Most Expensive Cities in America: Cost of living in the average American city is $5,111.17 per month. That’s the same as $61,334 a year. Many people’s budgets wouldn’t be able to handle that, but renters in the most expensive cities in America, which are mostly in California, can’t even get that low.
dollardosh used rental data from ApartmentList, cost-of-living data from Sperling’s Best, and average spending data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics to find the most expensive cities to live in America. Any city with an AreaVibes score of less than 65 didn’t make the list.
So, you think it’s hard where you live to make ends meet? Try these 10 cities, where rent is the most expensive in the United States.
The 10 Most Expensive Cities in America for Rent Price
Emeryville, CA
2022 1-bedroom rent: $2,631.29
The cost of living in Emeryville, California, which is home to Pixar Animation Studios, is $94,147.69 per year, or $7,845.64 per month. This is one of only two cities in the ranking where you can get by on five figures. The trade-off is a livability score of 67, which is just average and the lowest of all the cities on the list.
Marina del Rey, California
2022 1-bedroom rent: $4,471.14
Marina del Rey, on the other hand, has a score of 84, which is higher than all but one other city. It, too, has a cost of living that is less than six figures per year. For $98,931.74, or $8,244.31 per month, you can make a life there. The rent is very high, though. In Marina del Rey, a one-bedroom apartment costs almost $1,400 more than in the next most expensive city.
Lake Forest, CA
2022 1-bedroom rent: $2,544.00
With a score of 77, Lake Forest is the third-worst place to live on the list. It’s one of only four that come in at less than 80. The trade-off is that the rent is the second lowest in the list. The annual cost of living there is $102,979.79, or $8,581.65 a month.
Hoboken, New Jersey
2022 1-bedroom rent: $2,988.14
Hoboken is the only city on the list that is not in California, but its high score of 85 for livability might be worth the trip across the country. No other city on the list scores higher. Housing isn’t cheap there—people in only three cities pay more each month for rent. The cost of living is $107,518.50 a year, which is $8,959.88 a month.
Irvine, CA
2022 1-bedroom rent: $2,675.57
Irvine is one of only four cities on the list with a score lower than 80. It gets a 79, which is still very good. Irvine is the last city on the list where you can get by on less than $10,000 per month. The cost of living there is $114,755.91 per year, or $9,562.99 per month.
Union City, CA
2022 1-bedroom rent: $2,497.29
With a score of 68, Union City is second-worst on the list, behind only Emeryville. In exchange, it has the lowest rent of any of the 10 cities. With an annual cost of living of $122,054.66, you’ll need $10,171.22 every month to make a living there.
Dublin, CA
2022 1-bedroom rent: $2,753.29
Dublin is a great place to live, but it will cost you. The city has a score of 82. Dublin’s cost of living is $122,115.99 per year, or $10,176.33 per month. This is almost the same as Union City.
Foster City, CA
2022 1-bedroom rent: $3,085.14
Foster City is one of only two cities where the average rent is more than $3,000. Marina del Rey is the other. That will give you a cost of living score of 80, which is great, but rent is not the only thing you need to think about when it comes to money. Foster City has a shockingly high cost of living: $176,764.59 per year, or $14,730.38 per month.
California’s Newport Beach
2022 1-bedroom rent: $2,664.00
The cost of living in Newport Beach is $216,693.02 per year, making it one of only two cities on the list to do so. That equals $18,057.75 per month.
Cupertino, California
2022 1-bedroom rent: $2,996.00
If you want to live in Cupertino, which is where Apple is based, you’ll need $18,124.20 per month, or $217,490.36 per year. Apple, on the other hand, has good taste in real estate. Cupertino’s 83 livability score puts the city in the top three.
