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Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Digital nomads optimize for low burn rate without sacrificing connectivity. We ranked 1 cities in Montana on cost, utilities, and rent flexibility. Billings leads at index 81 with a 94 utilities score.
#1 Ranked: Billings — cost index 81, rent $1,383/mo, income $71,855
Digital-nomad scoring: cost index 81, utilities 94, rent $1,383/mo — minimum monthly burn rate
Data sourced from Census Bureau, Zillow, BLS, and Tax Foundation — current as of 2026
Digital nomads optimize for low burn rate without sacrificing connectivity. We ranked 1 cities in Montana on cost, utilities, and rent flexibility. Billings leads at index 81 with a 94 utilities score.
Put it this way: at $1,383/month — and yes, that's adjusted for the region — for rent and a cost index of 81, Billings is pretty much what you'd expect from a mid-size city in this part of the country. Income is $71,855. You get the picture (a figure that keeps climbing, by the way).
It's a strong position — but not without footnotes. Across Montana, the average cost of living index is 81 — 30 points below the national median. Known for Big Sky country with an inflating housing bubble, the state offers 1 tracked cities with median rents averaging $1,383/month. That's $512 less than the national average of $1,895. That's a strong position by any measure (that's pre-tax, of course).
Here's the thing: Bottom line: Billings leads this ranking for clear, data-backed reasons — but the "best" city depends on your priorities. And for the typical household, 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. Take it or leave it — the data is what it is. If you're seriously considering a move, use our salary calculator to model your specific income against these numbers. Surprising? Maybe. But the data's clear.
120,864 residents · Montana
Put it this way: What does daily life actually cost in Billings? Start with the 23% rent-to-income ratio — that's the kind of margin that lets people build savings. On the category level, Housing (index 81) is where the real savings show up, while Healthcare (index 96) is the line item most likely to surprise newcomers. Income at $71,855 and homes at $390,654 round out a profile that ranks #1 for clear reasons (more on that below). No gimmicks — just good numbers.
Billings ranks #1 in Montana for this analysis with a cost index of 81 and median income of $71,855.
Billings scores highest for digital nomads due to its below-average cost of living, median rent of $1,383/mo, and competitive median income of $71,855.
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 Billings is $1,383/month as of 2026, based on Zillow's Observed Rent Index. This is $512 below the national median of $1,895/month.
The median home price in Billings is $390,654, which is 5.4× the local median income. Most median-income households would stretch to buy at this ratio. The national median home price is $467,370.
Montana has a 5.9% state income tax rate. Combined state and local sales tax averages 0%, and the effective property tax rate is 0.74%.
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.