Cost of Living
per year
per month
How Brookhaven's prices compare to the US city average across major spending categories.
How far does your salary go in Brookhaven?
Your $100,000 in Brookhaven has the same purchasing power as $95,905 in the average US city. You'd need $4,095 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 Brookhaven's cost index of 104, sorted by closest match.
If you're weighing a move to Brookhaven, the short answer is that the city has a few genuine arguments going for it — most obviously paychecks here run high and jobs are easy to find right now, plus 4 more things worth knowing. Here's the longer version.
Median household income in Brookhaven is $114,570 — well above the US median of roughly $75k. It's a city where high-paying industries (tech, finance, professional services) cluster, and the income distribution tilts noticeably upward relative to most of the country.
Unemployment in Brookhaven is running about 3.0% — below the typical US baseline of around 4%. That usually translates to a job market where employers compete for workers more than the other way around, which is the better side of that equation to be on if you're the one moving.
Brookhaven reports about 2,728 crime incidents per 100,000 residents — a step below the US average of around 3,500. The citywide number averages over neighborhoods that can vary a lot, but the headline number is friendlier than most American cities of comparable size.
Brookhaven earns a Walk Score of 69/100 — 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 51/100 too, so even the trips that are too far to walk are usually doable on a bus or train.
The average one-way commute in Brookhaven is about 25 minutes — short by US standards (the national average is closer to 27). Over a year of working days, that's hundreds of hours that don't get spent in traffic, which is the kind of thing you notice in the weekend rather than the weekday.
73% of adults 25 and over in Brookhaven 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 Brookhaven'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. Brookhaven'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. Brookhaven'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 Brookhaven runs about 89°F on average, with afternoons in the 90s and humidity that varies by region. AC is standard rather than optional.
Approximately USDA Hardiness Zone 9. That's the band gardeners use to pick plants — anything rated for Zone 9 or colder should survive a typical winter in Brookhaven. (The estimate is derived from our winter-temperature data; the official USDA map uses station-level annual minimums and may differ by half a zone.)
Brookhaven is at about 991 feet (302 m) above sea level. High enough to be solidly above any coastal concern, low enough that altitude isn't a factor.
Officially, Atlantic hurricane season runs June 1 through November 30, but most of the action lands between mid-August and mid-October. For Brookhaven, that's when to keep half an eye on the National Hurricane Center forecast cone — and when an actual evacuation plan is worth having in the drawer if you're in a low-lying or coastal neighborhood.
Average for an American city. Brookhaven's reported crime rate of about 2,728 per 100,000 residents sits roughly in line with the US baseline of ~3,500. Like anywhere else, the citywide number masks real differences between neighborhoods — worth looking at specific areas before deciding.
Roughly average. Brookhaven'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. Brookhaven earns a Walk Score of 69/100 — many daily errands are doable on foot, especially in the denser neighborhoods, but a car still helps for longer trips. Transit Score is 51 out of 100.
Roughly $72,989 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 Brookhaven runs about $1,711/mo — keeping housing under 30% of gross income points to a similar floor on what you'd want to earn.