What is the cost of living in Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell?

Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 100.1, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 111.0, which is above the national average. The average 2-bedroom rent is $1,820/month.

What is the median salary in Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell?

The median salary in Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell is $72,107 annually (mean: $76,220). Top occupations include Retail Salespersons, Fast Food and Counter Workers, Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand.

How safe is Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell?

The violent crime rate in the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell area is 300 per 100,000 population (state-level data). Property crime rate is 1567 per 100K.

What are the schools like in Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell?

The state of GA has 2,315 schools (state-level data, no metro-level federal count exists) with an average student-teacher ratio of 14.4:1. Charter schools make up 4.2% of all schools.

How much does childcare cost in Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell?

Infant center-based childcare in the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell area averages $6,591 per year. Preschool averages $6,034/year. These are state-level averages.

Is Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell a good place to relocate?

Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell has a Life Score of 47/100 (D), based on 7 of 7 available dimensions among cost of living, wages, rent, crime, schools, childcare, and environment (missing dims omitted, weights renormalized). This is a middle-of-the-pack score, where the composite lands for most US metros; look at individual dimensions to see the real trade-offs.

Where does Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell sit among US metros on LiveAbility?

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite, Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell ranks #277 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

Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA

BEA RPP 100.1 ranks #299 of 387 scored metros for higher prices (dearer third).

Compiled by PlainRelocate · June 15, 2026

100.1
Cost index (US=100): $1,820
2BR rent / mo: $72,107
Median salary: 45.4
LiveAbility Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell ranks #277 of 387 US metros on the LiveAbility Score (45.4/100), with its strongest marks in climate and job market.

#277
of 387 US metros · Near median: 11,180,878
metro-area population: 300
violent crimes per 100K (state-level): 2,315
schools in the state (NCES)

Weakest dimension: air quality (7/100). 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), Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell ranks #277 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). Cost-of-living index 100.1 (100 = national average), median 2-bedroom rent $1,820/mo, median salary $72,107; LiveAbility Score 45.4/100, strongest in climate and job market.

Signature: BEA RPP 100.1 ranks #299 of 387 scored metros for higher prices (dearer third).

Purchasing power tightens: BEA RPP 100.1 lands in the dearer third of scored metros (cuts at 91.5 / 97.0). Median 2BR rent $1,820/mo.

LiveAbility 45.4/100 puts Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell in the bottom third (#277 of 387).

BLS OEWS total employment in the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell area is 2,837,930.

Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell 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)

45 Top 72% higher than 28% 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

Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell housing and rent

HUD Fair Market Rents for the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell MSA; housing RPP 111.0 (100 = national average); 2BR $1,820/mo.

Studio

$1,585

/month

1 Bedroom

$1,660

/month

2 Bedroom

$1,820

/month

3 Bedroom

$2,182

/month

4 Bedroom

$2,605

/month

Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell wages and employment

Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell posts 2,837,930 total employment with median salary $72,107 against a dearer-than-average RPP.

Median Salary

$72,107

Mean Salary

$76,220

Total Employment

2,837,930

Top Occupations by Employment

Occupation	Median Salary
Retail Salespersons	$32,850
Fast Food and Counter Workers	$27,780
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand	$39,020
General and Operations Managers	$111,410
Customer Service Representatives	$42,710

Schools & Education

State-level education data for the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell area from NCES.

Schools

2,315

Enrollment

1,738,641

Student:Teacher

14.4:1

Title I %

Childcare Costs

State-average childcare costs for the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell area (DOL data).

Infant (Center)

$6,591

per year

Toddler (Center)

$6,153

per year

Preschool (Center)

$6,034

per year

Life Score Breakdown

Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell's composite Life Score is 47/100 (D), computed across 7 of 7 dimensions.

Cost

23/100

Weak

Wages

77/100

Strong

Rent

13/100

Bottom decile

Crime

56/100

Above average

Schools

32/100

Weak

Childcare

97/100

Elite

Environment

38/100

Below average

LiveAbility Score

View full rankings →

Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell ranks #277 out of 387 metros with a LiveAbility Score of 45.4/100 - a composite of 8 of 8 quality-of-life dimensions from federal data. Customize the weights to match your priorities →

Strongest dimension: Climate (95/100)

Climate

95
Job market

77
Schools

68
Safety

56
Low hazard

47
Cost of living

23
Housing

14
Air quality

7

What this shows Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell's strongest dimensions are climate and job market; its weakest among scored dims is air quality at 7/100. Default weights: cost 18%, jobs & housing 15% each, safety & schools 12%, air & hazard 10%, climate 8%.

Compare Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell to

Eugene-Springfield Evansville Fairbanks-College Fargo Farmington Fayetteville

Metros near Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell on cost, LiveAbility, or wages

Nearest out-of-state neighbors to Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell 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

Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell cost figures follow BEA Regional Price Parities and HUD Fair Market Rents; Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell 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 Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell?

Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell runs a $72,107 median salary at a 100.1 cost index, ranking #277 of 387 nationally on LiveAbility.

See exactly what Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell's pay and cost figures mean for your own budget. Salary calculator
Put Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell head-to-head against another city on the same dimensions. Compare Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell
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.