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Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Let's be honest: Oregon isn't cheap. But within that premium market, there are cities where your dollar stretches meaningfully further. Hillsboro proves it with a cost index of 114, the lowest in Oregon, and we've ranked all 5 contenders to help you find the best deal in an expensive landscape.
#1 Ranked: Hillsboro — cost index 114, rent $1,869/mo, income $103,207
3 of 5 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
Let's be honest: Oregon isn't cheap. But within that premium market, there are cities where your dollar stretches meaningfully further. Hillsboro proves it with a cost index of 114, the lowest in Oregon, and we've ranked all 5 contenders to help you find the best deal in an expensive landscape.
The numbers for Hillsboro are straightforward: 114 on the cost index, $1,869/month rent, $103,207 income. Not the most exciting entry in the list, but solid. No major red flags in that number.
Real talk: 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.
107,730 residents · Oregon
Let's be clear: What does daily life actually cost in Hillsboro? Start with the 22% rent-to-income ratio — that's the kind of margin that lets people build savings. On the category level, Utilities (index 104) is where the real savings show up, while Housing (index 134) is the line item most likely to surprise newcomers. Income at $103,207 and homes at $516,726 round out a profile that ranks #1 for clear reasons.
177,899 residents · Oregon
Real talk: Eugene is one of the cheaper options here. Rent is $1,988/month, which is lower than most cities in this ranking. The cost index is 113. Income sits at $63,836. That's more or less in line with the region.
630,498 residents · Oregon
Dive into Portland's numbers: cost index 111 (1 points below national average), rent $1,710/month, income $88,792, and a home price of $524,251. And more often than not, the city's cost profile isn't flat — Utilities is the cheapest category at 102, while Housing runs 128. As a major city with 630,498 residents, amenities and job markets are robust.
110,685 residents · Oregon
The way we see it, the numbers for Gresham are straightforward: 107 on the cost index, $1,594/month rent, $73,608 income. Not the most exciting entry in the list, but solid. Take it or leave it — the data is what it is (though the trend is moving in the right direction).
177,432 residents · Oregon
The numbers for Salem are straightforward: 105 on the cost index, $1,600/month — for better or worse — rent, $71,900 income. Not the most exciting entry in the list, but solid. You get the picture.
Cities are ranked by overall cost of living index in descending order. High-cost cities are typically driven by housing prices — a city with an index of 150 has overall costs roughly 50% above the national median, with housing often 2-3× that premium. 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.
Hillsboro ranks #1 in Oregon for this analysis with a cost index of 114 and median income of $103,207.
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.
Hillsboro (ranked #1) has a cost index of 114 and rent of $1,869/mo, while Salem (ranked #5) has a cost index of 105 and rent of $1,600/mo — a 9-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 Hillsboro is $1,869/month as of 2026, based on Zillow's Observed Rent Index. This is $26 below the national median of $1,895/month.
The median home price in Hillsboro is $516,726, which is 5.0× the local median income. Most median-income households would stretch to buy at this ratio. The national median home price is $467,370.
Oregon has a 9.9% state income tax rate. Combined state and local sales tax averages 0%, and the effective property tax rate is 0.87%.
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.