What is the cost of living in Dover?

Dover has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 97.5, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 95.9, which is below the national average. The average 2-bedroom rent is $1,470/month.

What is the median salary in Dover?

The median salary in Dover is $64,394 annually (mean: $67,115). Top occupations include Fast Food and Counter Workers, Home Health and Personal Care Aides, Cashiers.

The violent crime rate in the Dover area is 368 per 100,000 population (state-level data). Property crime rate is 1773 per 100K.

What are the schools like in Dover?

The state of DE has 223 schools (state-level data, no metro-level federal count exists) with an average student-teacher ratio of 13.9:1. Charter schools make up 10.3% of all schools.

How much does childcare cost in Dover?

Infant center-based childcare in the Dover area averages $11,172 per year. Preschool averages $8,657/year. These are state-level averages.

Is Dover a good place to relocate?

Dover has a Life Score of 39.2/100 (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 Dover in the bottom decile of scored metros; compare individual dimensions to see where the biggest gaps are.

Where does Dover sit among US metros on LiveAbility?

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite, Dover ranks #111 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

Dover, DE

LiveAbility 56/100 places Dover #111 of 387 (top third of scored metros).

Compiled by PlainRelocate · June 15, 2026

97.5
Cost index (US=100): $1,470
2BR rent / mo: $64,394
Median salary: 56
LiveAbility Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, Dover ranks #111 of 387 US metros on the LiveAbility Score (56/100), with its strongest marks in low hazard and climate.

#111
of 387 US metros · Above median: 1,051,917
metro-area population: 368
violent crimes per 100K (state-level): 223
schools in the state (NCES)

Weakest dimension: cost of living (31/100). 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), Dover ranks #111 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). Cost-of-living index 97.5 (100 = national average), median 2-bedroom rent $1,470/mo, median salary $64,394; LiveAbility Score 56/100, strongest in low hazard and climate.

Signature: LiveAbility 56/100 places Dover #111 of 387 (top third of scored metros).

Purchasing power tightens: BEA RPP 97.5 lands in the dearer third of scored metros (cuts at 91.5 / 97.0). Median 2BR rent $1,470/mo.

LiveAbility 56/100 puts Dover in the top third (#111 of 387).

BLS OEWS total employment in the Dover area is 59,250.

Dover 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)

56 Top 29% higher than 71% 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

Dover housing and rent

HUD Fair Market Rents for the Dover MSA; housing RPP 95.9 (100 = national average); 2BR $1,470/mo.

Studio

$1,158

/month

1 Bedroom

$1,165

/month

2 Bedroom

$1,470

/month

3 Bedroom

$2,044

/month

4 Bedroom

$2,285

/month

Dover wages and employment

Dover posts 59,250 total employment with median salary $64,394 against a dearer-than-average RPP.

Median Salary

$64,394

Mean Salary

$67,115

Total Employment

59,250

Top Occupations by Employment

Occupation	Median Salary
Fast Food and Counter Workers	$31,200
Home Health and Personal Care Aides	$32,130
Cashiers	$31,720
Retail Salespersons	$34,060
Registered Nurses	$91,620

Schools & Education

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

Schools

223

Enrollment

140,539

Student:Teacher

13.9:1

Title I %

Childcare Costs

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

Infant (Center)

$11,172

per year

Toddler (Center)

$8,273

per year

Preschool (Center)

$8,657

per year

Life Score Breakdown

Dover's composite Life Score is 39.2/100 (F), computed across 7 of 7 dimensions.

Cost

31/100

Weak

Wages

58/100

Above average

Rent

34/100

Weak

Crime

42/100

Below average

Schools

25/100

Weak

Childcare

43/100

Below average

Environment

32/100

Weak

LiveAbility Score

View full rankings →

Dover ranks #111 out of 387 metros with a LiveAbility Score of 56/100 - a composite of 8 of 8 quality-of-life dimensions from federal data. Customize the weights to match your priorities →

Strongest dimension: Low hazard (100/100)

Low hazard

100
Climate

76
Schools

75
Air quality

67
Job market

58
Safety

43
Housing

34
Cost of living

31

What this shows Dover's strongest dimensions are low hazard and climate; its weakest among scored dims is cost of living at 31/100. Default weights: cost 18%, jobs & housing 15% each, safety & schools 12%, air & hazard 10%, climate 8%.

Compare Dover to

Topeka Traverse City Trenton-Princeton Tucson Tulsa Tuscaloosa

Metros near Dover on cost, LiveAbility, or wages

Nearest out-of-state neighbors to Dover 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

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

Dover runs a $64,394 median salary at a 97.5 cost index, ranking #111 of 387 nationally on LiveAbility.

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