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Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
No second income to fall back on. And depending on your situation, our model scored 4 cities in Missouri on solo-living metrics. Springfield leads at index 71 — we had to double-check this one — with rent of $1,209/mo.
#1 Ranked: Springfield — cost index 71, rent $1,209/mo, income $45,984
Springfield rent up 3% over the past year
Singles scoring: rent $1,209/mo (solo housing), cost index 71, population 112,544 — livability on one income
Data sourced from Census Bureau, Zillow, BLS, and Tax Foundation — current as of 2026
No second income to fall back on. And depending on your situation, our model scored 4 cities in Missouri on solo-living metrics. Springfield leads at index 71 — we had to double-check this one — with rent of $1,209/mo.
Springfield rent up 3% over the past year. And as a general rule, rent in #1-ranked Springfield has increased from $1,177 to $1,209/mo over the past 12 months — a 3% increase. Rising costs may erode its top ranking over time (not adjusted for inflation, but still telling).
The #1 spot goes to Springfield, and the breakdown explains why. Renters here pay $1,209/month — saving renters $8,232 per year compared to the national average. Meanwhile, Housing is the standout at index 71, making it one of the cheapest in the country for that category. The weak spot? Healthcare at 94. The 32% rent-to-income ratio is a pressure point — for median earners, housing takes more than recommended.
Single-income living means absorbing 100% of housing costs. Our model weights rent under $1,300 (20pts), cost of living (15pts), and city population (10pts) — because a social scene matters when you're on your own. Springfield at $1,209/mo in a city of 112,544 hits the right balance. St Louis offers a larger city as a runner-up.
But the numbers also reveal: The 4 cities we track in Missouri paint a clearly affordable picture. And as a general rule, average cost index: 77. Median rent: $1,317/month — a detail that tends to get overlooked — . Household income: $57,048. Missouri is known for two major metros with small-city price tags — and the data backs that reputation convincingly (more on that below).
Bottom line: Springfield 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.
| Rank | City | Cost Index | Median Rent | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Springfield | 71 | $1,209 | Details |
| 2 | St Louis | 77 | $1,326 | Details |
| 3 | Kansas | 83 | $1,418 | Details |
| 4 | Independence | 77 | $1,313 | Details |
112,544 residents · Missouri
Springfield comes in at #1. Rent is $1,209 — which, honestly, is lower than you'd expect here — a month. Household income is $45,984. The cost of living index is 71. It's fine. Not great, not bad.
281,754 residents · Missouri
A closer look at St Louis: the cost index of 77 — for better or worse — breaks down to a Housing index of 77 (strongest category) and a Healthcare index of 95 (weakest). You get the picture. Median rent is $1,326/month — 30% below the national median — while household income sits at $55,279, meaning locals spend about 29% of income on rent. That's within the recommended 30% threshold, though it doesn't leave much room (and that gap widens if you factor in state taxes).
152,933 residents · Missouri
Dive into Kansas's numbers: cost index 83 (28 points below national average), rent $1,418/month, income $67,449, and a home price of $245,199. The city's cost profile isn't flat — Housing is the cheapest category at 83, while Healthcare runs 97. With 152,933 residents, it balances mid-size city convenience with manageable costs.
120,922 residents · Missouri
In plain English: Dive into Independence's numbers: cost index 77 (34 points below national average), rent $1,313/month, income $59,480, and a home price of $203,383. And roughly speaking, the city's cost profile isn't flat — Housing is the cheapest category at 77, while Healthcare runs 95. With 120,922 residents, it balances mid-size city convenience with manageable costs.
Our persona scoring model weights cost, income, rent, healthcare, taxes, and city size based on what matters most to singles. Each factor scores 10-25 points out of a 100-point composite. The guide ranks every tracked city in Missouri 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.
Springfield ranks #1 in Missouri for this analysis with a cost index of 71 and median income of $45,984.
Springfield scores highest for singles due to its below-average cost of living, median rent of $1,209/mo, and competitive median income of $45,984.
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.
Springfield (ranked #1) has a cost index of 71 and rent of $1,209/mo, while Independence (ranked #4) has a cost index of 77 and rent of $1,313/mo — a 6-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 Springfield is $1,209/month as of 2026, based on Zillow's Observed Rent Index. This is $686 below the national median of $1,895/month.
The median home price in Springfield is $238,992, which is 5.2× the local median income. Most median-income households would stretch to buy at this ratio. The national median home price is $467,370.
Missouri has a 4.8% state income tax rate. Combined state and local sales tax averages 8.335%, and the effective property tax rate is 0.88%.
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.