Fayetteville, North Carolina Cost Of Living

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Overall 11%

Goods & Services 5%

Housing 24%

Date & Last Updated: This data reflects 2021 and was released from C2ER in January, 2022; 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	Fayetteville	North Carolina	National
Cost of living	89	94	100
Goods & Services	95	99	100
Groceries	87	98	100
Health care	94	110	100
Housing	76	85	100
Transportation	96	91	100
Utilities	97	95	100

Key findings

The cost of living in Fayetteville is 5% lower than the North Carolina average
The cost of living in Fayetteville is 11% lower than the national average
Fayetteville housing is 24% lower than the national average
North Carolina general sales tax is 7% lower than the national average
North Carolina state income tax is 113% 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	$58,671	$4,889	$1,369	$1,760
Renters	$34,003	$2,834	$793	$1,020

To approximate the cost of living and the housing affordability in Fayetteville, NC, 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 Fayetteville have a median income of $58,671. Therefore, the amount that a consumer should spend on housing costs should be no more than $1,369 per month to avoid calamity and poverty. The renters in the city have an income of about $34,003, which would make their monthly maximum allowable rental costs $793.

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	5.25%	5.25%

Goods & Services

Item	Fayetteville	National avg.	Difference
Haircut	$22.17	$20.27	9.4%
Beauty Salon	$48.10	$40.39	19.1%
Toothpaste	$1.78	$2.36	24.4%
Shampoo	$0.99	$1.08	8.0%
Movie	$10.30	$10.99	6.3%
Bowling	$16.95	$15.49	9.4%

Groceries

Item	Fayetteville	National avg.	Difference
Ground Beef	$3.69	$4.30	14.2%
Fried Chicken	$1.05	$1.40	25.2%
Milk	$1.74	$2.20	21.2%
Potatoes	$3.57	$3.22	10.8%
Pizza	$10.67	$10.74	0.6%
Beer	$10.49	$9.60	9.3%

Health Care

Item	Fayetteville	National avg.	Difference
Optometrist	$99.25	$109.73	9.5%
Doctor	$116.11	$118.34	1.9%
Dentist	$90.70	$100.94	10.1%
Ibuprofen	$9.28	$9.93	6.5%
Lipitor	$472.19	$469.53	0.6%

Housing

Item	Fayetteville	National avg.	Difference
Home Price	$127,500.00	$184,700.00	31.0%
Avg. Mortgage Payment	$1,009.98	$1,229.62	17.9%
Apartment Rent	$884.00	$949.00	6.8%

Transportation

Item	Fayetteville	National avg.	Difference
Gasoline	$2.60	$2.71	4.1%
Tire Balancing	$50.32	$51.86	3.0%

Utilities

Item	Fayetteville	National avg.	Difference
All Electricity	$164.85	$170.84	3.5%
Phone	$183.30	$187.18	2.1%

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.
Rex, NC	51	94	-6%
Autryville, NC	408	82	-18%
Parkton, NC	579	84	-16%
Godwin, NC	130	84	-16%
Vander, NC	1,176	84	-16%
Fayetteville, NC	203,670	89	-11%

Cities with similar population

City, State	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Oxnard, CA	204,752	135	35%
Fontana, CA	205,228	121	21%
Moreno Valley, CA	202,061	115	15%
Tacoma, WA	205,602	111	11%
Montgomery, AL	201,717	86	-14%
Fayetteville, NC	203,670	89	-11%

Source: The Fayetteville, NC cost of living data displayed above is derived from the Council for Community and Economic Research (C2ER) for 2021.