City comparison
Cost indices by category, with the US city average (100) marked.
Index: 100 = US city average. Lower is more affordable.
Side-by-side costs, salaries, and sub-category indices.
| Metric | Houston | Reading | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,235/mo | $942/mo | 31.1% higher in A |
| Median home value | $235,000 | $96,900 | 142.5% higher in A |
| Median household income | $60,440 | $42,852 | 41.0% higher in A |
| Groceries index | 97.7 | 91.0 | 7.4% higher in A |
| Utilities index | 106.5 | 86.4 | 23.2% higher in A |
| Transportation index | 97.3 | 77.7 | 25.3% higher in A |
| Healthcare index | 90.9 | 78.7 | 15.6% higher in A |
How much you'd need to earn in the other city to keep the same standard of living.
If you earn $100,000 in Houston, you'd need $81,308 in Reading to maintain your standard of living.
Climate, safety, and demographics side by side.
Reading, PA is about 18.7% cheaper overall than Houston, TX, based on our cost-of-living index. Housing costs are roughly 24% lower in Reading than in Houston. If you earn $80,000 in Houston, you'd need about $65,046 in Reading to keep the same standard of living.