Cost of Living
per year
per month
How Tucson's prices compare to the US city average across major spending categories.
How far does your salary go in Tucson?
Your $100,000 in Tucson has the same purchasing power as $105,352 in the average US city. You'd need $5,352 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 Tucson's cost index of 95, sorted by closest match.
People moving to Tucson usually have at least one specific reason. Most of them line up with what the data shows: living costs come in under the us baseline, clean air, by the numbers, plus 1 more things worth knowing. Here's what's actually on the table.
Tucson sits at 95 on the composite cost-of-living index — about 5% 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 $991/mo against a typical household income of $52,049, which is the kind of ratio that leaves room to save.
Tucson's air quality index averages about 30 — 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 Tucson is about 22 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 Tucson'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. Tucson's winters are cool rather than truly cold — about 42°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. Tucson's winter average of about 42°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.
Genuinely hot. Summer in Tucson averages about 100°F, and peak afternoons run well over a hundred. Outdoor plans move to mornings and evenings; AC is the most-used appliance in the house.
Zone 9, give or take a half-zone. Tucson's typical winter low puts it in that band on the USDA Hardiness map, which is what nurseries label plants against. Use Zone 9 as your starting filter; the USDA's interactive map is more precise for borderline cases.
Tucson sits at about 2,694 feet (821 m) — meaningfully higher than coastal cities, but not high enough to noticeably affect breathing or cooking.
Average for an American city. Tucson's reported crime rate of about 3,350 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. Tucson's cost-of-living index is 95, putting it in the band where rent, groceries, and utilities track the national norm. Not a bargain, not a premium.
Not really — Tucson is built around the car. Its Walk Score of 0 out of 100 means almost every errand is a drive. Transit Score is 0 out of 100. Living without a car is technically possible but real work; most residents wouldn't try it.
Roughly $66,444 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 Tucson runs about $991/mo — keeping housing under 30% of gross income points to a similar floor on what you'd want to earn.