Cost of Living
per year
per month
How Rockford's prices compare to the US city average across major spending categories.
How far does your salary go in Rockford?
Your $100,000 in Rockford has the same purchasing power as $117,302 in the average US city. You'd need $17,302 less 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 Rockford's cost index of 85, sorted by closest match.
If you're weighing a move to Rockford, the short answer is that the city has a few genuine arguments going for it — most obviously cheaper than the national average, with no fine print and you can walk to most of what you need, plus 2 more things worth knowing. Here's the longer version.
Rockford sits at 85 on the composite cost-of-living index — about 15% under the national average. Not the cheapest place in the country, but enough of a discount to notice on rent and groceries every month. Median rent in town runs about $906/mo against a typical household income of $50,744, which is the kind of ratio that leaves room to save.
Rockford earns a Walk Score of 57/100 — 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.
Rockford's air quality index averages about 43 — comfortably in the EPA's "good" range. No daily ritual of checking the AQI before going for a run, no smoky-day plans, no surprise asthma flare-ups for the kids. The kind of background condition you notice mostly by its absence.
The average one-way commute in Rockford is about 21 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.
Reasons are pulled from Rockford'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.
Snow is just part of the winter in Rockford. Average temperatures around 15°F mean the ground stays covered from December well into March, and a snowblower is less optional than aspirational.
Cold enough to plan around. Winter in Rockford averages roughly 15°F, with stretches where daytime highs don't break freezing for weeks. Decent insulation, a real coat, and a car that starts in cold weather are non-negotiable.
Hot, but not desert-hot. Summer in Rockford runs about 80°F on average, with afternoons in the 90s and humidity that varies by region. AC is standard rather than optional.
Approximately USDA Hardiness Zone 6. That's the band gardeners use to pick plants — anything rated for Zone 6 or colder should survive a typical winter in Rockford. (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.)
Rockford is at about 728 feet (222 m) above sea level. High enough to be solidly above any coastal concern, low enough that altitude isn't a factor.
Higher than average. Rockford reports about 4,134 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.
No — your dollar actually goes further here. Rockford's composite cost-of-living index is 85, roughly 15% under the US average. Housing is usually the biggest driver of the discount.
Somewhat. Rockford earns a Walk Score of 57/100 — many daily errands are doable on foot, especially in the denser neighborhoods, but a car still helps for longer trips.
Roughly $59,675 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 Rockford runs about $906/mo — keeping housing under 30% of gross income points to a similar floor on what you'd want to earn.