Cost Of Living in Rochester, WI

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C

12%

Overall NAT. AVG.

2%

Goods & Services NAT. AVG.

36%

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	Rochester	Wisconsin	National
Cost of living	112	96	100
Goods & Services	99	97	100
Groceries	103	99	100
Health care	111	112	100
Housing	136	88	100
Transportation	99	98	100
Utilities	105	102	100

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Cost Of Living Quick Facts

The cost of living in Rochester is 16% higher than the Wisconsin average
The cost of living in Rochester is 12% higher than the national average
Rochester housing is 36% higher than the national average
Wisconsin general sales tax is 2% lower than the national average
Wisconsin state income tax is 36% 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	$106,886	$8,907	$2,494	$3,207
Renters	$34,957	$2,913	$816	$1,049

The percent of monthly income spent on housing can be a good indicator of the affordability of housing in Rochester, WI, 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 Rochester homeowners, is $106,886. This would allow for a maximum of $2,494 per month to be spent on housing costs. For renters, the median monthly income is $34,957 which would result in a maximum of $816 to be spent on rental costs.

Wisconsin Sales Tax

State	General Sales Tax	With Max Surtax
Wisconsin	5%	6.75%

Wisconsin Income Tax

State	Income Tax (Low)	Income Tax (High)
Wisconsin	3.54%	7.65%

Goods & Services

Item	Rochester	National avg.	Difference
Haircut	$20.21	$24.26	16.7%
Beauty Salon	$33.25	$45.56	27.0%
Toothpaste	$3.66	$3.70	1.1%
Shampoo	$1.07	$1.28	16.6%
Movie	$10.26	$12.13	15.5%
Bowling	$10.03	$18.00	44.3%

Groceries

Item	Rochester	National avg.	Difference
Ground Beef	$6.05	$5.84	3.5%
Fried Chicken	$1.46	$1.57	7.3%
Milk	$4.55	$4.67	2.7%
Potatoes	$4.10	$4.93	17.0%
Pizza	$11.33	$12.09	6.3%
Beer	$8.52	$10.41	18.2%

Health Care

Item	Rochester	National avg.	Difference
Optometrist	$278.65	$125.68	121.7%
Doctor	$223.73	$135.78	64.8%
Dentist	$106.79	$113.29	5.7%
Ibuprofen	$10.29	$10.65	3.4%
Lipitor	$469.65	$468.60	0.2%

Housing

Item	Rochester	National avg.	Difference
Home Price	$286,900.00	$184,700.00	55.3%
Avg. Mortgage Payment	$1,879.64	$2,346.69	19.9%
Apartment Rent	$870.00	$949.00	8.3%

Transportation

Item	Rochester	National avg.	Difference
Gasoline	$3.30	$3.46	4.5%
Tire Balancing	$44.14	$59.92	26.3%

Utilities

Item	Rochester	National avg.	Difference
All Electricity	$182.69	$193.99	5.8%
Phone	$185.79	$192.25	3.4%

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.
Lake Ivanhoe, WI	398	95	5.5%
Springfield, WI	131	97	3.0%
Camp Lake, WI	4,175	97	2.5%
Eagle Lake, WI	1,010	99	1.5%
Elkhorn, WI	10,034	95	5.1%
Rochester, WI	3,845	112	11.6%

Cities with similar population

City	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Scott AFB, IL	3,845	112	12.0%
Maniwaki, QC	3,845	n/a
Weston Lakes, TX	3,846	144	44.0%
Monticello, IA	3,843	88	11.7%
Benson, NC	3,843	89	11.2%
Rochester, WI	3,845	112	11.6%