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Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Premium market, smart picks: while the market trends above the national average, the gap between the most and least expensive cities here is wider than you'd think. Denver at index 113 is the standout — offering meaningful savings without leaving a desirable market.
Premium market, smart picks: while the market trends above the national average, the gap between the most and least expensive cities here is wider than you'd think. Denver at index 113 is the standout — offering meaningful savings without leaving a desirable market.
Dive into Denver's numbers: cost index 113 (1 points above national average), rent $1,818/month, income $91,681, and a home price of $530,920. The city's cost profile isn't flat — Utilities is the cheapest category at 104, while Housing runs 133. As a major city with 716,577 residents, amenities and job markets are robust.
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. 3) Compare your top two picks head-to-head on our comparison page. The data is here; the decision is yours.
#1 Ranked: Denver, CO — cost index 113, rent $1,818/mo, income $91,681
1 of 2 cities come in below the national cost-of-living average of 112
Data sourced from Census Bureau, Zillow, BLS, and Tax Foundation — current as of 2026
| Rank | City | Cost Index | Median Rent | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | DenverCO | 113 | $1,818 | Details |
| 2 | NashvilleTN | 108 | $1,772 | Details |
716,577 residents · Colorado
Dive into Denver's numbers: cost index 113 (1 points above national average), rent $1,818/month, income $91,681, and a home price of $530,920. The city's cost profile isn't flat — Utilities is the cheapest category at 104, while Housing runs 133. As a major city with 716,577 residents, amenities and job markets are robust.
687,788 residents · Tennessee
Here's Nashville by the numbers — and there's a lot to like (and a little to watch). Cost index: 108. Rent: $1,772/month. That tracks. Income: $75,197/year. Home price: $429,861. Population: 687,788. The strongest category is Utilities at 99; the most expensive is Housing at 120. Translate that rent to annual numbers, and residents are saving renters $1,476 per year vs. the national median. That's a difference you notice every single month.
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.
Denver (ranked #1) has a cost index of 113 and rent of $1,818/mo, while Nashville (ranked #2) has a cost index of 108 and rent of $1,772/mo — a 5-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 Denver is $1,818/month as of 2026, based on Zillow's Observed Rent Index. This is $77 below the national median of $1,895/month.
The median home price in Denver is $530,920, which is 5.8× 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.