— Salary & Income
Cost of Living Calculator US
Compare cost of living between two US cities and estimate the salary needed to keep your current lifestyle. See equivalent pay, overall difference, and a category breakdown for housing, groceries, and eating out.
Equivalent salary
$66,102
- Cost-of-living difference
- −33.9%
- Your current salary
- $100,000
Try: San Francisco → Austin on $150k, New York → Miami on $120k, Chicago → Denver on $90k, Los Angeles → Houston on $100k
— Category breakdown
| Category | San Francisco, CA | Austin, TX | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Housing (rent) | 80.1 | 45.4 | −43.3% |
| Groceries | 104.4 | 75.4 | −27.8% |
| Eating out | 95 | 72.8 | −23.4% |
| Overall | 88.5 | 58.5 | −33.9% |
— Category cost comparison
Download— How it works
Equivalent salary = current salary × (target city index ÷ current city index), using the overall cost-of-living-plus-rent index (New York = 100). Owners can switch to the index excluding rent.
How the comparison works
Every city is scored against New York, which is set to 100. A city at 80 costs 80% of New York; one at 50, half. To compare two places you take the ratio of their overall indices and apply it to your pay: move from a city at 88 to one at 58 and costs fall to about two-thirds, so a $100,000 lifestyle there needs roughly $66,000 in the new city. That’s the equivalent salary — what keeps your standard of living the same.
Worked example — San Francisco → Austin, $100,000 (renting): San Francisco overall ≈ 88.5, Austin ≈ 58.5 → ratio 0.66. Equivalent salary ≈ $66,100 — Austin is about 34% cheaper, so you’d need less to live the same way.
Rent is the biggest swing — so renting vs owning matters
Most of the gap between cities is rent; groceries and eating out vary far less. By default the calculator uses the cost-of-living index that includes rent, which is right for renters. If you own your home, switch to “Own home” and it uses the index that excludes rent — because a fixed mortgage insulates you from the local rent market, which usually narrows the gap between an expensive city and a cheap one.
The number to take into a negotiation
The equivalent salary is the figure to bring to a relocation or remote-work conversation. If your employer offers the same pay in a cheaper city, you come out ahead; if they cut your pay to “local rates”, this shows whether the cut still leaves you whole. Going the other way — to a pricier city — it tells you the raise you’d need just to stand still.
What it covers — and what it doesn’t
The figures come from a current cost-of-living index (New York = 100), refreshed periodically rather than live. The breakdown shows the categories available — housing (rent), groceries and eating out; transport, healthcare and utilities aren’t in the public data, so they’re left out of the breakdown. It also excludes income tax, which varies by state (Texas and Florida have none; California is high) — run the equivalent salary through the take-home or paycheck calculator for the after-tax picture.
— Reader questions
How do I compare the cost of living between two US cities?
Take the ratio of their overall cost-of-living indices (New York = 100). If your city scores 88 and the target 58, the target costs about two-thirds as much, so multiply your salary by 0.66 for the equivalent. This calculator does it on current cost-of-living data.
What salary do I need in another city to maintain my lifestyle?
Multiply your current salary by (target index ÷ current index). Moving somewhere a third cheaper, $100,000 becomes about $66,000; somewhere a third pricier, about $133,000. The result is shown as the equivalent salary.
Should I pick renting or owning?
Renters should leave it on “Renting” (the index includes rent). If you own with a fixed mortgage, choose “Own home” — it uses the index excluding rent, since you don’t pay the local rent market, which usually shrinks the difference between cities.
Does the cost-of-living comparison include taxes?
No — it compares living costs only. State and local income taxes are separate and can shift the picture (some states have no income tax). Use the take-home or paycheck calculator on the equivalent salary to compare after-tax.
Why aren’t transport, healthcare and utilities in the breakdown?
They aren’t available as category indices in the public data — only housing (rent), groceries and eating out are. They’re reflected in the overall index that drives the headline, just not broken out separately.