The answer to what it costs to live in any given US city depends on who you ask. The table below is a sort of "medium" considering several Internet sources. The numbers are as of year-end 2009.
Except for housing and taxes, the numbers and the relative position of any city do not change much over several years. When cities experience strong net in-migration typically experience relatively higher housing costs. Cities experiencing strong net out-migration typically experience relative decreases in housing costs.
| Metropolitan Area | Composite | Food | Housing | Utilities | Trans. | Health | Other |
| New York City | 231.8 | 141.5 | 420.3 | 179.8 | 119.6 | 185.8 | 135.2 |
| Oakland CA | 156.6 | 121.6 | 229.9 | 107.3 | 134.0 | 146.8 | 114.7 |
| Nassau County NY | 143.5 | 124.5 | 177.8 | 160.0 | 116.4 | 153.0 | 126.5 |
| Washington DC | 137.8 | 110.2 | 208.0 | 97.1 | 136.4 | 123.4 | 114.4 |
| Boston MA | 136.2 | 114.5 | 204.0 | 138.2 | 118.7 | 130.7 | 110.0 |
| San Diego CA | 126.4 | 122.5 | 148.7 | 104.0 | 121.1 | 122.4 | 108.4 |
| LA-Long Beach CA | 123.1 | 110.0 | 145.5 | 119.8 | 113.5 | 114.3 | 107.0 |
| Seattle WA | 118.7 | 109.7 | 124.5 | 66.4 | 124.5 | 130.4 | 110.2 |
| Philadelphia | 116.9 | 107.0 | 112.0 | 145.1 | 107.0 | 98.0 | 107.9 |
| San Bernardino CA | 114.7 | 114.4 | 108.0 | 135.0 | 113.8 | 131.7 | 108.9 |
| Detroit MI | 112.9 | 106.2 | 77.6 | 107.7 | 103.0 | 109.6 | 100.0 |
| Cleveland OH | 112.2 | 108.9 | 107.4 | `38.6 | 110.7 | 118.9 | 102.5 |
| Chicago IL | 109.0 | 109.3 | 102.6 | 110.7 | 115.8 | 112.4 | 105.5 |
| Minneapolis | 105.4 | 99.5 | 104.9 | 101.6 | 107.8 | 130.2 | 105.4 |
| Atlanta GA | 103.2 | 106.7 | 101.8 | 97.1 | 99.8 | 114.9 | 103.5 |
| Phoenix AZ | 102.3 | 104.9 | 88.7 | 105.2 | 109.5 | 114.8 | 101.9 |
| Dallas TX | 101.1 | 99.2 | 96.9 | 107.2 | 104.7 | 106.8 | 102.2 |
| S Louis MO | 97.3 | 99.6 | 91.9 | 96.1 | 99.5 | 105.7 | 95.7 |
| Baltimore MD | 97.0 | 97.2 | 102.4 | 121.0 | 97.1 | 94.0 | 95.5 |
| Houston TX | 94.5 | 93.3 | 83.8 | 100.0 | 105.8 | 110.7 | 97.1 |
