Washington, DC Cost Of Living

Washington 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	Washington	District of Columbia	National
Cost of living index	152	152	100
Index	Washington	District of Columbia	National
Goods & Services index	123	123	100
Groceries index	113	113	100
Health care index	101	101	100
Housing index	235	235	100
Transportation index	112	112	100
Utilities index	114	114	100

A general overview of the cost of living index for Washington, DC is displayed above. In Washington, DC, the overall cost of living index is 152, which is equal to the District of Columbia average and 52% higher than the U.S. average. The following categories are used to calculate the overall cost of living index: goods/services (33%), housing (30%), groceries (13%), utilities (10%), transportation (9%) and health care (5%). From the list, it is clear that the categories of goods/services and housing are responsible for the largest portions of the overall cost of living index. As a general rule, everyday goods and services provide an accurate measure of the general cost of goods in any given city. In the case of Washington, DC, the city's goods and services are equal to the District of Columbia average and 23% higher than the U.S. average.

Did you know?

The cost of living in Washington is equal to the District of Columbia average.
The cost of living in Washington is 52% higher than the national average.
The cost of housing in Washington is 135% higher than the national average.
District of Columbia general sales tax is 13% higher than the national average.
District of Columbia state income tax is 80% higher than the national average.

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Compare Washington, DC Cost of living To Other Cities

Salary Calculator

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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 Washington, DC 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 Washington, DC, the calculator will tell you how much more you need to earn so you can assess job offers more accurately. The Washington, DC 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	$118,203	$9,850	$2,758	$3,546
Renters	$49,113	$4,093	$1,146	$1,474

The affordability of the housing market in Washington, DC as well as the overall cost of living can be indicated accurately by what percent of the monthly income is spent on housing related costs. This is konwn as the debt-to-income ratio (DTI). The overall rule of thumb is that no more than 28% of your gross income should ever be used on the overall costs related to housing and no more than 36% of gross income on all expenses and debts. Among Washington, DC homeowners, the median income is $118,203. This indicates that a monthly maximum of $2,758 should be spent by homeowners on all housing related costs. Renters have a median income of $49,113. This indicates that renters should have a maximum of $1,146 used for their rent related monthly costs.

District of Columbia Sales Tax

State	General Sales Tax	With Max Surtax
District of Columbia	5.75%	5.75%

District of Columbia Income Tax

State	Income Tax (Low)	Income Tax (High)
District of Columbia	4%	8.95%

When you are determining the total cost of living in Washington, DC you will want to make sure you consider both the District of Columbia sales tax and the District of Columbia income tax rates. Sales tax come in the form of taxes levied on both services and goods that are sold. The sales tax rates are different state to state and range from zero sales tax to higher than 7%. The sales tax in District of Columbia is 5.75%, with the highest surtax being 5.75%. Tax that is on income by the government is income tax. Different states have different income tax rates and these rates can be higher or lower dependent on the corresponding tax bracket. The state income tax rates are different state to state and range from no income tax to more than 9% income tax. The income tax rates in District of Columbia have a range from 4% to 8.95%.

Goods & Services

Item	Washington	National avg.	Difference
Haircut	$24.11	$16.09	49.9%
Beauty Salon	$73.39	$37.33	96.6%
Toothpaste	$3.52	$2.45	43.7%
Shampoo	$1.12	$1.00	12.3%
Movie	$13.33	$10.28	29.7%
Bowling	$5.45	$4.93	10.5%

Groceries

Item	Washington	National avg.	Difference
Ground Beef	$4.08	$3.80	7.3%
Fried Chicken	$1.32	$1.40	5.3%
Milk	$2.45	$2.01	22.0%
Potatoes	$5.07	$3.01	68.3%
Pizza	$10.99	$9.89	11.2%
Beer	$9.82	$8.90	10.4%

Health Care

Item	Washington	National avg.	Difference
Optometrist	$75.00	$102.16	26.6%
Doctor	$99.67	$108.36	8.0%
Dentist	$95.67	$92.53	3.4%
Ibuprofen	$10.22	$9.28	10.2%
Lipitor	$474.34	$425.82	11.4%

Housing

Item	Washington	National avg.	Difference
Home Price	$506,100.00	$184,700.00	174.0%
Avg. Mortgage Payment	$3,169.67	$1,202.44	163.6%
Apartment Rent	$1,362.00	$949.00	43.5%

Transportation

Item	Washington	National avg.	Difference
Gasoline	$2.46	$2.24	9.5%
Tire Balancing	$55.00	$46.29	18.8%

Utilities

Item	Washington	National avg.	Difference
All Electricity	$216.49	$165.96	30.4%
Phone	$27.32	$28.68	4.8%

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.
Rose Hill CDP (Lee County), VA	708	92	-8%
Woodlawn CDP (Carroll County), VA	2,247	94	-6%
Wakefield town, VA	810	97	-3%
Belle Haven town, VA	562	102	2%
Cottage City, MD	1,209	110	10%
Washington, DC	659,009	152	52%

Cities with similar population

City, State	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Boston, MA	658,279	148	48%
Memphis, TN	655,857	82	-18%
Denver, CO	663,303	115	15%
Seattle, WA	668,849	159	59%
Nashville, TN	643,771	98	-2%
Washington, DC	659,009	152	52%

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

Washington, DC Cost of Living