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.

This statistic shows the best states to make living in the United States in 2019. In 2019, Wyoming was ranked as the best state to make a living in the United States, with the cost of living index at **** value and the median income of ****** U.S. dollars.

The US Family Budget Dataset provides insights into the cost of living in different US counties based on the Family Budget Calculator by the Economic Policy Institute (EPI).

This dataset offers community-specific estimates for ten family types, including one or two adults with zero to four children, in all 1877 counties and metro areas across the United States.

Interesting Task Ideas:

1. See how family budgets compare to the federal poverty line and the Supplemental Poverty Measure in different counties.
2. Look into the money challenges faced by different types of families using the budgets provided.
3. Find out which counties have the most affordable places to live, food, transportation, healthcare, childcare, and other things people need.
4. Explore how the average income of families relates to the overall cost of living in different counties.
5. Investigate how family size affects the estimated budget and find counties where bigger families have higher costs.
6. Create visuals showing how the cost of living varies across different states and big cities.
7. Check whether specific counties are affordable for families of different sizes and types.
8. Use the dataset to compare living standards and economic security in different US counties.

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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 dataset comprising various variables around housing and demographics for the top 50 American cities by population.

Variables:

Zip Code: Zip code within which the listing is present.

Price: Listed price for the property.

Beds: Number of beds mentioned in the listing.

Baths: Number of baths mentioned in the listing.

Living Space: The total size of the living space, in square feet, mentioned in the listing.

Address: Street address of the listing.

City: City name where the listing is located.

State: State name where the listing is located.

Zip Code Population: The estimated number of individuals within the zip code. Data from Simplemaps.com.

Zip Code Density: The estimated number of individuals per square mile within the zip code. Data from Simplemaps.com.

County: County where the listing is located.

Median Household income: Estimated median household income. Data from the U.S. Census Bureau.

Latitude: Latitude of the zip code. ** Data from Simplemaps.com.**

Longitude: Longitude of the zip code. Data from Simplemaps.com.

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.

Single Family Home Prices in the United States increased to 415200 USD in October from 412300 USD in September of 2025. This dataset provides - United States Existing Single Family Home Prices- actual values, historical data, forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news.

Complete dataset of average residential and commercial electricity rates in cents per kWh for all 50 states and D.C. as of December 2025.

This statistic shows the most affordable metro areas in the Unites States in 2017, by share of income spent on living expenses. In 2017, Omaha was the second most affordable metro area because ***** percent of the median blending annual household income was spent on the average cost of owning or renting a home as well the average cost of utilities and taxes.

Producer Prices in the United States increased to 149.78 points in September from 149.32 points in August of 2025. This dataset provides the latest reported value for - United States Producer Prices - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.

Gasoline Prices in the United States remained unchanged at 0.81 USD/Liter in November. This dataset provides the latest reported value for - United States Gasoline Prices - plus previous releases, historical high and low, short-term forecast and long-term prediction, economic calendar, survey consensus and news.

United States CSI: Personal: HH Fin'l Situation: 1Yr Ago: Worse: Prices are Higher data was reported at 8.000 % in May 2018. This stayed constant from the previous number of 8.000 % for Apr 2018. United States CSI: Personal: HH Fin'l Situation: 1Yr Ago: Worse: Prices are Higher data is updated monthly, averaging 13.000 % from Jan 1978 (Median) to May 2018, with 485 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 48.000 % in Jun 2008 and a record low of 4.000 % in Jan 2000. United States CSI: Personal: HH Fin'l Situation: 1Yr Ago: Worse: Prices are Higher data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by University of Michigan. The data is categorized under Global Database’s USA – Table US.H024: Consumer Sentiment Index: Personal Finance. The question was: We are interested in how people are getting along financially these days. Would you say that you (and your family living there) are better off or worse off financially than you were a year ago? Responses to the query 'Why do you say so?'

Graph and download economic data for Commercial Real Estate Prices for United States (COMREPUSQ159N) from Q1 2005 to Q1 2025 about real estate, commercial, rate, and USA.

Graph and download economic data for Median Sales Price of Houses Sold for the United States (MSPUS) from Q1 1963 to Q2 2025 about sales, median, housing, and USA.

