West Virginia and Kansas had the lowest cost of living across all U.S. states, with composite costs being half of those found in Hawaii. This was according to a composite index that compares prices for various goods and services on a state-by-state basis. In West Virginia, the cost of living index amounted to **** — well below the national benchmark of 100. Virginia— which had an index value of ***** — was only slightly above that benchmark. Expensive places to live included Hawaii, Massachusetts, and California. Housing costs in the U.S. Housing is usually the highest expense in a household’s budget. In 2023, the average house sold for approximately ******* U.S. dollars, but house prices in the Northeast and West regions were significantly higher. Conversely, the South had some of the least expensive housing. In West Virginia, Mississippi, and Louisiana, the median price of the typical single-family home was less than ******* U.S. dollars. That makes living expenses in these states significantly lower than in states such as Hawaii and California, where housing is much pricier. What other expenses affect the cost of living? Utility costs such as electricity, natural gas, water, and internet also influence the cost of living. In Alaska, Hawaii, and Connecticut, the average monthly utility cost exceeded *** U.S. dollars. That was because of the significantly higher prices for electricity and natural gas in these states.

Hawaii is the state with the highest household electricity price in the United States. In September 2024, the average retail price of electricity for Hawaiian residences amounted to 41.27 U.S. cents per kilowatt-hour. California followed in second, with 30.221 U.S. cents per kilowatt-hour. Meanwhile, Utah registered the lowest price in the period, at around 11.4 U.S. cents per kilowatt-hour. Why is electricity so expensive in Hawaii? Fossil fuels, and specifically oil, account for approximately 80 percent of Hawaii’s electricity mix, so the electricity price in this state can be roughly brought down to the price of oil in the country. Oil was by far the most expensive fossil fuel used for electricity generation in the country. As Hawaii depends on oil imports, the cost of transportation and infrastructure must be added to the oil price. Electricity prices worldwide The U.S. retail price for electricity increased almost every year since 1990. In 2023, it stood at 12.7 U.S. cents per kilowatt-hour, almost double the charge put on electricity back in 1990. However, household electricity prices are around 25 U.S. dollar cents per kilowatt-hour lower in the U.S. when compared to European countries reliant on energy imports, such as Germany and Italy.

Of the most populous cities in the U.S., San Jose, California had the highest annual income requirement at ******* U.S. dollars annually for homeowners to have an affordable and comfortable life in 2024. This can be compared to Houston, Texas, where homeowners needed an annual income of ****** U.S. dollars in 2024.

A table listing the average electricity rates (kWh) of all 50 U.S. states as of March 2025.

Pre-packaged, thick sliced, regular sliced or thin sliced pork bacon, regardless of process state."

The graph displays the average hospital stay cost per inpatient day in the United States by hospital type from 1999 to 2022. The x-axis represents the years, ranging from 1999 to 2022, while the y-axis indicates the cost in dollars per inpatient day. The data is categorized into three types of hospitals: State/Local Government Hospitals, Non-Profit Hospitals, and For-Profit Hospitals.

In 1999, State/Local Government Hospitals had an average cost of $1,004.02 per inpatient day, which increased to $2,856.58 by 2022. Non-Profit Hospitals started with the highest costs at $1,139.49 in 1999 and rose to $3,166.58 in 2022, maintaining the highest costs among the three categories throughout the period. For-Profit Hospitals had the lowest starting cost at $999.03 in 1999 and reached $2,383.42 by 2022.

The data reveals that all hospital types experienced a consistent upward trend in costs over the 23-year period. Non-Profit Hospitals consistently had the highest costs, followed by State/Local Government Hospitals, and then For-Profit Hospitals. This upward trajectory highlights the increasing healthcare expenses in the United States across all types of hospitals.

Cities in the United States dominate the list of cities with the highest rents worldwide. New York was ranked as the most expensive city to rent in, ahead of San Francisco, with an index score of ***. Boston followed in third.

The total costs of Hurricane Katrina amounted to 125 billion U.S. dollars at the time the disaster occurred in 2005. While this is around the same total cost of Hurricane Harvey, when adjusted for inflation the former is more expensive, with the cost being the equivalent of 194 billion U.S. dollars in 2023 (compared to 155 billion U.S. dollars for Hurricane Harvey).

Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina struck Louisiana on August 9, 2005 and displaced hundreds of thousands of people from their homes in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. The death toll reached almost 2,000 people. Katrina was also the most expensive U.S. catastrophe since 1992 in terms of property loss.

Harvey, Maria and Irma Katrina was responsible for the spike in insured losses caused by natural disasters globally in 2005. Harvey, Maria and Irma also made quite the impact in 2017 when they hit central America and then made land on the U.S. Gulf Coast. The frequency and intensity of such natural disasters are increasing.

As of October 2024, the city with the most expensive hotel rate in the United States was Boston. Visitors to the East Coast city could expect to pay 320 U.S. dollars for a doube room during that period. Meanwhile, New York ranked third with an average rate of 284 U.S. dollars.

According to a recent study, Colombia had the lowest monthly cost of living in Latin America with 546 U.S. dollars needed for basic living. In contrast, four countries had a cost of living above one thousand dollars, Costa Rica, Chile, Panama and Uruguay. In 2022, the highest minimum wage in the region was recorded by Ecuador with 425 dollars per month.

Can Latin Americans survive on a minimum wage? Even if most countries in Latin America have instated laws to guarantee citizens a basic income, these minimum standards are often not enough to meet household needs. For instance, it was estimated that almost 22 million people in Mexico lacked basic housing services. Salary levels also vary greatly among Latin American economies. In 2022, the average net monthly salary in Brazil was lower than Ecuador's minimum wage.

What can a minimum wage afford in Latin America? Latin American real wages have generally risen in the past decade. However, consumers in this region still struggle to afford non-basic goods, such as tech products. Recent estimates reveal that, in order to buy an iPhone, Brazilian residents would have to work more than two months to be able to pay for it. A gaming console, on the other hand, could easily cost a Latin American worker several minimum wages.

Portugal, Canada, and the United States were the countries with the highest house price to income ratio in 2024. In all three countries, the index exceeded 130 index points, while the average for all OECD countries stood at 116.2 index points. The index measures the development of housing affordability and is calculated by dividing nominal house price by nominal disposable income per head, with 2015 set as a base year when the index amounted to 100. An index value of 120, for example, would mean that house price growth has outpaced income growth by 20 percent since 2015. How have house prices worldwide changed since the COVID-19 pandemic? House prices started to rise gradually after the global financial crisis (2007–2008), but this trend accelerated with the pandemic. The countries with advanced economies, which usually have mature housing markets, experienced stronger growth than countries with emerging economies. Real house price growth (accounting for inflation) peaked in 2022 and has since lost some of the gain. Although, many countries experienced a decline in house prices, the global house price index shows that property prices in 2023 were still substantially higher than before COVID-19. Renting vs. buying In the past, house prices have grown faster than rents. However, the home affordability has been declining notably, with a direct impact on rental prices. As people struggle to buy a property of their own, they often turn to rental accommodation. This has resulted in a growing demand for rental apartments and soaring rental prices.

There were approximately 18.58 million college students in the U.S. in 2022, with around 13.49 million enrolled in public colleges and a further 5.09 million students enrolled in private colleges. The figures are projected to remain relatively constant over the next few years.

What is the most expensive college in the U.S.? The overall number of higher education institutions in the U.S. totals around 4,000, and California is the state with the most. One important factor that students – and their parents – must consider before choosing a college is cost. With annual expenses totaling almost 78,000 U.S. dollars, Harvey Mudd College in California was the most expensive college for the 2021-2022 academic year. There are three major costs of college: tuition, room, and board. The difference in on-campus and off-campus accommodation costs is often negligible, but they can change greatly depending on the college town.

The differences between public and private colleges Public colleges, also called state colleges, are mostly funded by state governments. Private colleges, on the other hand, are not funded by the government but by private donors and endowments. Typically, private institutions are  much more expensive. Public colleges tend to offer different tuition fees for students based on whether they live in-state or out-of-state, while private colleges have the same tuition cost for every student.

