Methodology

Data Sources

Our cost of living data is sourced from official US government databases and trusted real estate data providers:

US Census Bureau — American Community Survey (ACS) 5-Year Estimates (2023): Median household income, median rent, median home value, housing costs, commute data, and demographics for 33,000+ zip codes and 32,000+ cities.
Zillow Research Data: Monthly home value index (ZHVI) for 26,000+ zip codes and monthly rent index (ZORI) for 7,800+ zip codes.
HUD Fair Market Rents: ZIP-code-level Small Area Fair Market Rents (SAFMR) by bedroom count.
Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA): Regional Price Parities (RPP) for 384 metropolitan areas.

Our Cost of Living Index uses a weighted formula where the US national average = 100:

Housing Cost Component (40%): Local median rent divided by national median rent ($1,319/month), multiplied by 100.
Regional Price Component (35%): BEA Regional Price Parity for the metropolitan area (or state average if outside an MSA).
Home Value Component (25%): Local median home value divided by national median home value ($304,900), multiplied by 100.

A city with an index of 150 is approximately 50% more expensive than the national average. An index of 75 means approximately 25% cheaper.

Census ACS 5-year estimates reflect a 5-year average, which may lag behind rapid market changes. Zillow data provides more current market conditions.
The cost of living index primarily reflects housing costs. Grocery, transportation, healthcare, and utility costs are proxied through BEA Regional Price Parities at the metro level.
Small communities with very low population may have less reliable data due to Census sampling margins of error.