What is the cost of living in Casper?

Casper has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 93.8, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 74.2, which is below the national average. The average 2-bedroom rent is $1,082/month.

What is the median salary in Casper?

The median salary in Casper is $61,647 annually (mean: $64,874). Top occupations include Retail Salespersons, General and Operations Managers, Fast Food and Counter Workers.

The violent crime rate in the Casper area is 191 per 100,000 population (state-level data). Property crime rate is 1188 per 100K.

What are the schools like in Casper?

The state of WY has 351 schools (state-level data, no metro-level federal count exists) with an average student-teacher ratio of 11.4:1. Charter schools make up 1.4% of all schools.

How much does childcare cost in Casper?

Infant center-based childcare in the Casper area averages $8,502 per year. Preschool averages $7,689/year. These are state-level averages.

Is Casper a good place to relocate?

Casper has a Life Score of 56.7/100 (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 is an above-average score, Casper outperforms most scored metros on the combined measure.

Where does Casper sit among US metros on LiveAbility?

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite, Casper ranks #21 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

Casper, WY

LiveAbility 63.6/100 places Casper #21 of 387 (top third of scored metros).

Compiled by PlainRelocate · June 15, 2026

93.8
Cost index (US=100): $1,082
2BR rent / mo: $61,647
Median salary: 63.6
LiveAbility Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, Casper ranks #21 of 387 US metros on the LiveAbility Score (63.6/100), with its strongest marks in schools and safety.

#21
of 387 US metros · Excellent: 587,618
metro-area population: 191
violent crimes per 100K (state-level): 351
schools in the state (NCES)

Weakest dimension: climate (15/100). 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), Casper ranks #21 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). Cost-of-living index 93.8 (100 = national average), median 2-bedroom rent $1,082/mo, median salary $61,647; LiveAbility Score 63.6/100, strongest in schools and safety.

Signature: LiveAbility 63.6/100 places Casper #21 of 387 (top third of scored metros).

Purchasing power sits mid-band: BEA RPP 93.8 between corpus terciles 91.5 and 97.0. Median 2BR rent $1,082/mo.

LiveAbility 63.6/100 puts Casper in the top third (#21 of 387).

BLS OEWS total employment in the Casper area is 33,190.

Casper 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)

64 Top 5% higher than 95% 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

Casper housing and rent

HUD Fair Market Rents for the Casper MSA; housing RPP 74.2 (100 = national average); 2BR $1,082/mo.

Studio

$767

/month

1 Bedroom

$852

/month

2 Bedroom

$1,082

/month

3 Bedroom

$1,505

/month

4 Bedroom

$1,815

/month

Casper wages and employment

Casper posts 33,190 total employment with median salary $61,647.

Median Salary

$61,647

Mean Salary

$64,874

Total Employment

33,190

Top Occupations by Employment

Occupation	Median Salary
Retail Salespersons	$32,660
General and Operations Managers	$101,450
Fast Food and Counter Workers	$28,070
Office Clerks, General	$42,810
Registered Nurses	$83,760

Schools & Education

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

Schools

351

Enrollment

89,452

Student:Teacher

11.4:1

Title I %

Childcare Costs

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

Infant (Center)

$8,502

per year

Toddler (Center)

$7,656

per year

Preschool (Center)

$7,689

per year

Life Score Breakdown

Casper's composite Life Score is 56.7/100 (C-), computed across 7 of 7 dimensions.

Cost

48/100

Average

Wages

39/100

Below average

Rent

85/100

Elite

Crime

89/100

Elite

Schools

2/100

Bottom decile

Childcare

64/100

Above average

Environment

67/100

Strong

LiveAbility Score

View full rankings →

Casper ranks #21 out of 387 metros with a LiveAbility Score of 63.6/100 - a composite of 8 of 8 quality-of-life dimensions from federal data. Customize the weights to match your priorities →

Strongest dimension: Schools (98/100)

Schools

98
Safety

89
Housing

86
Low hazard

70
Air quality

58
Cost of living

48
Job market

39
Climate

15

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

Compare Casper to

Jacksonville Jacksonville Janesville-Beloit Jefferson City Johnson City Johnstown

Metros near Casper on cost, LiveAbility, or wages

Nearest out-of-state neighbors to Casper 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

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

Casper runs a $61,647 median salary at a 93.8 cost index, ranking #21 of 387 nationally on LiveAbility.

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