The average monthly price for natural gas in the United States amounted to **** nominal U.S. dollars per million British thermal units (Btu) in May 2025. By contrast, natural gas prices in Europe were about three times higher than those in the U.S. Prices in Europe tend to be notably higher than those in the U.S. as the latter benefits from being a major hydrocarbon producer. Europe's import reliance European prices for natural gas rose most notable throughout the second half of 2021 and much of 2022, peaking at over ** U.S. dollars per million Btu in August 2022. The sharp rise was due to supply chain issues and economic strain following the COVID-19 pandemic, which was further exacerbated by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in early 2022. As a result of the war, many countries began looking for alternative sources, and Russian pipeline gas imports to the European Union declined as a result. Meanwhile, LNG was a great beneficiary, with LNG demand in Europe rising by more than ** percent between 2021 and 2023. How domestic natural gas production shapes prices As intimated, the United States’ position among the leaders of worldwide natural gas production is one of the main reasons for why prices for this commodity are so low across the country. In 2023, the U.S. produced more than ************ cubic meters of natural gas, which allays domestic demand and allows for far lower purchasing prices.

In January 2025, apartment rents recorded an annual growth in most U.S. states. Nevertheless, the national average rent declined by about *** percent. West Virginia was the state with the largest rental increase, while Colorado measured the largest decline. California, one of the most expensive states to rent an apartment, such as California, saw an increase of about *** percent from the previous year. How much should you earn to afford to rent an apartment in different states in the U.S.? Both employment opportunities and the living costs vary widely across the country. In California, which is among the most competitive housing markets in the U.S., the hourly wage needed to afford a two-bedroom apartment rental was roughly ** U.S. dollars, more than twice higher than in North Carolina, Louisiana, or Michigan in 2024. When it comes to the median household income, on the other hand, California does not even make it in the top ten states. How much should you earn to afford a home in some of U.S. largest metros? In 2022, the annual salary needed to buy a median-priced home in the U.S. was ****** U.S. dollars. However, in some of the largest metropolitan areas in the United States, where housing prices are up to two or three times higher, homebuyers would have to earn more than 100,000 U.S. dollars to afford a home. In San Jose, which was the most expensive metro, the annual salary needed for a median-priced home was approximately ******* U.S. dollars.

At **** U.S. dollars, Switzerland has the most expensive Big Macs in the world, according to the January 2025 Big Mac index. Concurrently, the cost of a Big Mac was **** dollars in the U.S., and **** U.S. dollars in the Euro area. What is the Big Mac index? The Big Mac index, published by The Economist, is a novel way of measuring whether the market exchange rates for different countries’ currencies are overvalued or undervalued. It does this by measuring each currency against a common standard – the Big Mac hamburger sold by McDonald’s restaurants all over the world. Twice a year the Economist converts the average national price of a Big Mac into U.S. dollars using the exchange rate at that point in time. As a Big Mac is a completely standardized product across the world, the argument goes that it should have the same relative cost in every country. Differences in the cost of a Big Mac expressed as U.S. dollars therefore reflect differences in the purchasing power of each currency. Is the Big Mac index a good measure of purchasing power parity? Purchasing power parity (PPP) is the idea that items should cost the same in different countries, based on the exchange rate at that time. This relationship does not hold in practice. Factors like tax rates, wage regulations, whether components need to be imported, and the level of market competition all contribute to price variations between countries. The Big Mac index does measure this basic point – that one U.S. dollar can buy more in some countries than others. There are more accurate ways to measure differences in PPP though, which convert a larger range of products into their dollar price. Adjusting for PPP can have a massive effect on how we understand a country’s economy. The country with the largest GDP adjusted for PPP is China, but when looking at the unadjusted GDP of different countries, the U.S. has the largest economy.

The average monthly rent for all apartment types in the U.S. soared in 2021 and 2022, followed by a slight decline in the next two years. In April 2025, the monthly rent for a two-bedroom apartment amounting to ***** U.S. dollars. That was an increase from ***** U.S. dollars in January 2021, but a decline from the peak value of ***** U.S. dollars in August 2022. Where are the most expensive apartments in the U.S.? Apartment rents vary widely from state to state. To afford a two-bedroom apartment in California, for example, a renter needed to earn an average hourly wage of nearly ** U.S. dollars, which was approximately double the average wage in North Carolina and three times as much as the average wage in Arkansas. In fact, rental costs were considerably higher than the hourly minimum wage in all U.S. states. How did rents change in different states in the U.S.? In 2024, some of the most expensive states to rent an apartment only saw a moderate increase in rental prices. Nevertheless, rents increased in most states as of April 2025. In West Virginia, the annual rental growth was the highest, at ***** percent.