The rental housing developments listed below are among the thousands of affordable units that are supported by City of Chicago programs to maintain affordability in local neighborhoods. The list is updated periodically when construction is completed for new projects or when the compliance period for older projects expire, typically after 30 years. The list is provided as a courtesy to the public. It does not include every City-assisted affordable housing unit that may be available for rent, nor does it include the hundreds of thousands of naturally occurring affordable housing units located throughout Chicago without City subsidies. For information on rents, income requirements and availability for the projects listed, contact each property directly. For information on other affordable rental properties in Chicago and Illinois, call (877) 428-8844, or visit www.ILHousingSearch.org.

Discover the cheapest fuel in your area with this intuitive and free app and save money every time you fill up your tank! * Clear presentation: With our app you always have a quick overview of all petrol stations throughout Austria. * Practical filters: You can narrow down the search for open gas stations or the 10 cheapest ones in your area. * Price history and trends: Track the price trend of the last few months and always fill up at the right time. * Rankings: Rankings provide information about how cheap a gas station is compared to others. * Favourites list: Save your favorite gas stations and always find out immediately where the price is cheapest. * Fuel cost calculator: Calculate the cost of a specific route or find out how much you will spend on fuel per year. * State comparison: Find out which states have the most expensive fuel prices and where you can refuel cheaper. This allows you to refuel cleverly even on long-distance trips. * Neighbouring countries comparison: If you are going abroad, it is worth taking a look at whether you should refuel at home or abroad. * Annual review: Take a look at the prices of the last 12 months and learn more about the inflation rate caused by fuel price inflation. * Notifications: Upon request, you will receive notifications of price reductions and increases. * Statistics: Get important pricing information to stay up-to-date. "Fuel prices AT: Clever Tanken" is available for free download.

View monthly updates and historical trends for US Inflation Rate. from United States. Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics. Track economic data with YCharts…

Large white, Grade A chicken eggs, sold in a carton of a dozen. Includes organic, non-organic, cage free, free range, and traditional."

Context

Zillow operates an industry-leading economics and analytics bureau led by Zillow’s Chief Economist, Dr. Stan Humphries. At Zillow, Dr. Humphries and his team of economists and data analysts produce extensive housing data and analysis covering more than 500 markets nationwide. Zillow Research produces various real estate, rental and mortgage-related metrics and publishes unique analyses on current topics and trends affecting the housing market.

At Zillow’s core is our living database of more than 100 million U.S. homes, featuring both public and user-generated information including number of bedrooms and bathrooms, tax assessments, home sales and listing data of homes for sale and for rent. This data allows us to calculate, among other indicators, the Zestimate, a highly accurate, automated, estimated value of almost every home in the country as well as the Zillow Home Value Index and Zillow Rent Index, leading measures of median home values and rents.

Content

The Zillow Rent Index is the median estimated monthly rental price for a given area, and covers multifamily, single family, condominium, and cooperative homes in Zillow’s database, regardless of whether they are currently listed for rent. It is expressed in dollars and is seasonally adjusted. The Zillow Rent Index is published at the national, state, metro, county, city, neighborhood, and zip code levels.

Zillow produces rent estimates (Rent Zestimates) based on proprietary statistical and machine learning models. Within each county or state, the models observe recent rental listings and learn the relative contribution of various home attributes in predicting prevailing rents. These home attributes include physical facts about the home, prior sale transactions, tax assessment information and geographic location as well as the estimated market value of the home (Zestimate). Based on the patterns learned, these models estimate rental prices on all homes, including those not presently for rent. Because of the availability of Zillow rental listing data used to train the models, Rent Zestimates are only available back to November 2010; therefore, each ZRI time series starts on the same date.

Acknowledgements

The rent index data was calculated from Zillow's proprietary Rent Zestimates and published on its website.

Inspiration

What city has the highest and lowest rental prices in the country? Which metropolitan area is the most expensive to live in? Where have rental prices increased in the past five years and where have they remained the same? What city or state has the lowest cost per square foot?

Continuously updated Monex bid/ask prices for Silver spot and common bullion products.