Foster City, California Cost Of Living

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F

Overall 122%

Goods & Services 30%

Housing 340%

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	Foster City	California	National
Cost of living	222	140	100
Goods & Services	130	111	100
Groceries	126	118	100
Health care	127	113	100
Housing	440	196	100
Transportation	137	128	100
Utilities	121	118	100

Key findings

The cost of living in Foster City is 58% higher than the California average
The cost of living in Foster City is 122% higher than the national average
Foster City housing is 340% higher than the national average
California general sales tax is 42% higher than the national average
California state income tax is 59% lower 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	$132,653	$11,054	$3,095	$3,980
Renters	$124,198	$10,350	$2,898	$3,726

To approximate the cost of living and the housing affordability in Foster City, CA, 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 Foster City have a median income of $132,653. Therefore, the amount that a consumer should spend on housing costs should be no more than $3,095 per month to avoid calamity and poverty. The renters in the city have an income of about $124,198, which would make their monthly maximum allowable rental costs $2,898.

California Sales Tax

State	General Sales Tax	With Max Surtax
California	7.25%	10.5%

California Income Tax

State	Income Tax (Low)	Income Tax (High)
California	1%	13.3%

Goods & Services

Item	Foster City	National avg.	Difference
Haircut	$19.71	$17.49	12.7%
Beauty Salon	$67.86	$38.17	77.8%
Toothpaste	$2.93	$2.32	26.2%
Shampoo	$1.33	$1.01	31.4%
Movie	$12.11	$10.72	12.9%
Bowling	$19.83	$13.86	43.1%

Groceries

Item	Foster City	National avg.	Difference
Ground Beef	$3.71	$3.90	4.9%
Fried Chicken	$1.35	$1.40	3.3%
Milk	$2.39	$1.96	21.8%
Potatoes	$2.66	$3.18	16.4%
Pizza	$13.70	$10.39	31.8%
Beer	$10.49	$9.23	13.7%

Health Care

Item	Foster City	National avg.	Difference
Optometrist	$136.71	$106.34	28.6%
Doctor	$150.71	$115.25	30.8%
Dentist	$139.14	$98.38	41.4%
Ibuprofen	$11.99	$9.26	29.5%
Lipitor	$442.32	$466.47	5.2%

Housing

Item	Foster City	National avg.	Difference
Home Price	$949,900.00	$184,700.00	414.3%
Avg. Mortgage Payment	$3,196.29	$1,273.32	151.0%
Apartment Rent	$2,535.00	$949.00	167.1%

Transportation

Item	Foster City	National avg.	Difference
Gasoline	$3.79	$2.59	46.2%
Tire Balancing	$61.00	$48.90	24.8%

Utilities

Item	Foster City	National avg.	Difference
All Electricity	$228.47	$167.60	36.3%
Phone	$184.65	$163.42	13.0%

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.
Mountain View CDP, CA	2,585	138	38%
Ashland, CA	24,288	140	40%
Cherryland, CA	15,066	140	40%
Hayward, CA	154,507	149	49%
San Leandro, CA	89,039	151	51%
Foster City, CA	32,967	222	122%

Cities with similar population

City, State	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Socorro, TX	32,988	81	-19%
Newark, DE	32,941	121	21%
Lexington, MA	32,936	189	89%
Ken Caryl, CO	32,883	116	16%
Copperas Cove, TX	33,052	84	-16%
Foster City, CA	32,967	222	122%

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

Foster City, CA Cost of Living

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