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Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Retirement planning isn't just about lowest rent — it's about protecting a fixed income from healthcare costs and state taxes. We scored 1 cities in North Dakota on what hits retirees hardest: cost of living, healthcare, and tax burden. Fargo leads with index 64, a 1.95% state tax rate, and a health…
#1 Ranked: Fargo — cost index 64, rent $1,096/mo, income $66,029
Retiree-weighted scoring: healthcare index 93, state tax 1.95%, cost index 64 — protecting fixed retirement income
Data sourced from Census Bureau, Zillow, BLS, and Tax Foundation — current as of 2026
Retirement planning isn't just about lowest rent — it's about protecting a fixed income from healthcare costs and state taxes. We scored 1 cities in North Dakota on what hits retirees hardest: cost of living, healthcare, and tax burden. Fargo leads with index 64, a 1.95% state tax rate, and a healthcare index of 93.
Here's Fargo by the numbers — and there's a lot to like (and a little to watch). Cost index: 64. Rent: $1,096/month. Income: $66,029/year. Home price: $312,872. Population: 133,188. The strongest category is Housing at 64; the most expensive is Healthcare at 93. Translate that rent to annual numbers, and residents are saving renters $9,588 per year vs. the national median. This is where the math gets real for actual people.
Retirement affordability is about protecting fixed income. Our model weights healthcare costs at 25 points (medical bills are the #1 financial risk in retirement), cost index at 25 points, and state tax burden at 15 points (taxes directly reduce pension and Social Security income). Fargo leads with low healthcare costs, a 1.95% state tax rate, and a cost index of 64.
Now zoom in on the cost categories. North Dakota — oil-patch wages in a low-cost market. The 1 cities we track here average a cost index of 64 and median income of $66,029. It's a clear buyer's market compared to national norms. The typical rent runs $1,096/month, which is $799 less than the national median.
Bottom line: Fargo leads this ranking for clear, data-backed reasons — but the "best" city depends on your priorities. 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. If you're seriously considering a move, use our salary calculator to model your specific income against these numbers.
133,188 residents · North Dakota
So, Fargo. Cost index of 64, rent at $1,096/month. It's lower than the national average. Median income is $66,029, which is below the national median. It's fine. Not great, not bad.
Our persona scoring model weights cost, income, rent, healthcare, taxes, and city size based on what matters most to retirees. Each factor scores 10-25 points out of a 100-point composite. The guide ranks every tracked city in North Dakota by this personalized metric. 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.
Fargo ranks #1 in North Dakota for this analysis with a cost index of 64 and median income of $66,029.
Fargo scores highest for retirees due to its below-average cost of living, median rent of $1,096/mo, and competitive median income of $66,029.
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 Fargo is $1,096/month as of 2026, based on Zillow's Observed Rent Index. This is $799 below the national median of $1,895/month.
The median home price in Fargo is $312,872, which is 4.7× the local median income. It's on the edge of affordability for median-income households. The national median home price is $467,370.
North Dakota has a 1.95% state income tax rate. Combined state and local sales tax averages 7.04%, and the effective property tax rate is 0.94%.
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.