Three times a year, the Council for Community and Economic Research (C2ER) studies pricing for select goods and services in 250 metros around the country and uses this data to create its annual Cost of Living Index (COLI). This index features a base of 100, corresponding to a national average cost of living. This Regional Snapshot (which you can download and view here) dives into data from the index and considers the metro area’s cost of living compared to the country’s other most populous metros. Selected “peer” metros to Atlanta are highlighted in the slide deck, and include Charlotte (NC), Dallas (TX), Houston (TX), Nashville (TN), and Washington, D.C.

The main takeaways of the study are as follows:

  1. Atlanta’s COLI composite score is 95.7, which is slightly below the national average.
  2. If an Atlanta resident earning $50,000 moved to Manhattan (NY) and wanted to enjoy a similar purchasing power in their new home, they would need to earn $118,107 to compensate for the higher cost of living.
  3. Housing is one of the chief causes of discrepancies found in the cost of living across the country. When compared to its peer metro areas, Atlanta’s housing index is roughly the same or lower.
  4. Atlanta’s health care costs are higher than its peer metros with the exception of Washington, D.C. Our health care costs are 8.2% higher than the national average, and this cost category is higher than any other category for metro Atlanta.
  5. Atlanta’s housing costs, by comparison, are quite low– with an index value of 85.4. This relatively lower housing cost offsets the comparatively higher expenses of groceries and health care.

Explore the findings below!