1 in Michigan for this analysis with a cost index of 102 and median income of $146,158.
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.
Frisco (ranked #1) has a cost index of 102 and rent of $1,751/mo, while Miami (ranked #280) has a cost index of 173 and rent of $2,964/mo — a 71-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 Frisco is $1,751/month as of 2026, based on Zillow's Observed Rent Index. This is $144 below the national median of $1,895/month.
The median home price in Frisco is $653,858, which is 4.5× the local median income. It's on the edge of affordability for median-income households. The national median home price is $467,370.
Michigan has a 0% state income tax rate — one of the states with no income tax. Combined state and local sales tax averages 8.19%, and the effective property tax rate is 1.6%.
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.