Cost of Living
per year
per month
How Atlanta's prices compare to the US city average across major spending categories.
How far does your salary go in Atlanta?
Your $100,000 in Atlanta has the same purchasing power as $96,460 in the average US city. You'd need $3,540 more here to maintain that standard of living.
Demographics and workforce data from the US Census ACS 5-Year.
bachelor's or higher
Climate, safety, and walkability indicators.
See a side-by-side breakdown of cost of living, housing, and salaries.
Popular comparisons
Sorted by affordability — most affordable first.
Within 10 points of Atlanta's cost index of 104, sorted by closest match.
Wondering whether you should move to Atlanta? It depends on what you're optimizing for, but the city has real arguments in its favor: solidly above-average earnings and walkable in a way most us cities aren't, plus 1 more things worth knowing. The data behind each is below.
Median household income in Atlanta is $77,655, a step above the national median of about $75k. The local job market leans toward industries that pay better than average, and that shows up in the take-home for most working households here.
Atlanta earns a Walk Score of 64/100 — above the US median, with denser neighborhoods scoring higher than the citywide aggregate suggests. A car is still useful for longer trips, but everyday life works on foot for a lot of residents. Transit Score comes in at 59/100 too, so even the trips that are too far to walk are usually doable on a bus or train.
57% of adults 25 and over in Atlanta hold a bachelor's degree or higher — meaningfully above the US average of around 36%. That correlates with the things you'd expect: stronger schools, more white-collar employers, more bookstores than the population alone would predict.
Reasons are pulled from Atlanta's actual data — Census ACS, BLS, BEA, NOAA, EPA AQS, FBI, and Walk Score. We don't list positives that aren't supported by the numbers, which is why different cities show different sections.
Now and then. Atlanta's winters are cool rather than truly cold — about 38°F on average — so most of the precipitation falls as rain. A snowy morning happens a few times a season; sustained accumulation is rare.
Mild on the cold side. Atlanta's winter average of about 38°F is the kind of weather where you want a jacket but the heating bill is manageable. Snow is rare, frost is occasional, and the lawn never really browns out.
Hot, but not desert-hot. Summer in Atlanta runs about 89°F on average, with afternoons in the 90s and humidity that varies by region. AC is standard rather than optional.
Atlanta falls in roughly USDA Zone 9. The zone classification is based on average annual minimum temperatures, so it's the right lookup for whether perennials and trees will overwinter here. Note that this is approximate from our winter-temperature data — check the USDA map for the exact zone before betting an expensive plant on it.
Atlanta is at about 948 feet (289 m) above sea level. High enough to be solidly above any coastal concern, low enough that altitude isn't a factor.
Hurricane season covers June through November, with peak activity in late summer and early fall. For Atlanta, the practical advice is: have a few days of water and supplies on hand from August onward, know your evacuation route, and don't wait for the news to tell you a storm is "probably nothing" — track the cone yourself.
Higher than average. Atlanta reports about 4,622 incidents per 100,000 residents, above the US average of around 3,500. Citywide numbers are often dragged up by a few hotspots; specific neighborhoods can be very safe in cities that don't look great on paper, and vice versa.
Roughly average. Atlanta's cost-of-living index is 104, putting it in the band where rent, groceries, and utilities track the national norm. Not a bargain, not a premium.
Somewhat. Atlanta earns a Walk Score of 64/100 — many daily errands are doable on foot, especially in the denser neighborhoods, but a car still helps for longer trips. Transit Score is 59 out of 100.
Roughly $72,569 a year would match the lifestyle of someone earning $70,000 in an average US city. That's a starting point, not a target — negotiate higher when you can. Median rent in Atlanta runs about $1,512/mo — keeping housing under 30% of gross income points to a similar floor on what you'd want to earn.