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Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Nobody expects rock-bottom prices here — but that doesn't mean all cities are equally expensive. Boston (index 205, rent $3,510/mo) carves out real savings within a high-cost market. We analyzed 2 cities to find where your money goes furthest in 2026.
Nobody expects rock-bottom prices here — but that doesn't mean all cities are equally expensive. Boston (index 205, rent $3,510/mo) carves out real savings within a high-cost market. We analyzed 2 cities to find where your money goes furthest in 2026.
Dive into Boston's numbers: cost index 205 — for better or worse — (94 points above national average), rent $3,510/month, income $94,755, and a home price of $768,702. The city's cost profile isn't flat — Healthcare is the cheapest category at 121, while Housing runs 205. As a major city with 653,833 residents, amenities and job markets are robust.
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. Boston (index 205 — for better or worse — , rent $3,510); Memphis (index 72, rent $1,234). Each city profile below links to the full detail page with 12-month trends, salary breakdowns, and cost category comparisons (not adjusted for inflation, but still telling). The math checks out.
With that foundation in place: Nationally, the 288 cities in our database average a cost index of 111, rent of $1,895/month, and household income of $80,367. The cities in this ranking challenge those benchmarks. For families with student loans, that cost gap is a second income.
If you're ready to act on this, three things to do next: 1) Click into the city pages for the top 3 and check rent trends — direction matters more than the snapshot. 2) Run your income through the salary calculator for a personalized cost comparison. Nothing too surprising there. 3) Compare your top two picks head-to-head on our comparison page. The data is here; the decision is yours.
#1 Ranked: Boston, MA — cost index 205, rent $3,510/mo, income $94,755
1 of 2 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
653,833 residents · Massachusetts
So, Boston. Cost index of 205 — for better or worse — , rent at $3,510/month. It's higher than the national average. Median income is $94,755, which is above average. That tracks.
618,639 residents · Tennessee
Look, the #2 spot goes to Memphis, and the breakdown explains why. And from what we can tell, renters here pay $1,234/month — saving renters $7,932 per year compared to the national average. Meanwhile, Housing is the standout at index 72, making it one of the cheapest in the country for that category. The weak spot? Healthcare at 94. A 29% rent-to-income ratio keeps most households inside the safe zone.
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.
Boston (ranked #1) has a cost index of 205 and rent of $3,510/mo, while Memphis (ranked #2) has a cost index of 72 and rent of $1,234/mo — a 133-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 Boston is $3,510/month as of 2026, based on Zillow's Observed Rent Index. This is $1,615 above the national median of $1,895/month.
The median home price in Boston is $768,702, which is 8.1× the local median income. Most median-income households would stretch to buy at this ratio. The national median home price is $467,370.
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.