Cost Of Living in Elkin, NC

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A+

7%

Overall NAT. AVG.

6%

Goods & Services NAT. AVG.

25%

Housing NAT. AVG.

Date & Last Updated: This data reflects 2023 and was released from C2ER in January, 2024; 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	Elkin	North Carolina	National
Cost of living	93	94	100
Goods & Services	106	98	100
Groceries	97	98	100
Health care	113	108	100
Housing	75	85	100
Transportation	92	92	100
Utilities	89	94	100

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Cost Of Living Quick Facts

The cost of living in Elkin is 1% lower than the North Carolina average
The cost of living in Elkin is 7% lower than the national average
Elkin housing is 25% lower than the national average
North Carolina general sales tax is 7% lower than the national average
North Carolina state income tax is 83% 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	$66,193	$5,516	$1,544	$1,986
Renters	$18,548	$1,546	$433	$556

A good way to judge both the affordability of the housing and the cost of living in Elkin is by simply calculating the maximum that should be spent on housing, otherwise known as the debt-to-income ratio (DTI). The plan is to avoid spending more than 28 percent of the gross income on costs that pertain to housing and no more than 36 percent on all expenses and debts. Elkin has a median income of about $66,193 for people who own homes. Based on that number, a maximum of $1,544 should be spent on expenses related to housing. Renters have a slightly different median income, which is $18,548. Based on this average, renters should spend no more than $433 on all rental costs if they want to maintain a non-impoverished standard of living.

North Carolina Sales Tax

State	General Sales Tax	With Max Surtax
North Carolina	4.75%	7.5%

North Carolina Income Tax

State	Income Tax (Low)	Income Tax (High)
North Carolina	4.75%	4.75%

Goods & Services

Item	Elkin	National avg.	Difference
Haircut	$22.17	$24.26	8.6%
Beauty Salon	$52.72	$45.56	15.7%
Toothpaste	$3.64	$3.70	1.7%
Shampoo	$1.25	$1.28	2.6%
Movie	$11.58	$12.13	4.6%
Bowling	$20.00	$18.00	11.1%

Groceries

Item	Elkin	National avg.	Difference
Ground Beef	$5.81	$5.84	0.6%
Fried Chicken	$1.41	$1.57	10.6%
Milk	$4.58	$4.67	2.0%
Potatoes	$5.01	$4.93	1.5%
Pizza	$11.34	$12.09	6.2%
Beer	$10.17	$10.41	2.3%

Health Care

Item	Elkin	National avg.	Difference
Optometrist	$147.25	$125.68	17.2%
Doctor	$157.28	$135.78	15.8%
Dentist	$126.56	$113.29	11.7%
Ibuprofen	$10.47	$10.65	1.7%
Lipitor	$548.33	$468.60	17.0%

Housing

Item	Elkin	National avg.	Difference
Home Price	$148,500.00	$184,700.00	19.6%
Avg. Mortgage Payment	$1,737.79	$2,346.69	25.9%
Apartment Rent	$593.00	$949.00	37.5%

Transportation

Item	Elkin	National avg.	Difference
Gasoline	$3.31	$3.46	4.2%
Tire Balancing	$48.78	$59.92	18.6%

Utilities

Item	Elkin	National avg.	Difference
All Electricity	$163.41	$193.99	15.8%
Phone	$186.82	$192.25	2.8%

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	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Ronda, NC	824	85	15.4%
Jonesville, NC	2,513	85	14.8%
White Plains, NC	1,131	86	14.4%
Hays, NC	1,360	87	13.2%
Pleasant Hill, NC	808	89	10.6%
Elkin, NC	3,968	93	7.3%

Cities with similar population

City	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Coronita, CA	3,968	143	42.9%
Fulton, MS	3,968	83	16.9%
Asphodel-Norwood, ON	3,968	n/a
Richwood, NJ	3,967	138	38.5%
Midway North, TX	3,967	78	21.7%
Elkin, NC	3,968	93	7.3%