What is the cost of living in Burlington?

Burlington has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 93.2, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 77.9, which is below the national average. The average 2-bedroom rent is $1,348/month.

What is the median salary in Burlington?

The median salary in Burlington is $59,725 annually (mean: $62,771). Top occupations include Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand, Retail Salespersons, Cashiers.

How safe is Burlington?

The violent crime rate in the Burlington area is 365 per 100,000 population (state-level data). Property crime rate is 1930 per 100K.

What are the schools like in Burlington?

The state of NC has 2,703 schools (state-level data, no metro-level federal count exists) with an average student-teacher ratio of 15.8:1. Charter schools make up 7.6% of all schools.

How much does childcare cost in Burlington?

Infant center-based childcare in the Burlington area averages $9,487 per year. Preschool averages $6,548/year. These are state-level averages.

Is Burlington a good place to relocate?

Burlington has a Life Score of 52/100 (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 Burlington sit among US metros on LiveAbility?

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite, Burlington ranks #193 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

Burlington, NC

BEA RPP 93.2 sits mid-pack (#183 of 387 metros); cost is not the extreme signal here.

Compiled by PlainRelocate · June 15, 2026

93.2
Cost index (US=100): $1,348
2BR rent / mo: $59,725
Median salary: 51.5
LiveAbility Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, Burlington ranks #193 of 387 US metros on the LiveAbility Score (51.5/100), with its strongest marks in safety and climate.

#193
of 387 US metros · Above median: 11,046,024
metro-area population: 365
violent crimes per 100K (state-level): 2,703
schools in the state (NCES)

Weakest dimension: job market (26/100). 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), Burlington ranks #193 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). Cost-of-living index 93.2 (100 = national average), median 2-bedroom rent $1,348/mo, median salary $59,725; LiveAbility Score 51.5/100, strongest in safety and climate.

Signature: BEA RPP 93.2 sits mid-pack (#183 of 387 metros); cost is not the extreme signal here.

Purchasing power sits mid-band: BEA RPP 93.2 between corpus terciles 91.5 and 97.0. Median 2BR rent $1,348/mo.

LiveAbility 51.5/100 keeps Burlington in the middle third (#193 of 387).

BLS OEWS total employment in the Burlington area is 61,270.

Burlington 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)

52 Top 50% higher than 50% 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

Burlington housing and rent

HUD Fair Market Rents for the Burlington MSA; housing RPP 77.9 (100 = national average); 2BR $1,348/mo.

Studio

$992

/month

1 Bedroom

$1,230

/month

2 Bedroom

$1,348

/month

3 Bedroom

$1,670

/month

4 Bedroom

$1,972

/month

Burlington wages and employment

Burlington posts 61,270 total employment with median salary $59,725.

Median Salary

$59,725

Mean Salary

$62,771

Total Employment

61,270

Top Occupations by Employment

Occupation	Median Salary
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand	$43,750
Retail Salespersons	$29,630
Cashiers	$28,690
Clinical Laboratory Technologists and Technicians	$51,000
Stockers and Order Fillers	$35,620

Schools & Education

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

Schools

2,703

Enrollment

1,544,406

Student:Teacher

15.8:1

Title I %

Childcare Costs

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

Infant (Center)

$9,487

per year

Toddler (Center)

$7,856

per year

Preschool (Center)

$6,548

per year

Life Score Breakdown

Burlington's composite Life Score is 52/100 (D), computed across 7 of 7 dimensions.

Cost

53/100

Average

Wages

26/100

Weak

Rent

44/100

Below average

Crime

96/100

Elite

Schools

58/100

Above average

Childcare

61/100

Above average

Environment

34/100

Weak

LiveAbility Score

View full rankings →

Burlington ranks #193 out of 387 metros with a LiveAbility Score of 51.5/100 - 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: Safety (96/100)

Safety

96
Climate

68
Cost of living

53
Housing

44
Low hazard

43
Schools

42
Job market

26

What this shows Burlington's strongest dimensions are safety and climate; its weakest among scored dims is job market at 26/100. 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 Burlington to

Chicago-Naperville-Elgin Chico Cincinnati Clarksville Cleveland Cleveland

Metros near Burlington on cost, LiveAbility, or wages

Nearest out-of-state neighbors to Burlington 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

Burlington cost figures follow BEA Regional Price Parities and HUD Fair Market Rents; Burlington 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 Burlington?

Burlington runs a $59,725 median salary at a 93.2 cost index, ranking #193 of 387 nationally on LiveAbility.

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