Palo Alto, CA Cost Of Living

Palo Alto cost of living index

In the event that the cost of living data was unavailable for this city, estimates based upon nearby cities were used. Each cost of living index is based on a national average of 100. If the amount is below 100, it is lower than the national average. If the amount is above 100, it is higher than the national average.
Index	Palo Alto	California	National
Cost of living index	301	138	100
Index	Palo Alto	California	National
Goods & Services index	122	110	100
Groceries index	126	115	100
Health care index	123	109	100
Housing index	717	196	100
Transportation index	130	125	100
Utilities index	114	114	100

A general summary of the cost of living index in Palo Alto, CA is shown above. Compared to the state average of California the cost of living index in Palo Alto, CA is 301, which is 118% higher than the average in California and compared to the national average it is 201% higher than. The cost of living index is made up of several categories. These are transportation at 9%, utilities at 10%, goods and services at 33%, housing at 30%, groceries at 13%, and health care at 5%. The bulk of the cost of living index comes from the categories of goods and services and housing. If you look at everyday goods and services they can be a good indicator in a certain city of the general costs of goods there. In Palo Alto, CA goods and services come in at 11% higher than the average in California and are 22% higher than compared to the nationwide average.

Did you know?

The cost of living in Palo Alto is 118% higher than the California average.
The cost of living in Palo Alto is 201% higher than the national average.
The cost of housing in Palo Alto is 617% higher than the national average.
California general sales tax is 42% higher than the national average.
California state income tax is 55% 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

The salary calculator allows you to compare how much your current salary in Palo Alto, CA would be worth in another city. In other words, the salary calculator will adjust the figure you enter for cost of living so that you can determine how much more or much less you would need to earn while maintaining your current quality of living. If you are considering relocating to a more expensive city than Palo Alto, CA, the calculator will tell you how much more you need to earn so you can assess job offers more accurately. The Palo Alto, CA salary calculator is easy to use. All you do is enter the name of another city, then move the slider to your current income. After that, the salary calculator will crunch the numbers for you and give you the information you need about the place you are considering going. Additionally, it will show a detailed breakdown of the cost of living.

Median Income & Debt-To-Income Ratio

Median Income	Per Year	Per Month	Max Budget (28% DTI)	Max Budget (36% DTI)
Owners	$179,628	$14,969	$4,191	$5,389
Renters	$93,786	$7,816	$2,188	$2,814

The percent of monthly income spent on housing can be a good indicator of the affordability of housing in Palo Alto, CA as well as the overall cost of living. As a general rule of thumb, the debt-to-income ratio (DTI) for homeowners or renters should be not more than 28 percent of gross income to be spent on housing related costs and not more than 36 percent of income on all expenses, including debts. The median income for Palo Alto, CA homeowners, is $179,628. This would allow for a maximum of $4,191 per month to be spent on housing costs. For renters, the median monthly income is $93,786 which would result in a maximum of $2,188 to be spent on rental costs.

California Sales Tax

State	General Sales Tax	With Max Surtax
California	7.25%	10.25%

California Income Tax

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

One thing to keep in mind when considering the cost of living in Palo Alto, CA is the California sales tax and California income tax rates. Sales taxes are taxes that are collected on most goods or services sold. Sales taxes can vary by state and can be as high as 7% and as low as 0% as not every state imposes a sales tax. The California sales tax rate is 7.25% and the maximum surtax that can be charged is 10.25%. Income tax is the tax imposed on income by both the federal and state government. The income tax rates varies by individual state and will also be higher or lower depending on the applicable tax bracket. The rates of state income tax can vary from 0% to more than 9%. The California income tax rates range from 1% to 13.3%.

Goods & Services

Item	Palo Alto	National avg.	Difference
Haircut	$21.86	$16.09	35.9%
Beauty Salon	$69.62	$37.33	86.5%
Toothpaste	$3.23	$2.45	32.0%
Shampoo	$1.20	$1.00	19.6%
Movie	$11.67	$10.28	13.6%
Bowling	$6.78	$4.93	37.4%

Groceries

Item	Palo Alto	National avg.	Difference
Ground Beef	$4.25	$3.80	11.8%
Fried Chicken	$1.51	$1.40	8.1%
Milk	$2.74	$2.01	36.6%
Potatoes	$3.56	$3.01	18.1%
Pizza	$12.11	$9.89	22.5%
Beer	$9.55	$8.90	7.3%

Health Care

Item	Palo Alto	National avg.	Difference
Optometrist	$120.71	$102.16	18.2%
Doctor	$138.93	$108.36	28.2%
Dentist	$122.57	$92.53	32.5%
Ibuprofen	$11.92	$9.28	28.4%
Lipitor	$416.12	$425.82	2.3%

Housing

Item	Palo Alto	National avg.	Difference
Home Price	$1,702,100.00	$184,700.00	821.5%
Avg. Mortgage Payment	$2,702.60	$1,202.44	124.8%
Apartment Rent	$2,283.00	$949.00	140.6%

Transportation

Item	Palo Alto	National avg.	Difference
Gasoline	$2.93	$2.24	30.3%
Tire Balancing	$60.44	$46.29	30.6%

Utilities

Item	Palo Alto	National avg.	Difference
All Electricity	$230.24	$165.96	38.7%
Phone	$24.33	$28.68	15.2%

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.
Loma Mar, CA	150	127	27%
Mountain View CDP, CA	2,585	134	34%
East Palo Alto, CA	29,353	159	59%
Newark, CA	44,677	165	65%
Union City, CA	73,500	166	66%
Palo Alto, CA	66,649	301	201%

Cities with similar population

City, State	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Portland, ME	66,649	114	14%
Camarillo, CA	66,630	151	51%
Woodbury, MN	66,699	118	18%
South San Francisco, CA	66,587	177	77%
Oshkosh, WI	66,713	90	-10%
Palo Alto, CA	66,649	301	201%

Source: The Palo Alto, CA cost of living data displayed above is derived from the Council for Community and Economic Research (C2ER) for 2017.

Palo Alto, CA Cost of Living