West Fargo, North Dakota Cost Of Living

A+

4%

Overall NAT. AVG.

9%

Goods & Services NAT. AVG.

3%

Housing NAT. AVG.

Date & Last Updated: This data reflects 2023 and was released from C2ER in January, 2023; 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	West Fargo	North Dakota	National
Cost of living	96	95	100
Goods & Services	91	97	100
Groceries	97	102	100
Health care	111	113	100
Housing	97	85	100
Transportation	98	99	100
Utilities	97	99	100

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Cost Of Living Quick Facts

The cost of living in West Fargo is 1% higher than the North Dakota average
The cost of living in West Fargo is 4% lower than the national average
West Fargo housing is 3% lower than the national average
North Dakota general sales tax is 2% lower than the national average
North Dakota state income tax is 51% 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	$108,613	$9,051	$2,534	$3,259
Renters	$54,171	$4,514	$1,264	$1,625

A good way to judge both the affordability of the housing and the cost of living in West Fargo is by simply calculating the maximum that should be spent on housing, otherwise known as the debt-to-income ratio (DTI). The plan is to avoid spending more than 28 percent of the gross income on costs that pertain to housing and no more than 36 percent on all expenses and debts. West Fargo has a median income of about $108,613 for people who own homes. Based on that number, a maximum of $2,534 should be spent on expenses related to housing. Renters have a slightly different median income, which is $54,171. Based on this average, renters should spend no more than $1,264 on all rental costs if they want to maintain a non-impoverished standard of living.

North Dakota Sales Tax

State	General Sales Tax	With Max Surtax
North Dakota	5%	8%

North Dakota Income Tax

State	Income Tax (Low)	Income Tax (High)
North Dakota	1.1%	2.9%

Goods & Services

Item	West Fargo	National avg.	Difference
Haircut	$21.75	$22.08	1.5%
Beauty Salon	$36.50	$42.88	14.9%
Toothpaste	$2.23	$2.57	13.1%
Shampoo	$1.72	$1.15	49.4%
Movie	$8.27	$11.51	28.1%
Bowling	$16.50	$16.62	0.7%

Groceries

Item	West Fargo	National avg.	Difference
Ground Beef	$4.93	$4.98	1.1%
Fried Chicken	$1.74	$1.58	10.0%
Milk	$2.56	$2.42	5.7%
Potatoes	$2.88	$3.54	18.5%
Pizza	$10.49	$11.49	8.7%
Beer	$8.90	$10.04	11.3%

Health Care

Item	West Fargo	National avg.	Difference
Optometrist	$137.23	$117.76	16.5%
Doctor	$194.33	$125.34	55.0%
Dentist	$82.44	$107.52	23.3%
Ibuprofen	$9.75	$10.26	5.0%
Lipitor	$480.19	$459.24	4.6%

Housing

Item	West Fargo	National avg.	Difference
Home Price	$241,800.00	$184,700.00	30.9%
Avg. Mortgage Payment	$1,625.97	$1,697.41	4.2%
Apartment Rent	$957.00	$949.00	0.8%

Transportation

Item	West Fargo	National avg.	Difference
Gasoline	$3.69	$3.85	4.1%
Tire Balancing	$59.59	$57.01	4.5%

Utilities

Item	West Fargo	National avg.	Difference
All Electricity	$165.38	$177.27	6.7%
Phone	$194.57	$189.62	2.6%

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.
Brooktree Park, ND	218	95	4.7%
Amenia, ND	139	83	17.4%
Comstock, MN	72	84	16.2%
Davenport, ND	264	87	13.3%
Sabin, MN	545	90	9.9%
West Fargo, ND	36,406	96	4.3%

Cities with similar population

City	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Owasso, OK	36,395	93	6.8%
Moorpark, CA	36,443	163	62.8%
Benton, AR	36,360	93	6.7%
Kearns, UT	36,457	101	0.7%
Phenix City, AL	36,461	90	10.4%
West Fargo, ND	36,406	96	4.3%

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