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Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Anchorage might not be the first city that comes to mind when you think of affordability in Alaska, but the numbers don't lie. With a median income of $98,152 — 22% above the national median — paired with a cost index of just 97, it delivers purchasing power that most cities can't match. We analyzed…
Anchorage might not be the first city that comes to mind when you think of affordability in Alaska, but the numbers don't lie. With a median income of $98,152 — 22% above the national median — paired with a cost index of just 97, it delivers purchasing power that most cities can't match. We analyzed 1 cities using 2026 data from the Census Bureau, Zillow, and BLS to assemble this ranking.
Anchorage earns its position at #1 through a combination that's hard to replicate. The 97 cost index sits 14 points below the national baseline, and the $98,152 median income means purchasing power here is genuinely above average. Homes list at $405,601 — $61,769 below the national median — a genuine ownership opportunity. On the cost side, Housing leads the way at 97, while Healthcare trails at 99.
Still, the overall picture holds: State context matters: Alaska's 1 cities average a 97 cost index with $1,660/month median rent and $98,152 household income. Vast wilderness, high wages, and higher prices. The trend data adds another dimension to this.
Bottom line: Anchorage 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: Anchorage — cost index 97, rent $1,660/mo, income $98,152
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
286,075 residents · Alaska
Here's Anchorage by the numbers — and there's a lot to like (and a little to watch). Cost index: 97. Rent: $1,660/month. Income: $98,152/year. Home price: $405,601. Population: 286,075. The strongest category is Housing at 97; the most expensive is Healthcare at 99. Translate that rent to annual numbers, and residents are saving renters $2,820 per year vs. the national median. That's a red flag worth investigating further.
Rent is the single largest expense for most households. We rank all tracked cities in Alaska by median 1-bedroom rent (Zillow ZORI) from lowest to highest, filtering out any cities with incomplete data. 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.
Anchorage ranks #1 in Alaska for this analysis with a cost index of 97 and median income of $98,152.
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 Anchorage is $1,660/month as of 2026, based on Zillow's Observed Rent Index. This is $235 below the national median of $1,895/month.
The median home price in Anchorage is $405,601, which is 4.1× the local median income. It's on the edge of affordability for median-income households. The national median home price is $467,370.
Alaska has a 0% state income tax rate — one of the states with no income tax. Combined state and local sales tax averages 1.82%, and the effective property tax rate is 1.04%.
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.