Cost of living map
Every U.S. county colored by estimated monthly living costs. Toggle between single, couple, and family scenarios. Hover for details, click for the full profile.
About this map
This map shows estimated monthly living costs in every U.S. county, covering rent, utilities, groceries, transportation, healthcare and taxes. Use the toggle above the map to switch between household types:
- Single: based on one-bedroom rent, individual food costs, and single-filer tax rates.
- Couple: based on two-bedroom rent, shared utilities and groceries, and joint-filer tax rates.
- Family: based on three-bedroom rent, family grocery and transport costs, childcare, and joint-filer tax rates.
All figures are calculated from official government data sources. Darker red indicates higher cost; deeper blue indicates lower cost. Counties shaded gray have insufficient data, typically because their populations are too small for reliable Census ACS estimates.
Alaska is repositioned to the lower left and Hawaii to the lower center using the standard Albers USA projection, so the map fits in a single rectangle without distorting the scale of the contiguous 48 states.
Frequently asked questions
About the cost of living map.
Can I see costs for different household sizes?
Yes. Use the Single/Couple/Family toggle above the map. Single uses one-bedroom rent, individual food costs and single-filer tax rates. Couple uses two-bedroom rent, shared utilities and groceries, and joint-filer tax rates. Family uses three-bedroom rent, family grocery and transport costs, childcare and joint-filer tax rates. The color bands rescale per mode so the gradient stays meaningful as totals grow.
What is the cheapest county to live in?
The cheapest U.S. counties to live in are concentrated in the South and parts of the Midwest. Our full ranking, with population thresholds applied to filter statistical noise, is on the cheapest places ranking page.
What is the most expensive county to live in?
The most expensive counties are concentrated in coastal California, the New York metro area and parts of New England. Counties shaded red on the map exceed the highest cost band at the selected household size. See the most expensive ranking for the full list.
Which states have the lowest cost of living?
States in the South Central region (Arkansas, Mississippi, Louisiana) and parts of the Midwest consistently show the lowest overall costs. See the full state ranking for figures.
About this data
County boundaries are from the U.S. Census Bureau via the us-atlas project. Cost figures combine Census ACS, HUD FMRs, EIA energy rates, USDA Food Plans, BEA RPPs and Tax Foundation rates.