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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. Sacramento at index 117 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. Sacramento at index 117 is the standout — offering meaningful savings without leaving a desirable market.
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. And in practical terms, sacramento (index 117, rent $2,006); Raleigh (index 92, rent $1,567). Each city profile below links to the full detail page with 12-month trends, salary breakdowns, and cost category comparisons (and that gap widens if you factor in state taxes).
Real talk: Dive into Sacramento's numbers: cost index 117 (6 points above national average), rent $2,006/month, income $83,753, and a home price of $472,863. That's about what we'd expect given the state context. The city's cost profile isn't flat — Healthcare is the cheapest category at 103, while Housing runs 117. As a major city with 526,384 residents, amenities and job markets are robust.
What to do with this data: use the ranking as a shortlist, then dig into the city profiles for trend lines and category breakdowns. The difference between #1 and #5 is often smaller than the difference between "good on paper" and "actually fits my life." Compare your top picks with our calculator to see real take-home numbers.
#1 Ranked: Sacramento, CA — cost index 117, rent $2,006/mo, income $83,753
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
| Rank | City | Cost Index | Median Rent | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | SacramentoCA | 117 | $2,006 | Details |
| 2 | RaleighNC | 92 | $1,567 | Details |
526,384 residents · California
Real talk: Dive into Sacramento's numbers: cost index 117 — worth pausing on — (6 points above national average), rent $2,006/month, income $83,753, and a home price of $472,863. The city's cost profile isn't flat — Healthcare is the cheapest category at 103, while Housing runs 117. As a major city with 526,384 residents, amenities and job markets are robust.
482,295 residents · North Carolina
Look, Raleigh earns its position at #2 through a combination that's hard to replicate. The 92 cost index sits 19 points below the national baseline, and the $82,424 — which, honestly, is lower than you'd expect here — median income means purchasing power here is genuinely above average. Homes list at $428,831 — $38,539 below the national median — a genuine ownership opportunity. On the cost side, Housing leads the way at 92, while Healthcare trails at 98.
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.
Sacramento (ranked #1) has a cost index of 117 and rent of $2,006/mo, while Raleigh (ranked #2) has a cost index of 92 and rent of $1,567/mo — a 25-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 Sacramento is $2,006/month as of 2026, based on Zillow's Observed Rent Index. This is $111 above the national median of $1,895/month.
The median home price in Sacramento is $472,863, which is 5.6× 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.