List of states by cost-of-living-adjusted median household income
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First published: Saturday September 30th, 2023
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First published: Saturday September 30th, 2023
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Introduction
A common retort to household income data by state is that costs of living differ widely between states. It is simply more expensive to buy the same basket of basic needs in California than it is in Mississippi. So a higher median income in California may not necessarily indicate higher standards of living in that state than other states with lower costs of living.
This list adjusts each state's median household income for 2022, per the Census Bureau, with a state-based cost of living index compiled by the Missouri Economic Research and Information Center (MERIC) using data from metro-area-based cost of living indices compiled by the Council for Community & Economic Research (C2ER).
List
| State | Cost of living index | Median household income | COL-adjusted median household income |
| Utah | 102.7 | $89,168.00 | $86,823.76 |
| New Jersey | 111.7 | $96,346.00 | $86,254.25 |
| Minnesota | 95.6 | $82,338.00 | $86,127.62 |
| Colorado | 104.8 | $89,302.00 | $85,211.83 |
| Virginia | 102.6 | $85,873.00 | $83,696.88 |
| Illinois | 92.1 | $76,708.00 | $83,287.73 |
| Georgia | 89.3 | $72,837.00 | $81,564.39 |
| Delaware | 103.3 | $82,174.00 | $79,548.89 |
| Washington | 115.5 | $91,306.00 | $79,052.81 |
| Kansas | 87.2 | $68,925.00 | $79,042.43 |
| Maryland | 120.7 | $94,991.00 | $78,700.08 |
| New Hampshire | 114.6 | $89,992.00 | $78,527.05 |
| Texas | 92.9 | $72,284.00 | $77,808.40 |
| Iowa | 89.9 | $69,588.00 | $77,406.01 |
| Connecticut | 114.4 | $88,429.00 | $77,298.08 |
| Nebraska | 91.3 | $69,597.00 | $76,228.92 |
| Wyoming | 92.1 | $70,042.00 | $76,049.95 |
| North Dakota | 96.0 | $71,970.00 | $74,968.75 |
| South Dakota | 93.4 | $69,728.00 | $74,655.25 |
| Wisconsin | 95.1 | $70,996.00 | $74,654.05 |
| Pennsylvania | 97.0 | $71,798.00 | $74,018.56 |
| Idaho | 99.2 | $72,785.00 | $73,371.98 |
| Rhode Island | 111.8 | $81,854.00 | $73,214.67 |
| Indiana | 91.5 | $66,785.00 | $72,989.07 |
| Michigan | 92.1 | $66,986.00 | $72,731.81 |
| Tennessee | 90.4 | $65,254.00 | $72,183.63 |
| Missouri | 89.9 | $64,811.00 | $72,092.32 |
| Ohio | 91.4 | $65,720.00 | $71,903.72 |
| Nevada | 101.7 | $72,333.00 | $71,123.89 |
| North Carolina | 95.8 | $67,481.00 | $70,439.46 |
| Alaska | 125.3 | $88,121.00 | $70,328.01 |
| Arizona | 107.1 | $74,568.00 | $69,624.65 |
| Oklahoma | 86.9 | $59,673.00 | $68,668.58 |
| Florida | 101.9 | $69,303.00 | $68,010.79 |
| Alabama | 88.2 | $59,674.00 | $67,657.60 |
| District of Columbia | 149.7 | $101,027.00 | $67,486.31 |
| South Carolina | 96.4 | $64,115.00 | $66,509.34 |
| Massachusetts | 143.1 | $94,488.00 | $66,029.35 |
| Montana | 103.0 | $67,631.00 | $65,661.17 |
| California | 139.7 | $91,551.00 | $65,534.00 |
| Oregon | 116.2 | $75,657.00 | $65,109.29 |
| Vermont | 115.6 | $73,991.00 | $64,006.06 |
| New Mexico | 94.1 | $59,726.00 | $63,470.78 |
| New York | 126.6 | $79,557.00 | $62,841.23 |
| Kentucky | 94.5 | $59,341.00 | $62,794.71 |
| Maine | 112.5 | $69,543.00 | $61,816.00 |
| Arkansas | 90.1 | $55,432.00 | $61,522.75 |
| Mississippi | 86.0 | $52,719.00 | $61,301.16 |
| West Virginia | 89.3 | $54,329.00 | $60,838.75 |
| Louisiana | 92.2 | $55,416.00 | $60,104.12 |
| Hawaii | 181.5 | $92,458.00 | $50,941.05 |