Last updated: 2026-05-09
Looking for the most expensive cities to live in the United States? We ranked 83 major US cities by their total monthly non-tax cost of living — housing, utilities, food, transportation, healthcare, and sales tax — using current government data. The 10 priciest are below, with median 2-bedroom rents from HUD's Fair Market Rent dataset and category-level estimates from the Census Bureau, BLS, and BEA. Average monthly costs in the top 10 range from roughly $4,728 to $6,148.
Methodology note: rankings reflect HUD Fair Market Rent for one representative ZIP code per city. Cost of living can vary significantly between neighborhoods within the same city. Income tax is excluded since it depends on salary; use the comparison tool to factor it in for a specific salary.
| Rank | City | Monthly cost | 2BR rent |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Diego, CA | $6,148 | $4,100 |
| 2 | Irvine, CA | $5,558 | $3,510 |
| 3 | Seattle, WA | $5,550 | $3,610 |
| 4 | Boston, MA | $5,296 | $3,590 |
| 5 | New York, NY | $5,247 | $3,560 |
| 6 | San Jose, CA | $5,208 | $3,160 |
| 7 | Washington, DC | $4,960 | $3,190 |
| 8 | Denver, CO | $4,787 | $3,040 |
| 9 | San Francisco, CA | $4,778 | $3,030 |
| 10 | Long Beach, CA | $4,728 | $2,680 |
San Diego's monthly cost of living averages $6,148, with housing the dominant driver at $4,100/mo for a typical 2-bedroom — +173% above the national median.
Monthly transportation runs about $791, with utilities at $162 and groceries at $525. Estimates use HUD Fair Market Rent for ZIP 92101 and BLS Consumer Expenditure baselines scaled by BEA Regional Price Parities.
Irvine's monthly cost of living averages $5,558, with housing the dominant driver at $3,510/mo for a typical 2-bedroom — +134% above the national median.
Monthly transportation runs about $791, with utilities at $162 and groceries at $525. Estimates use HUD Fair Market Rent for ZIP 92602 and BLS Consumer Expenditure baselines scaled by BEA Regional Price Parities.
Seattle's monthly cost of living averages $5,550, with housing the dominant driver at $3,610/mo for a typical 2-bedroom — +141% above the national median.
Monthly transportation runs about $769, with utilities at $122 and groceries at $498. Estimates use HUD Fair Market Rent for ZIP 98101 and BLS Consumer Expenditure baselines scaled by BEA Regional Price Parities.
Boston's monthly cost of living averages $5,296, with housing the dominant driver at $3,590/mo for a typical 2-bedroom — +139% above the national median.
Monthly groceries runs about $512, with utilities at $218 and groceries at $512. Estimates use HUD Fair Market Rent for ZIP 02108 and BLS Consumer Expenditure baselines scaled by BEA Regional Price Parities.
New York's monthly cost of living averages $5,247, with housing the dominant driver at $3,560/mo for a typical 2-bedroom — +137% above the national median.
Monthly groceries runs about $528, with utilities at $192 and groceries at $528. Estimates use HUD Fair Market Rent for ZIP 10001 and BLS Consumer Expenditure baselines scaled by BEA Regional Price Parities.
San Jose's monthly cost of living averages $5,208, with housing the dominant driver at $3,160/mo for a typical 2-bedroom — +111% above the national median.
Monthly transportation runs about $791, with utilities at $162 and groceries at $525. Estimates use HUD Fair Market Rent for ZIP 95110 and BLS Consumer Expenditure baselines scaled by BEA Regional Price Parities.
Washington's monthly cost of living averages $4,960, with housing the dominant driver at $3,190/mo for a typical 2-bedroom — +113% above the national median.
Monthly groceries runs about $546, with utilities at $185 and groceries at $546. Estimates use HUD Fair Market Rent for ZIP 20001 and BLS Consumer Expenditure baselines scaled by BEA Regional Price Parities.
Denver's monthly cost of living averages $4,787, with housing the dominant driver at $3,040/mo for a typical 2-bedroom — +103% above the national median.
Monthly transportation runs about $655, with utilities at $128 and groceries at $472. Estimates use HUD Fair Market Rent for ZIP 80202 and BLS Consumer Expenditure baselines scaled by BEA Regional Price Parities.
San Francisco's monthly cost of living averages $4,778, with housing the dominant driver at $3,030/mo for a typical 2-bedroom — +102% above the national median.
Monthly groceries runs about $525, with utilities at $162 and groceries at $525. Estimates use HUD Fair Market Rent for ZIP 94102 and BLS Consumer Expenditure baselines scaled by BEA Regional Price Parities.
Long Beach's monthly cost of living averages $4,728, with housing the dominant driver at $2,680/mo for a typical 2-bedroom — +79% above the national median.
Monthly transportation runs about $791, with utilities at $162 and groceries at $525. Estimates use HUD Fair Market Rent for ZIP 90802 and BLS Consumer Expenditure baselines scaled by BEA Regional Price Parities.
Among the major US cities in our index, San Diego, CA ranks #1 with average monthly costs of $6,148 for a single resident. Housing alone averages $4,100 per month for a 2-bedroom rental.
Housing dominates the cost-of-living gap between high-cost and low-cost US cities. In the top 10, 2-bedroom rents range from roughly $2,500 to over $4,000 per month — two to three times the national median. Income, sales, and property taxes add to the burden, and groceries, transportation, and healthcare also rise (though more modestly) in high-RPP regions.
We rank major US cities by total monthly non-tax cost of living: housing (HUD Small Area Fair Market Rent for one representative ZIP per city), utilities (EIA state-level energy averages), food (BLS Consumer Expenditure Survey scaled by BEA Regional Price Parities), transportation, healthcare, and sales tax on non-housing spend. Income tax is excluded since it depends on salary.
It includes sales tax (applied to non-housing spend at the combined state and average local rate) but excludes federal, state, and local income tax. Income tax depends on your salary, so it's broken out separately on each city's full comparison page.
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