Cost of Living in Racine, WI

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An Overview of Cost of Living in Racine, WI

The cost of living in Racine affects the quality of life one can afford in this new location. It allows people to assess whether they can maintain their preferred lifestyle, including housing, leisure activities and dining options. Your total monthly expenditures can varry depending on the area, as well as many other factors. The cost of living in Racine is 92, which is 8% lower than the national average. Knowledge of the cost of living can help individuals make informed decisions about retirement savings, investments, and financial goals.

In Racine, daily expenses such as food, housing, goods and services, transportation and health care are in line with comparable areas and about average when compared to all cities across the nation. This ensures that the cost of living in Racine will resemble that of an average city, contributing to a manageable cost of living.

What Do Locals Say About the Cost of Living in Racine?

The real experts on a city are its residents. That's why we reached out to 17 locals to get their views on the cost of living in Racine. We surveyed the residents and asked them if they felt like prices were affordable or out of reach. The results were as follows. 24% found it budget-friendly with decreasing prices, while 76% said it's simply not affordable as prices have continued to rise.

Is Racine Affordable?

Is Racine an affordable place to live? That's a valid question to ask when you're thinking about moving to a new city. After all, how much it costs to live somewhere can be a huge factor in your decision. Affordability can be broken down into 3 common categories. The cost of living index (we talked about it earlier), housing expenses and income levels all play a big role in figuring out if a place is affordable. For instance, in Racine, the median home price is 37.1% lower than what most folks pay across the country, and monthly rent prices are 9.4% lower than the usual rates. Income levels in Racine come in at $44,346, which is 19.8% lower than the national average.

What Factors can Influence the Cost of Living in Racine?

Taxes: Cities that enforce higher taxes, covering both sales taxes and income taxes, can be a factor contributing to a higher cost of living. Paying more in taxes for everyday essentials like clothing and food inevitably leads to higher expenses. A higher income tax rate can further contribute to an overall elevated cost of living. In Racine, the baseline sales tax rate begins at 5%, and income tax rates start at 3.54%.

Healthcare: The costs associated with healthcare and insurance premiums can exhibit notable disparities based on the city or state of residence. Access to healthcare facilities, out-of-pocket expenses for medical appointments, dental care charges, prescription medication costs and specialized medical care expenses all contribute to variations in the cost of living. In Racine, healthcare costs are 10.5% higher than the national average.

Transportation: In situations where public transportation is limited or nonexistent, local residents may be required to own and maintain their own vehicles, contributing to an elevated cost of living. Monthly expenditures may encompass fuel costs, insurance premiums, routine vehicle upkeep and possibly lease or financing payments. In Racine, the transportation index is 1.1% lower than the national average.

Where is the Data From?

The Racine cost of living data displayed above is derived from the C2ER cost of living index to provide a useful and reasonably accurate measure of living cost differences in urban areas. The index takes into account data from 300 independent researches, covering more than 60 goods and services across 6 different categories, to create an overall index for each area, with 100 being the average. The C2ER index does not include sales or income tax rates in their data, however AreaVibes does include both income and sales tax rates in the overall cost of living score for each area.

Most Affordable Places to Live in and Around Racine

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Median Income & Debt-To-Income Ratio

A good indicator of the general affordability of housing in Racine, WI, is the percentage of monthly income that should be spent on housing expenses, otherwise known as the debt-to-income ratio (DTI). Generally speaking, no more than 28 percent of your total gross income should be spent on your housing expenses and not more than 36 percent of your gross income on total expenses, including debts. In Racine, the median monthly income is $60,092 for those who own their own homes. Under the standard rule, that income level would allow for $1,402 to be budgeted for housing expenses each month, at the most. Renters, on the other hand, earn about $30,402, per the median income in the area. That would allow for renters to spend up to $709 on monthly rental expenses.

Wisconsin Sales Tax

Wisconsin Income Tax

Goods & Services

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Health Care

Housing

Transportation

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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.

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Date & Last Updated: This data reflects 2023 and was released from C2ER in January, 2024; this is the most current data available.