What is the cost of living in Baltimore-Columbia-Towson?

Baltimore-Columbia-Towson has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 104.5, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 118.2, which is above the national average. The average 2-bedroom rent is $1,857/month.

What is the median salary in Baltimore-Columbia-Towson?

The median salary in Baltimore-Columbia-Towson is $78,184 annually (mean: $81,882). Top occupations include General and Operations Managers, Retail Salespersons, Registered Nurses.

How safe is Baltimore-Columbia-Towson?

The violent crime rate in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson area is 425 per 100,000 population (state-level data). Property crime rate is 2074 per 100K.

What are the schools like in Baltimore-Columbia-Towson?

The state of MD has 1,383 schools (state-level data, no metro-level federal count exists) with an average student-teacher ratio of 14.5:1. Charter schools make up 3.5% of all schools.

How much does childcare cost in Baltimore-Columbia-Towson?

Infant center-based childcare in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson area averages $14,631 per year. Preschool averages $10,631/year. These are state-level averages.

Is Baltimore-Columbia-Towson a good place to relocate?

Baltimore-Columbia-Towson has a Life Score of 32.7/100 (F), 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 Baltimore-Columbia-Towson in the bottom decile of scored metros; compare individual dimensions to see where the biggest gaps are.

Where does Baltimore-Columbia-Towson sit among US metros on LiveAbility?

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite, Baltimore-Columbia-Towson ranks #287 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

Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD

BEA RPP 104.5 ranks #355 of 387 scored metros for higher prices (dearer third).

Compiled by PlainRelocate · June 15, 2026

104.5
Cost index (US=100): $1,857
2BR rent / mo: $78,184
Median salary: 44.5
LiveAbility Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, Baltimore-Columbia-Towson ranks #287 of 387 US metros on the LiveAbility Score (44.5/100), with its strongest marks in job market and low hazard.

#287
of 387 US metros · Near median: 6,263,220
metro-area population: 425
violent crimes per 100K (state-level): 1,383
schools in the state (NCES)

Weakest dimension: cost of living (8/100). 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), Baltimore-Columbia-Towson ranks #287 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). Cost-of-living index 104.5 (100 = national average), median 2-bedroom rent $1,857/mo, median salary $78,184; LiveAbility Score 44.5/100, strongest in job market and low hazard.

Signature: BEA RPP 104.5 ranks #355 of 387 scored metros for higher prices (dearer third).

Purchasing power tightens: BEA RPP 104.5 lands in the dearer third of scored metros (cuts at 91.5 / 97.0). Median 2BR rent $1,857/mo.

LiveAbility 44.5/100 puts Baltimore-Columbia-Towson in the bottom third (#287 of 387).

BLS OEWS total employment in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson area is 1,317,590.

Baltimore-Columbia-Towson 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 74% higher than 26% 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

Baltimore-Columbia-Towson housing and rent

HUD Fair Market Rents for the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson MSA; housing RPP 118.2 (100 = national average); 2BR $1,857/mo.

Studio

$1,362

/month

1 Bedroom

$1,511

/month

2 Bedroom

$1,857

/month

3 Bedroom

$2,358

/month

4 Bedroom

$2,611

/month

Baltimore-Columbia-Towson wages and employment

Baltimore-Columbia-Towson posts 1,317,590 total employment with median salary $78,184 against a dearer-than-average RPP.

Median Salary

$78,184

Mean Salary

$81,882

Total Employment

1,317,590

Top Occupations by Employment

Occupation	Median Salary
General and Operations Managers	$117,040
Retail Salespersons	$34,800
Registered Nurses	$99,550
Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive	$49,220
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand	$43,250

Schools & Education

State-level education data for the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson area from NCES.

Schools

1,383

Enrollment

885,796

Student:Teacher

14.5:1

Title I %

Childcare Costs

State-average childcare costs for the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson area (DOL data).

Infant (Center)

$14,631

per year

Toddler (Center)

$10,631

per year

Preschool (Center)

$10,631

per year

Life Score Breakdown

Baltimore-Columbia-Towson's composite Life Score is 32.7/100 (F), computed across 7 of 7 dimensions.

Cost

8/100

Bottom decile

Wages

90/100

Elite

Rent

12/100

Bottom decile

Crime

26/100

Weak

Schools

28/100

Weak

Childcare

18/100

Bottom decile

Environment

28/100

Weak

LiveAbility Score

View full rankings →

Baltimore-Columbia-Towson ranks #287 out of 387 metros with a LiveAbility Score of 44.5/100 - a composite of 8 of 8 quality-of-life dimensions from federal data. Customize the weights to match your priorities →

Strongest dimension: Job market (90/100)

Job market

90
Low hazard

81
Schools

72
Climate

56
Air quality

34
Safety

26
Housing

12
Cost of living

8

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

Compare Baltimore-Columbia-Towson to

Mount Vernon-Anacortes Muncie Muskegon-Norton Shores Myrtle Beach-Conway-North Myrtle Beach Napa Naples-Marco Island

Metros near Baltimore-Columbia-Towson on cost, LiveAbility, or wages

Nearest out-of-state neighbors to Baltimore-Columbia-Towson 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

Baltimore-Columbia-Towson cost figures follow BEA Regional Price Parities and HUD Fair Market Rents; Baltimore-Columbia-Towson 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 Baltimore-Columbia-Towson?

Baltimore-Columbia-Towson runs a $78,184 median salary at a 104.5 cost index, ranking #287 of 387 nationally on LiveAbility.

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