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Ranked: U.S. Cities by Share of Income Spent on Food and Housing
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Key Takeaways
- In San Diego and Miami, nearly half of income goes to food and housing.
- Sun Belt cities like Orlando and Tampa now exceed one-third of income on essentials.
- High wages in San Jose cut the cost burden to just 18.3%, the lowest in the dataset.
How much of your income goes to basic living costs?
This chart ranks major U.S. cities by the share of income spent on food and housing for a single adult in 2025, based on data from the Urban Stress Index, along with market rents and Numbeo food prices.
In the most expensive cities, the burden is steep. San Diego tops the list at 47%, meaning nearly half of income goes toward just these two categories. By contrast, in San Jose, that share drops to 18.3%—showing how higher wages can offset even the highest costs.
Where Cost of Living Hits Hardest
San Diego (47%) and Miami (45.4%) stand out as the most strained cities, where food and housing alone consume nearly half of income. In both metros, rent growth continues to outpace wage gains, while strong population inflows in Miami are keeping housing demand elevated.
The pressure isn’t limited to coastal hubs. In Florida, Orlando and Tampa both exceed 34% of income, highlighting how affordability challenges have spread to fast-growing Sun Belt cities once seen as lower-cost alternatives.
This table shows the share of income spent on food and housing for a single adult in each city, based on market-rate one-bedroom rents and Numbeo food price indices.
| Rank | City | Share of Income Spent on Food and Housing |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Diego, CA | 47.0% |
| 2 | Miami, FL | 45.4% |
| 3 | Boston, MA | 38.3% |
| 4 | Los Angeles, CA | 38.1% |
| 5 | Orlando, FL | 37.7% |
| 6 | Boise, ID | 36.1% |
| 7 | Tampa, FL | 34.4% |
| 8 | Atlanta, GA | 34.3% |
| 9 | New York, NY | 34.1% |
| 10 | Washington, DC | 33.7% |
| 11 | Chicago, IL | 33.5% |
| 12 | Madison, WI | 32.2% |
| 13 | Kansas City, MO | 31.6% |
| 14 | Portland, OR | 30.6% |
| 15 | Nashville, TN | 30.6% |
| 16 | Charlotte, NC | 30.5% |
| 17 | Pittsburgh, PA | 29.6% |
| 18 | Boulder, CO | 29.0% |
| 19 | Phoenix, AZ | 28.6% |
| 20 | Salt Lake City, UT | 28.2% |
| 21 | Raleigh, NC | 28.1% |
| 22 | Denver, CO | 28.0% |
| 23 | Minneapolis, MN | 27.5% |
| 24 | Dallas, TX | 27.5% |
| 25 | San Antonio, TX | 27.5% |
| 26 | Columbus, OH | 27.5% |
| 27 | Cleveland, OH | 27.2% |
| 28 | Seattle, WA | 26.6% |
| 29 | Austin, TX | 26.2% |
| 30 | Houston, TX | 25.5% |
| 31 | San Francisco, CA | 23.0% |
| 32 | Detroit, MI | 23.0% |
| 33 | San Jose, CA | 18.3% |
| -- | Dataset Average | 30.9% |
Boston and Los Angeles remain firmly in the “stretched” category, where over a third of income goes to basics. Notably, cost burdens in these metros exceed those in New York City, despite the Big Apple having the second-highest rental costs in the country.
The Cities Where Income Goes Furthest
At the other end of the spectrum, San Jose flips the equation. Despite some of the highest prices in the country, residents spend just 18.3% of income on food and housing, less than half the burden seen in San Diego.
Beyond the tech hub, other relatively affordable cities include:
- Detroit: 23%
- San Francisco: 23%
- Houston: 25.5%
- Austin: 26.2%
San Francisco’s presence here is especially notable. While prices are among the highest in the U.S., incomes are also elevated enough to reduce relative strain. Additionally, rent prices have increased just 2% since 2021, among the slowest rates across major U.S. cities.
Ultimately, affordability isn’t just about how much things cost; it’s about how much income those costs consume. And in a growing number of U.S. cities, that share is rising faster than many workers’ paychecks.
Learn More on the Voronoi App
To learn more about this topic, check out this graphic on the average annual cost of living by state.