Cost of Living in Houston

In Houston, your dollar has a much higher buying power than virtually any other major metropolitan area in the country.

The Third Quarter 2011 ACCRA Cost of Living Index shows that Houston has the lowest overall cost of living among the 27 metropolitan areas with more than 2 million residents. Houston’s housing costs are 36 percent below the average for these large metro areas, and its overall costs are 19.5 percent below the average for this group.
The Third Quarter 2011 ACCRA Cost of Living Index also shows that Houston’s overall after-taxes living costs are 10.6 percent below the nationwide average, largely due to housing costs that are 19 percent below the average.

COST OF LIVING COMPARISONS Third Quarter 2011 Average for 309 Urban Areas = 100
Metropolitan Statistical Area	Composite	Groceries	Housing	Utilities	Transportation	Health Care	Misc Goods & Services
New York-Newark-Edison NY-NJ-PA	155.3	119.7	239.9	134.0	109.9	112.3	120.4
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria DC-VA-MD-WV	139.8	112.1	221.2	115.0	110.0	100.4	100.7
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana CA	137.3	107.1	211.9	112.9	107.5	108.8	103.7
Boston-Cambridge-Quincy MA-NH	137.2	117.8	157.8	146.6	110.6	120.9	134.0
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington MN-WI	111.3	108.6	118.1	100.9	108.0	106.0	111.4
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Miami Beach FL	109.1	107.5	119.1	93.5	106.0	109.4	106.7
Chicago-Naperville-Joliet IL-IN-WI	107.3	107.4	115.9	101.8	109.7	107.6	100.5
Denver-Aurora CO	105.3	102.6	114.2	89.5	94	105.4	106.8
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta GA	97.4	104.9	85.9	96.2	100.0	104.5	103.4
Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown TX	89.4	82.8	80.9	92.6	94.9	99.1	95.7
Source: Council for Community and Economic Research, ACCRA Cost of Living Index, Third Quarter 2011 (published October 2011) Note: Data are unweighted averages for all reporting places in each metropolitan area.

Fact Documents