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Living in one of the most expensive cities in the United States is sort of a catch-22. On one hand, congrats for making enough money to survive in a town that annually ranks high on the list, as you’ve probably got enough dough to live, play and (hopefully) put away some cash for savings. On the other hand, man, it sure does suck to see how little space $2000-plus per month for rent gets you when compared to people living in other cities that aren’t nearly as expensive. But, hey, who the hell wants to live where there’s no action happening, right?
After seeing the latest list of the most expensive cities in the United States, it’s pretty obvious where people are spending the most money — looking at you, California. While I feel like I’m dropping a fortune to live in Seattle, of the 15 most expensive cities named on the most up-to-date list, nine of them are in the Golden State, including the top-3. That’s got to be a little tough.
For those wondering where you need to make bank in order to survive a (somewhat presumably) normal life, the Bureau of Economic Analysis breaks things down for you, releasing the annual estimates of the relative cost of living in America’s metro and rural areas. The figures are compared to the price levels for various goods and services in different areas to the average national price, so take a look if your city makes the cut.
T14. Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH: 11.8% higher than the national average
T14. Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA: 11.8% higher than the national average
13. San Diego-Carlsbad, CA: 16% higher than the national average
T11. Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA: 17.1% higher than the national average
T11. Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA: 17.1% higher than the national average
10. Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV: 18.4% higher than the national average
9. Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT: 19.1% higher than the national average
8. Vallejo-Fairfield, CA: 20% higher than the national average
7. New York-Newark-New Jersey, NY-NJ-PA: 22.3% higher than the national average
6. Santa Rosa, CA: 23.5% higher than the national average
5. Napa, CA: 23.6% higher than the national average
4. Honolulu, HI: 24.7% higher than the national average
3. Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA: 27.6% higher than the national average
2. San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA: 28% higher than the national average
1. San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA: 30.9% higher than the national average
You should feel proud to live in your city, but, damn, some of these places are insanely expensive, so here’s to hoping you’ve got money saved up just in case you lose your job, want to start your own company or just need a little extra dough in order to survive. And for those wondering where they might be able to get a drink for cheap, the most and least expensive cities for cocktails were recently ranked, too, and, damn, people will really pay these prices for a libation?