Most Expensive Cities
Ranked by highest cost-of-living index, then rent-to-income ratio (top 50).
Current most expensive city: San Francisco, CA
This page ranks the highest-cost cities using cost-of-living and rent-burden signals. San Francisco currently sits at the top of this list, and the full ranking below shows the broader city order.
San Francisco, CA
Top-ranked location at a glance
Current #1 in this ranking
On 70,000/yr, median rent in San Francisco, CA is about 39.39% of gross and falls in the “Moderate burden” bucket. In the model’s monthly estimate, the biggest budget driver is Rent (housing). Compared with the local median household income, this salary is below. In this area (very high-cost), the model’s rent math puts housing in a “Tight” bucket: rent tends to squeeze the budget and rent (housing) is the main lever in the estimates.
Cost-of-living tier: very high-cost
What drives the budget here?
This area is generally very high-cost based on a cost-of-living index of 225.8 (U.S. average = 100). Typical rent-to-gross is in the Tight range (using the page’s rent and income inputs).
In the site’s estimated monthly breakdown, the largest category is Rent (housing) (2,298/mo), so that’s the biggest lever for moving the overall budget up or down.
Practical next steps
- Housing is consuming a large share of income here. Aim for rent closer to the 25–30% target (≈ up to 1,750/mo for the median household income).
- State income tax is on the higher side in this state (9.3%). That reduces take-home pay, so “affordable” decisions should be based on net income, not just gross.
- In this area, the modeled rent target is reachable at (or below) the local median income level.
Browse the full ranking below.
High-cost metros are characterized by high cost-of-living indices (COLI) and often by high rent relative to median income. On this page we sort cities by highest COLI first, then by highest rent-to-median-income ratio, so the most expensive cities in our dataset appear at the top. The leading city has a cost-of-living index around 225.8; the national average is 100. In these cities, housing, groceries, transportation, and other expenses tend to run well above the U.S. average. High income can still make such metros affordable on a personal level, but the data reflect typical household income and rent. We list the top 50 most expensive cities by this combined measure. Use the links to each city page for detailed rent, income, tax, and monthly cost breakdowns. Comparing this list with the “Affordable” and salary-based pages helps identify where your salary would stretch furthest versus where costs are highest.
Showing 50 cities
| # | City | State | 🏠 Rent / income | 📈 COLI | 🏠 Avg rent 1BR | 💵 Median income | Affordability |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | San Francisco | CA | 17.4%High | 225.8 | $2,056 | $141,446 | |
| #2 | San Jose | CA | 18.9%High | 198.5 | $2,224 | $141,565 | |
| #3 | New York | NY | 22.8%High | 168.2 | $1,512 | $79,713 | |
| #4 | Oakland | CA | 20.1%High | 165.2 | $1,629 | $97,369 | |
| #5 | Irvine | CA | 22.8%High | 158.4 | $2,459 | $129,647 | |
| #6 | Boston | MA | 22.5%High | 156.3 | $1,779 | $94,755 | |
| #7 | Jersey City | NJ | 20.5%High | 155.6 | $1,617 | $94,813 | |
| #8 | Seattle | WA | 16.7%High | 152.4 | $1,698 | $121,984 | |
| #9 | Los Angeles | CA | 24.3%High | 148.6 | $1,516 | $74,785 | |
| #10 | Santa Ana | CA | 22.8%High | 142.8 | $1,679 | $88,354 | |
| #11 | San Diego | CA | 21.7%High | 142.3 | $1,890 | $104,321 | |
| #12 | Santa Clarita | CA | 22.0%High | 138.6 | $1,609 | $87,760 | |
| #13 | Long Beach | CA | 21.9%High | 138.2 | $1,533 | $83,969 | |
| #14 | Yonkers | NY | 16.8%High | 132.6 | $1,778 | $127,344 | |
| #15 | Alexandria | VA | 18.2%High | 128.4 | $1,726 | $113,638 | |
| #16 | Scottsdale | AZ | 18.1%High | 125.6 | $1,624 | $107,372 | |
| #17 | Ontario | CA | 23.6%High | 122.4 | $1,629 | $82,806 | |
| #18 | Tacoma | WA | 19.4%High | 118.6 | $1,357 | $83,857 | |
| #19 | Portland | OR | 18.3%High | 118.6 | $1,357 | $88,792 | |
| #20 | Newark | NJ | 28.0%High | 118.5 | $1,131 | $48,416 | |
| #21 | Miami | FL | 28.4%High | 118.4 | $1,408 | $59,390 | |
| #22 | Sacramento | CA | 20.6%High | 118.2 | $1,440 | $83,753 | |
| #23 | Vancouver | WA | 17.9%High | 116.8 | $1,418 | $94,948 | |
| #24 | San Bernardino | CA | 22.8%High | 115.2 | $1,218 | $63,988 | |
| #25 | Denver | CO | 19.7%High | 112.8 | $1,505 | $91,681 | |
| #26 | Austin | TX | 18.5%High | 112.7 | $1,407 | $91,461 | |
| #27 | Reno | NV | 18.9%High | 112.4 | $1,235 | $78,448 | |
| #28 | Modesto | CA | 21.1%High | 110.2 | $1,368 | $77,899 | |
| #29 | Aurora | CO | 21.3%High | 109.2 | $1,495 | $84,320 | |
| #30 | Fresno | CA | 20.2%High | 108.5 | $1,125 | $66,804 | |
| #31 | Salt Lake City | UT | 16.8%High | 108.4 | $1,230 | $87,864 | |
| #32 | Gilbert | AZ | 18.9%High | 108.2 | $1,349 | $85,518 | |
| #33 | Chandler | AZ | 18.9%High | 107.6 | $1,349 | $85,518 | |
| #34 | McKinney | TX | 15.6%High | 106.4 | $1,565 | $120,273 | |
| #35 | Providence | RI | 20.4%High | 105.8 | $1,133 | $66,772 | |
| #36 | Madison | WI | 18.1%High | 105.4 | $1,159 | $76,983 | |
| #37 | Salem | OR | 18.8%High | 104.2 | $1,125 | $71,900 | |
| #38 | Plano | TX | 14.9%High | 104.2 | $653 | $52,612 | |
| #39 | Raleigh | NC | 18.2%High | 102.6 | $1,248 | $82,424 | |
| #40 | Phoenix | AZ | 19.3%High | 102.4 | $1,239 | $77,041 | |
| #41 | Las Vegas | NV | 21.0%High | 102.2 | $1,238 | $70,723 | |
| #42 | Kiryas Joel | NY | 37.2%High | 100 | $1,339 | $43,171 | |
| #43 | Monsey | NY | 37.0%High | 100 | $1,513 | $49,095 | |
| #44 | West Lafayette | IN | 35.1%High | 100 | $979 | $33,497 | |
| #45 | Lauderdale Lakes | FL | 34.9%High | 100 | $1,290 | $44,333 | |
| #46 | Leisure City | FL | 33.4%High | 100 | $1,352 | $48,640 | |
| #47 | Lauderhill | FL | 33.3%High | 100 | $1,377 | $49,685 | |
| #48 | Hallandale Beach | FL | 33.2%High | 100 | $1,343 | $48,518 | |
| #49 | University CDP (Hillsborough County) | FL | 33.1%High | 100 | $1,007 | $36,483 | |
| #50 | Dania Beach | FL | 32.8%High | 100 | $1,391 | $50,948 |