What is the cost of living in Alexandria?

Alexandria has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 85.7, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 53.7, which is below the national average. The average 2-bedroom rent is $994/month.

What is the median salary in Alexandria?

The median salary in Alexandria is $55,275 annually (mean: $58,640). Top occupations include Home Health and Personal Care Aides, Registered Nurses, Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand.

How safe is Alexandria?

The violent crime rate in the Alexandria area is 410 per 100,000 population (state-level data). Property crime rate is 1773 per 100K.

What are the schools like in Alexandria?

The state of LA has 1,330 schools (state-level data, no metro-level federal count exists) with an average student-teacher ratio of 16.8:1. Charter schools make up 11.3% of all schools.

How much does childcare cost in Alexandria?

Infant center-based childcare in the Alexandria area averages $7,396 per year. Preschool averages $7,111/year. These are state-level averages.

Is Alexandria a good place to relocate?

Alexandria has a Life Score of 65.8/100 (C+), based on 7 of 7 available dimensions among cost of living, wages, rent, crime, schools, childcare, and environment (missing dims omitted, weights renormalized). This places Alexandria in the top decile of scored metros, a genuinely strong all-around profile.

Where does Alexandria sit among US metros on LiveAbility?

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite, Alexandria ranks #113 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). That ordinal matches the /rankings/livability listing. See /methodology#corpus-placement for the exact sort basis.

Relocation profile · Federal data

Alexandria, LA

BEA RPP 85.7 ranks #13 of 387 scored metros for lower prices (cheaper third).

Compiled by PlainRelocate · June 15, 2026

85.7
Cost index (US=100): $994
2BR rent / mo: $55,275
Median salary: 55.9
LiveAbility Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, Alexandria ranks #113 of 387 US metros on the LiveAbility Score (55.9/100), with its strongest marks in cost of living and housing.

#113
of 387 US metros · Above median: 4,597,740
metro-area population: 410
violent crimes per 100K (state-level): 1,330
schools in the state (NCES)

Weakest dimension: job market (6/100). Weigh every dimension against your own priorities, use the City Finder to re-rank by what matters to you.

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite (BEA, BLS, HUD, FBI, NCES, EPA, NOAA, and FEMA inputs), Alexandria ranks #113 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). Cost-of-living index 85.7 (100 = national average), median 2-bedroom rent $994/mo, median salary $55,275; LiveAbility Score 55.9/100, strongest in cost of living and housing.

Signature: BEA RPP 85.7 ranks #13 of 387 scored metros for lower prices (cheaper third).

Purchasing power opens up: BEA RPP 85.7 lands in the cheaper third of scored metros (cuts at 91.5 / 97.0). Median 2BR rent $994/mo.

LiveAbility 55.9/100 puts Alexandria in the top third (#113 of 387).

BLS OEWS total employment in the Alexandria area is 52,940.

Alexandria vs all US metros by LiveAbility Score

Where this metro's LiveAbility Score falls among every scored US metro (composite placement, not a desirability verdict)

56 Top 30% higher than 70% of 387 US metros

Metros banded by LiveAbility Score (0–100)

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US metros. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source PlainRelocate LiveAbility Score · June 2026

Alexandria housing and rent

HUD Fair Market Rents for the Alexandria MSA; housing RPP 53.7 (100 = national average); 2BR $994/mo.

Studio

$728

/month

1 Bedroom

$780

/month

2 Bedroom

$994

/month

3 Bedroom

$1,342

/month

4 Bedroom

$1,523

/month

Alexandria wages and employment

Alexandria posts 52,940 total employment with median salary $55,275 against a cheaper-than-average RPP.

Median Salary

$55,275

Mean Salary

$58,640

Total Employment

52,940

Top Occupations by Employment

Occupation	Median Salary
Home Health and Personal Care Aides	$22,590
Registered Nurses	$81,680
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand	$36,190
Retail Salespersons	$28,660
Cashiers	$26,250

Schools & Education

State-level education data for the Alexandria area from NCES.

Schools

1,330

Enrollment

674,456

Student:Teacher

16.8:1

Title I %

Childcare Costs

State-average childcare costs for the Alexandria area (DOL data).

Infant (Center)

$7,396

per year

Toddler (Center)

$7,237

per year

Preschool (Center)

$7,111

per year

Life Score Breakdown

Alexandria's composite Life Score is 65.8/100 (C+), computed across 7 of 7 dimensions.

Cost

97/100

Elite

Wages

6/100

Bottom decile

Rent

93/100

Elite

Crime

28/100

Weak

Schools

89/100

Elite

Childcare

86/100

Elite

Environment

95/100

Elite

LiveAbility Score

View full rankings →

Alexandria ranks #113 out of 387 metros with a LiveAbility Score of 55.9/100 - a composite of 8 of 8 quality-of-life dimensions from federal data. Customize the weights to match your priorities →

Strongest dimension: Cost of living (97/100)

Cost of living

97
Housing

93
Air quality

79
Climate

75
Low hazard

50
Safety

28
Schools

11
Job market

6

What this shows Alexandria's strongest dimensions are cost of living and housing; its weakest among scored dims is job market at 6/100. Default weights: cost 18%, jobs & housing 15% each, safety & schools 12%, air & hazard 10%, climate 8%.

Compare Alexandria to

Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton Altoona Amarillo Ames Amherst Town-Northampton Anchorage

Metros near Alexandria on cost, LiveAbility, or wages

Nearest out-of-state neighbors to Alexandria on BEA RPP, LiveAbility, or BLS median salary, a different lens than the size-ranked list.

Similar cost of living (BEA RPP)

Similar LiveAbility score

Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, HUD Fair Market Rents, BLS OES, FBI UCR, NCES, DOL, EPA June 2026

Alexandria cost figures follow BEA Regional Price Parities and HUD Fair Market Rents; Alexandria wages and LiveAbility inputs follow BLS OEWS plus the federal sources listed in methodology. This information is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Scores are federal-data percentiles, not a move recommendation. How this data is sourced.

Verify with BEA → · Verify with BLS → · Verify with HUD → · Verify with NOAA → · Verify with FEMA → · Verify with Census →

Thinking about Alexandria?

Alexandria runs a $55,275 median salary at a 85.7 cost index, ranking #113 of 387 nationally on LiveAbility.

See exactly what Alexandria's pay and cost figures mean for your own budget. Salary calculator
Put Alexandria head-to-head against another city on the same dimensions. Compare Alexandria
Abilene is the closest related metro in this corpus -- see how it stacks up. Abilene profile
A cheaper cost index and a higher LiveAbility score don't always point the same direction -- here's how to weigh the trade-off. Cost vs quality guide

Cost, salary and score figures are federal-data percentiles, not a move recommendation.