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Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Transparent methodology behind every index, score, and color-coded rating on Livably. We believe data should be understandable, not just visible.
Every cost of living index on Livably uses 100 as the national average. A city scoring 120 is roughly 20% more expensive than the average U.S. city. A city scoring 85 is about 15% cheaper. This applies to the overall cost index and each category sub-index (housing, food, transportation, utilities, healthcare).
We calculate indices by normalizing raw cost data from federal sources (BLS, Census Bureau, HUD) against national medians. Each data point is weighted by its real-world impact on a typical household budget, then combined into category and overall scores.
Rent prices, mortgage costs, property taxes, and home values relative to national medians. Housing typically accounts for the largest share of living costs.
Everyday grocery basket prices, restaurant dining, and food delivery costs compared to the national average.
Gas prices, car insurance rates, public transit fares, and average commute costs.
Electricity, natural gas, water, sewer, trash, and internet service bills.
Doctor visit copays, insurance premiums, prescription costs, and specialist fees.
Remaining ~15% covers miscellaneous costs including clothing, entertainment, personal care, and education — tracked where source data is available.
Every score on Livably is color-coded for instant readability. Green means affordable or favorable, red means expensive or unfavorable. The same scale applies across all 287 cities and every page on the site.
Significantly below the national average. Your dollar stretches further here.
Close to the national baseline. Typical cost of living for the U.S.
Noticeably more expensive. Budget carefully, especially for housing.
Well above national average. Expect premium prices across most categories.
Livably aggregates data from multiple federal and industry sources to build city-level cost profiles:
Where primary source coverage is incomplete for a city, we use modeled estimates based on regional patterns and clearly label these fields. We never display synthetic data without disclosure.
Core datasets (rent, income, population) are refreshed quarterly when new federal releases are available. Tax brackets update annually. Cost sub-indices update monthly where BLS regional data permits.
Cost indices reflect citywide averages. Neighborhood-level variation can be significant — a city with index 110 may have areas ranging from 85 to 140. We're working on sub-city granularity.
Every color-coded score on Livably has an info tooltip. Hover or tap the (i) icon to see what the score means, what the colors indicate, and how it's calculated.
Use our Salary Reality Checker to plug in your real income and see how it maps against any city's costs.
The cost index only measures expenses. The affordability score factors in local income — a city can be expensive (high cost index) but still affordable if incomes are proportionally high.