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 | Los Angeles | Sterling Heights | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $1,791/mo | $1,215/mo | 47.4% higher in A |
| Median home value | $822,600 | $243,400 | 238.0% higher in A |
| Median household income | $76,244 | $75,381 | 1.1% higher in A |
| Groceries index | 104.0 | 102.8 | 1.2% higher in A |
| Utilities index | 82.4 | 89.3 | 7.8% lower in A |
| Transportation index | 100.5 | 93.0 | 8.1% higher in A |
| Healthcare index | 104.0 | 93.7 | 10.9% 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 Los Angeles, you'd need $81,649 in Sterling Heights to maintain your standard of living.
Climate, safety, and demographics side by side.
Sterling Heights, MI is about 18.4% cheaper overall than Los Angeles, CA, based on our cost-of-living index. Housing costs are roughly 32% lower in Sterling Heights than in Los Angeles. If you earn $80,000 in Los Angeles, you'd need about $65,319 in Sterling Heights to keep the same standard of living.