Salinas, California Cost Of Living

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F

Overall 24%

Goods & Services 2%

Housing 52%

Date & Last Updated: This data reflects 2022 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	Salinas	California	National
Cost of living	124	140	100
Goods & Services	102	109	100
Groceries	99	112	100
Health care	100	109	100
Housing	152	196	100
Transportation	135	132	100
Utilities	145	127	100

Key findings

The cost of living in Salinas is 11% lower than the California average
The cost of living in Salinas is 24% higher than the national average
Salinas housing is 52% 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	$74,187	$6,182	$1,731	$2,226
Renters	$41,050	$3,421	$958	$1,232

A good indicator of the general affordability of housing in Salinas, CA, 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 Salinas, the median monthly income is $74,187 for those who own their own homes. Under the standard rule, that income level would allow for $1,731 to be budgeted for housing expenses each month, at the most. Renters, on the other hand, earn about $41,050, per the median income in the area. That would allow for renters to spend up to $958 on monthly rental expenses.

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	Salinas	National avg.	Difference
Haircut	$20.43	$20.27	0.8%
Beauty Salon	$58.44	$40.39	44.7%
Toothpaste	$3.19	$2.36	35.2%
Shampoo	$1.05	$1.08	2.8%
Movie	$12.23	$10.99	11.3%
Bowling	$17.98	$15.49	16.0%

Groceries

Item	Salinas	National avg.	Difference
Ground Beef	$5.34	$4.30	24.3%
Fried Chicken	$1.33	$1.40	5.2%
Milk	$2.58	$2.20	16.9%
Potatoes	$2.48	$3.22	23.0%
Pizza	$14.00	$10.74	30.4%
Beer	$8.83	$9.60	8.0%

Health Care

Item	Salinas	National avg.	Difference
Optometrist	$126.50	$109.73	15.3%
Doctor	$114.86	$118.34	2.9%
Dentist	$97.05	$100.94	3.9%
Ibuprofen	$10.31	$9.93	3.8%
Lipitor	$470.65	$469.53	0.2%

Housing

Item	Salinas	National avg.	Difference
Home Price	$303,800.00	$184,700.00	64.5%
Avg. Mortgage Payment	$1,688.63	$1,229.62	37.3%
Apartment Rent	$1,177.00	$949.00	24.0%

Transportation

Item	Salinas	National avg.	Difference
Gasoline	$3.84	$2.71	41.6%
Tire Balancing	$64.74	$51.86	24.8%

Utilities

Item	Salinas	National avg.	Difference
All Electricity	$313.19	$170.84	83.3%
Phone	$179.08	$187.18	4.3%

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.
Moss Landing, CA	118	112	12.4%
Chualar, CA	1,238	114	13.7%
Castroville, CA	6,978	117	17.3%
Pajaro, CA	3,524	118	18.5%
Gonzales, CA	8,401	119	18.7%
Salinas, CA	155,889	124	24.4%

Cities with similar population

City	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Cary, NC	155,822	111	11.4%
McKinney, TX	156,821	112	11.9%
Palmdale, CA	156,823	115	15.0%
Fort Collins, CO	157,251	111	10.7%
Hayward, CA	154,507	147	47.4%
Salinas, CA	155,889	124	24.4%

Source: This data reflects 2021 and was released from C2ER in January, 2022; this is the most current data available.