Cranston, Rhode Island Cost Of Living

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Overall 13%

Goods & Services 15%

Housing 12%

Date & Last Updated: This data reflects 2019 and was released from C2ER in January, 2020; this is the most current data available.

The cost of living index is based on a national average of 100. For example, if the cost of living is 90, then it is 10% lower than average. If the cost of living is 110, then it is 10% higher than average. The breakdown for each index is as follows: goods & services (33%), groceries (13%), health care (5%), housing (30%), transportation (9%) and utilities (10%). If the cost of living data was unavailable for this city, estimates based upon nearby cities were used.
Index	Cranston	Rhode Island	National
Cost of living	113	115	100
Goods & Services	115	115	100
Groceries	105	105	100
Health care	107	107	100
Housing	112	120	100
Transportation	110	110	100
Utilities	124	124	100

Key findings

The cost of living in Cranston is 2% lower than the Rhode Island average
The cost of living in Cranston is 13% higher than the national average
Cranston housing is 12% higher than the national average
Rhode Island general sales tax is 37% higher than the national average
Rhode Island state income tax is 52% higher than the national average

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Price difference in compared to

Cost of living index
Goods & Services index
Groceries index
Health care index
Housing index
Transportation index
Utilities index

Median Income & Debt-To-Income Ratio

Median Income	Per Year	Per Month	Max Budget (28% DTI)	Max Budget (36% DTI)
Owners	$80,405	$6,700	$1,876	$2,412
Renters	$35,459	$2,955	$827	$1,064

To approximate the cost of living and the housing affordability in Cranston, RI, we can look at the percentage of income that is available to be spent on monthly housing, otherwise known as the debt-to-income ratio (DTI). To stay on the safe side, a consumer should not spend more than 28% of his or her gross income on housing-related expenses and costs and not more than 36% of income on all expenses and debts. Homeowners in Cranston have a median income of $80,405. Therefore, the amount that a consumer should spend on housing costs should be no more than $1,876 per month to avoid calamity and poverty. The renters in the city have an income of about $35,459, which would make their monthly maximum allowable rental costs $827.

Rhode Island Sales Tax

State	General Sales Tax	With Max Surtax
Rhode Island	7%	7%

Rhode Island Income Tax

State	Income Tax (Low)	Income Tax (High)
Rhode Island	3.75%	5.99%

Goods & Services

Item	Cranston	National avg.	Difference
Haircut	$20.00	$17.49	14.4%
Beauty Salon	$56.67	$38.17	48.5%
Toothpaste	$2.55	$2.32	9.9%
Shampoo	$0.99	$1.01	2.2%
Movie	$12.75	$10.72	18.9%
Bowling	$18.00	$13.86	29.9%

Groceries

Item	Cranston	National avg.	Difference
Ground Beef	$3.77	$3.90	3.3%
Fried Chicken	$1.64	$1.40	17.5%
Milk	$2.64	$1.96	34.5%
Potatoes	$3.49	$3.18	9.6%
Pizza	$10.49	$10.39	0.9%
Beer	$10.32	$9.23	11.8%

Health Care

Item	Cranston	National avg.	Difference
Optometrist	$131.39	$106.34	23.6%
Doctor	$157.87	$115.25	37.0%
Dentist	$92.75	$98.38	5.7%
Ibuprofen	$9.49	$9.26	2.5%
Lipitor	$408.27	$466.47	12.5%

Housing

Item	Cranston	National avg.	Difference
Home Price	$212,200.00	$184,700.00	14.9%
Avg. Mortgage Payment	$1,558.54	$1,273.32	22.4%
Apartment Rent	$988.00	$949.00	4.1%

Transportation

Item	Cranston	National avg.	Difference
Gasoline	$2.65	$2.59	2.1%
Tire Balancing	$62.00	$48.90	26.8%

Utilities

Item	Cranston	National avg.	Difference
All Electricity	$235.76	$167.60	40.7%
Phone	$186.18	$163.42	13.9%

Although the cost of living data is updated regularly, this cost of living information is to be used as estimates only as prices can change on an ongoing basis.

Nearby cities with low cost of living

City, State	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Central Falls, RI	19,366	104	4%
Harrisville, RI	1,629	107	7%
Pawtucket, RI	71,389	107	7%
Providence, RI	178,851	108	8%
Pascoag, RI	4,915	110	10%
Cranston, RI	80,882	113	13%

Cities with similar population

City, State	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Palm Coast, FL	80,948	98	-2%
Lakewood, CA	81,054	143	43%
Largo, FL	80,678	88	-12%
Lake Forest, CA	80,658	157	57%
Avondale, AZ	80,631	97	-3%
Cranston, RI	80,882	113	13%

Source: The Cranston, RI cost of living data displayed above is derived from the Council for Community and Economic Research (C2ER) for 2019.