The retail price of 100% ground beef in the United States has risen significantly in the last two decades. In 2024, a pound of ground beef cost **** U.S. dollars, up from **** U.S. dollars in 2008. Cattle and beef production in the U.S. In 2022, there were almost ** million beef cows in the United States. Compared to sheep, pigs, and chickens, cows are very expensive to raise and require much more water, feed, and land per calorie generated. Though beef production fluctuates from year to year, there has been a positive trend in beef production in the last several years in the United States. U.S. beef market In terms of retail sales, beef is the leading type of fresh meat in the United States. On average, beef generates about *********** U.S. dollars in sales per store per week, compared to approximately *********** dollars for chicken, and less than ************* dollars for pork. As of 2021, per capita consumption of beef in the United States amounted to about ** pounds per year.

California has the highest tax rate on gasoline in the United States. As of January 2024, the gas tax in California amounted to **** U.S. cents per gallon. California has long been known as the state with the highest tax rates – and consequently some of the highest fuel prices in the country. In October 2024, it ranked above Hawaii as the U.S. state with the highest gasoline retail price. Gas price components Out of all components making up retail gasoline prices, federal and state taxes are one of the strongest determinants of how much consumers pay for gas. These taxes are generally invested back into the construction and repair of road infrastructure. The federal government also places a tax on gasoline sold in the country, but almost every gas tax imposed by the states themselves is higher than this federal rate. Higher gasoline taxes may also affect driving habits, as those who live in states with higher gas taxes tend to drive less when other options are available. U.S. motor fuel tax revenue State taxes on fuel were first introduced in Oregon in 1919 while the rest of the states followed suit within the next decade. The amount generated through such taxes increased significantly throughout the last 40 years, with annual U.S. state and local motor fuel tax revenue climbing to over ** billion U.S. dollars.

Retail residential electricity prices in the United States have mostly risen over the last decades. In 2023, prices registered a year-over-year growth of 6.3 percent, the highest growth registered since the beginning of the century. Residential prices are projected to continue to grow by two percent in 2024. Drivers of electricity price growth The price of electricity is partially dependent on the various energy sources used for generation, such as coal, gas, oil, renewable energy, or nuclear. In the U.S., electricity prices are highly connected to natural gas prices. As the commodity is exposed to international markets that pay a higher rate, U.S. prices are also expected to rise, as it has been witnessed during the energy crisis in 2022. Electricity demand is also expected to increase, especially in regions that will likely require more heating or cooling as climate change impacts progress, driving up electricity prices. Which states pay the most for electricity? Electricity prices can vary greatly depending on both state and region. Hawaii has the highest electricity prices in the U.S., at roughly 43 U.S. cents per kilowatt-hour as of May 2023, due to the high costs of crude oil used to fuel the state’s electricity. In comparison, Idaho has one of the lowest retail rates. Much of the state’s energy is generated from hydroelectricity, which requires virtually no fuel. In addition, construction costs can be spread out over decades.

In the first quarter of 2025, San Francisco, Chicago, New York, and Honolulu were some of the U.S. cities with the highest housing construction costs. Meanwhile, Phoenix had one of the lowest construction costs for high-end multifamily homes at *** U.S. dollars per square foot and Las Vegas for single-family homes between *** and *** U.S. dollars per square foot. Construction cost disparities As seen here, the construction cost for a high-end multi-family home in San Francisco in the first quarter of 2024 was over ***** more expensive than in Phoenix. Meanwhile, there were also great differences in the cost of building a single-family house in New York and in Portland or Seattle. Some factors that may cause these disparities are the construction materials, installation, and composite costs, differing land values, wages, etc. For example, although the price of construction materials in the U.S. was rising at a slower level than in 2022 and 2023, several materials that are essential in most construction projects had growth rates of over **** percent in 2024. Growing industry revenue Despite the economic uncertainty and other challenges, the size of the private construction market in the U.S. rose during the past years. It is important to consider that supply and demand for housing influences the revenue of this segment of the construction market. On the supply side, single-family home construction fell in 2023, but it is expected to rise in 2024 and 2025. On the demand side, some of the U.S. metropolitan areas with the highest sale prices of single-family homes were located in California, with San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara at the top of the ranking.