What is the cost of living in Fresno?

Fresno has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 102.2, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 95.7, which is below the national average. The average 2-bedroom rent is $1,664/month.

What is the median salary in Fresno?

The median salary in Fresno is $73,531 annually (mean: $77,504). Top occupations include Home Health and Personal Care Aides, Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse, Fast Food and Counter Workers.

The violent crime rate in the Fresno area is 477 per 100,000 population (state-level data). Property crime rate is 1986 per 100K.

What are the schools like in Fresno?

The state of CA has 10,006 schools (state-level data, no metro-level federal count exists) with an average student-teacher ratio of 21.5:1. Charter schools make up 12.8% of all schools.

How much does childcare cost in Fresno?

Infant center-based childcare in the Fresno area averages $17,920 per year. Preschool averages $11,385/year. These are state-level averages.

Is Fresno a good place to relocate?

Fresno has a Life Score of 42.5/100 (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 is a below-average score, several dimensions likely pull the composite down; compare specific dimensions to see which ones.

Where does Fresno sit among US metros on LiveAbility?

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite, Fresno ranks #373 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

Fresno, CA

LiveAbility 28.5/100 places Fresno #373 of 387 (bottom third of scored metros).

Compiled by PlainRelocate · June 15, 2026

102.2
Cost index (US=100): $1,664
2BR rent / mo: $73,531
Median salary: 28.5
LiveAbility Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, Fresno ranks #373 of 387 US metros on the LiveAbility Score (28.5/100), with its strongest marks in job market and climate.

#373
of 387 US metros · Well below median: 39,431,263
metro-area population: 477
violent crimes per 100K (state-level): 10,006
schools in the state (NCES)

Weakest dimension: air quality (2/100). 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), Fresno ranks #373 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). Cost-of-living index 102.2 (100 = national average), median 2-bedroom rent $1,664/mo, median salary $73,531; LiveAbility Score 28.5/100, strongest in job market and climate.

Signature: LiveAbility 28.5/100 places Fresno #373 of 387 (bottom third of scored metros).

Purchasing power tightens: BEA RPP 102.2 lands in the dearer third of scored metros (cuts at 91.5 / 97.0). Median 2BR rent $1,664/mo.

LiveAbility 28.5/100 puts Fresno in the bottom third (#373 of 387).

BLS OEWS total employment in the Fresno area is 469,260.

Fresno 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)

29 Top 96% higher than 4% 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

Fresno housing and rent

HUD Fair Market Rents for the Fresno MSA; housing RPP 95.7 (100 = national average); 2BR $1,664/mo.

Studio

$1,347

/month

1 Bedroom

$1,355

/month

2 Bedroom

$1,664

/month

3 Bedroom

$2,314

/month

4 Bedroom

$2,660

/month

Fresno wages and employment

Fresno posts 469,260 total employment with median salary $73,531 against a dearer-than-average RPP.

Median Salary

$73,531

Mean Salary

$77,504

Total Employment

469,260

Top Occupations by Employment

Occupation	Median Salary
Home Health and Personal Care Aides	$34,320
Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse	$34,610
Fast Food and Counter Workers	$39,480
Registered Nurses	$125,420
Cashiers	$35,270

Schools & Education

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

Schools

10,006

Enrollment

5,787,663

Student:Teacher

21.5:1

Title I %

Childcare Costs

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

Infant (Center)

$17,920

per year

Toddler (Center)

$12,300

per year

Preschool (Center)

$11,385

per year

Life Score Breakdown

Fresno's composite Life Score is 42.5/100 (F), computed across 7 of 7 dimensions.

Cost

14/100

Bottom decile

Wages

84/100

Elite

Rent

23/100

Weak

Crime

13/100

Bottom decile

Schools

92/100

Elite

Childcare

8/100

Bottom decile

Environment

75/100

Strong

LiveAbility Score

View full rankings →

Fresno ranks #373 out of 387 metros with a LiveAbility Score of 28.5/100 - a composite of 8 of 8 quality-of-life dimensions from federal data. Customize the weights to match your priorities →

Strongest dimension: Job market (84/100)

Job market

84
Climate

77
Housing

23
Cost of living

14
Safety

13
Low hazard

12
Schools

8
Air quality

2

What this shows Fresno's strongest dimensions are job market and climate; its weakest among scored dims is air quality at 2/100. Default weights: cost 18%, jobs & housing 15% each, safety & schools 12%, air & hazard 10%, climate 8%.

Compare Fresno to

Charleston Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia Charlottesville Chattanooga Cheyenne Chicago-Naperville-Elgin

Metros near Fresno on cost, LiveAbility, or wages

Nearest out-of-state neighbors to Fresno 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

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

Fresno runs a $73,531 median salary at a 102.2 cost index, ranking #373 of 387 nationally on LiveAbility.

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