What is the cost of living in Auburn-Opelika?

Auburn-Opelika has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 87.9, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 62.1, which is below the national average. The average 2-bedroom rent is $1,181/month.

What is the median salary in Auburn-Opelika?

The median salary in Auburn-Opelika is $57,668 annually (mean: $61,026). Top occupations include Fast Food and Counter Workers, Retail Salespersons, Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators.

How safe is Auburn-Opelika?

The violent crime rate in the Auburn-Opelika area is 376 per 100,000 population (state-level data). Property crime rate is 1622 per 100K.

What are the schools like in Auburn-Opelika?

The state of AL has 1,369 schools (state-level data, no metro-level federal count exists) with an average student-teacher ratio of 17.7:1. Charter schools make up 1.2% of all schools.

How much does childcare cost in Auburn-Opelika?

Infant center-based childcare in the Auburn-Opelika area averages $6,896 per year. Preschool averages $6,348/year. These are state-level averages.

Is Auburn-Opelika a good place to relocate?

Auburn-Opelika has a Life Score of 52.8/100 (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 Auburn-Opelika sit among US metros on LiveAbility?

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite, Auburn-Opelika ranks #142 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

Auburn-Opelika, AL

BEA RPP 87.9 ranks #50 of 387 scored metros for lower prices (cheaper third).

Compiled by PlainRelocate · June 15, 2026

87.9
Cost index (US=100): $1,181
2BR rent / mo: $57,668
Median salary: 54.1
LiveAbility Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, Auburn-Opelika ranks #142 of 387 US metros on the LiveAbility Score (54.1/100), with its strongest marks in cost of living and climate.

#142
of 387 US metros · Above median: 5,157,699
metro-area population: 376
violent crimes per 100K (state-level): 1,369
schools in the state (NCES)

Weakest dimension: job market (14/100). 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), Auburn-Opelika ranks #142 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). Cost-of-living index 87.9 (100 = national average), median 2-bedroom rent $1,181/mo, median salary $57,668; LiveAbility Score 54.1/100, strongest in cost of living and climate.

Signature: BEA RPP 87.9 ranks #50 of 387 scored metros for lower prices (cheaper third).

Purchasing power opens up: BEA RPP 87.9 lands in the cheaper third of scored metros (cuts at 91.5 / 97.0). Median 2BR rent $1,181/mo.

LiveAbility 54.1/100 keeps Auburn-Opelika in the middle third (#142 of 387).

BLS OEWS total employment in the Auburn-Opelika area is 62,880.

Auburn-Opelika 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)

54 Top 37% higher than 63% 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

Auburn-Opelika housing and rent

HUD Fair Market Rents for the Auburn-Opelika MSA; housing RPP 62.1 (100 = national average); 2BR $1,181/mo.

Studio

$847

/month

1 Bedroom

$1,077

/month

2 Bedroom

$1,181

/month

3 Bedroom

$1,494

/month

4 Bedroom

$1,699

/month

Auburn-Opelika wages and employment

Auburn-Opelika posts 62,880 total employment with median salary $57,668 against a cheaper-than-average RPP.

Median Salary

$57,668

Mean Salary

$61,026

Total Employment

62,880

Top Occupations by Employment

Occupation	Median Salary
Fast Food and Counter Workers	$24,600
Retail Salespersons	$29,140
Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators	$34,530
Cashiers	$27,940
Stockers and Order Fillers	$34,900

Schools & Education

State-level education data for the Auburn-Opelika area from NCES.

Schools

1,369

Enrollment

746,604

Student:Teacher

17.7:1

Title I %

Childcare Costs

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

Infant (Center)

$6,896

per year

Toddler (Center)

$6,716

per year

Preschool (Center)

$6,348

per year

Life Score Breakdown

Auburn-Opelika's composite Life Score is 52.8/100 (D), computed across 7 of 7 dimensions.

Cost

87/100

Elite

Wages

14/100

Bottom decile

Rent

67/100

Strong

Crime

42/100

Below average

Schools

68/100

Strong

Childcare

93/100

Elite

Environment

0/100

Bottom decile

LiveAbility Score

View full rankings →

Auburn-Opelika ranks #142 out of 387 metros with a LiveAbility Score of 54.1/100 - a composite of 7 of 8 quality-of-life dimensions from federal data (missing dims omitted; remaining weights renormalized). Customize the weights to match your priorities →

Strongest dimension: Cost of living (87/100)

Cost of living

87
Climate

71
Housing

67
Low hazard

62
Safety

42
Schools

32
Job market

14

What this shows Auburn-Opelika's strongest dimensions are cost of living and climate; its weakest among scored dims is job market at 14/100. Default weights: cost 18%, jobs & housing 15% each, safety & schools 12%, air & hazard 10%, climate 8%; this metro uses 7 of 8 dims with renormalized weights.

Compare Auburn-Opelika to

New Haven New Orleans-Metairie New York-Newark-Jersey City Niles North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota Norwich-New London-Willimantic

Metros near Auburn-Opelika on cost, LiveAbility, or wages

Nearest out-of-state neighbors to Auburn-Opelika 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

Auburn-Opelika cost figures follow BEA Regional Price Parities and HUD Fair Market Rents; Auburn-Opelika 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 Auburn-Opelika?

Auburn-Opelika runs a $57,668 median salary at a 87.9 cost index, ranking #142 of 387 nationally on LiveAbility.

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