For the study, the personal finance publication examined census data on population, total households and median household income, as well as the cost of living index from Sperling’s BestPlaces, the livability index from AreaVibes, the average single-family home value from February 2024 as sourced from Zillow Home Value Index, and other data to calculate the average cost of living for each city.
Considering a 50-30-20 rule that recommends putting half of an individual’s money toward needs, 30% toward wants, and 20% toward savings, the cost of living was doubled to determine the salary needed to live comfortably in each city. More information on the methodology is available here.
Here are the major cities with the highest and lowest salaries a single adult needs to live comfortably, per the analysis:
Major cities with the highest salary needed for a single adult to live comfortably:
1. Irvine, Calif. — $287,311
2. Fremont, Calif. — $271,867
3. San Jose, Calif. — $269,386
4. San Francisco — $251,308
5. Honolulu — $236,787
6. San Diego — $211,007
7. Los Angeles — $193,581
8. Arlington, Va. — $191,110
9. Anaheim, Calif. — $191,110
10. Seattle — $181,694
Major cities with the lowest salary needed for a single adult to live comfortably:
1. Detroit — $51,144
2. Cleveland — $56,044
3. Toledo, Ohio — $56,939
4. Memphis, Tenn. — $61,459
5. St. Louis — $64,504
6. Laredo, Texas — $66,115
7. Baltimore — $67,753
8. El Paso, Texas — $69,024
9. Oklahoma City — $70,333
10. Tulsa, Okla. — $70,337
