What is the cost of living in Hagerstown-Martinsburg?

Hagerstown-Martinsburg has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 94.2, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 75.7, which is below the national average. The average 2-bedroom rent is $1,261/month.

What is the median salary in Hagerstown-Martinsburg?

The median salary in Hagerstown-Martinsburg is $64,224 annually (mean: $67,475). Top occupations include Retail Salespersons, Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand, General and Operations Managers.

How safe is Hagerstown-Martinsburg?

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

What are the schools like in Hagerstown-Martinsburg?

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 Hagerstown-Martinsburg?

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

Is Hagerstown-Martinsburg a good place to relocate?

Hagerstown-Martinsburg has a Life Score of 38.6/100 (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 Hagerstown-Martinsburg in the bottom decile of scored metros; compare individual dimensions to see where the biggest gaps are.

Where does Hagerstown-Martinsburg sit among US metros on LiveAbility?

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite, Hagerstown-Martinsburg ranks #159 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

Hagerstown-Martinsburg, MD-WV

LiveAbility 53.4/100 places Hagerstown-Martinsburg #159 of 387 (middle third).

Compiled by PlainRelocate · June 15, 2026

94.2
Cost index (US=100): $1,261
2BR rent / mo: $64,224
Median salary: 53.4
LiveAbility Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, Hagerstown-Martinsburg ranks #159 of 387 US metros on the LiveAbility Score (53.4/100), with its strongest marks in low hazard and schools.

#159
of 387 US metros · Above median: 6,263,220
metro-area population: 425
violent crimes per 100K (state-level): 1,383
schools in the state (NCES)

Weakest dimension: safety (25/100). 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), Hagerstown-Martinsburg ranks #159 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). Cost-of-living index 94.2 (100 = national average), median 2-bedroom rent $1,261/mo, median salary $64,224; LiveAbility Score 53.4/100, strongest in low hazard and schools.

Signature: LiveAbility 53.4/100 places Hagerstown-Martinsburg #159 of 387 (middle third).

Purchasing power sits mid-band: BEA RPP 94.2 between corpus terciles 91.5 and 97.0. Median 2BR rent $1,261/mo.

LiveAbility 53.4/100 keeps Hagerstown-Martinsburg in the middle third (#159 of 387).

BLS OEWS total employment in the Hagerstown-Martinsburg area is 100,850.

Hagerstown-Martinsburg 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)

53 Top 42% higher than 58% 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

Hagerstown-Martinsburg housing and rent

HUD Fair Market Rents for the Hagerstown-Martinsburg MSA; housing RPP 75.7 (100 = national average); 2BR $1,261/mo.

Studio

$869

/month

1 Bedroom

$961

/month

2 Bedroom

$1,261

/month

3 Bedroom

$1,700

/month

4 Bedroom

$1,901

/month

Hagerstown-Martinsburg wages and employment

Hagerstown-Martinsburg posts 100,850 total employment with median salary $64,224.

Median Salary

$64,224

Mean Salary

$67,475

Total Employment

100,850

Top Occupations by Employment

Occupation	Median Salary
Retail Salespersons	$31,490
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand	$38,100
General and Operations Managers	$92,420
Cashiers	$31,200
Stockers and Order Fillers	$37,190

Schools & Education

State-level education data for the Hagerstown-Martinsburg area from NCES.

Schools

1,383

Enrollment

885,796

Student:Teacher

14.5:1

Title I %

Childcare Costs

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

Infant (Center)

$14,631

per year

Toddler (Center)

$10,631

per year

Preschool (Center)

$10,631

per year

Life Score Breakdown

Hagerstown-Martinsburg's composite Life Score is 38.6/100 (F), computed across 7 of 7 dimensions.

Cost

46/100

Average

Wages

49/100

Average

Rent

56/100

Above average

Crime

25/100

Weak

Schools

29/100

Weak

Childcare

17/100

Bottom decile

Environment

28/100

Weak

LiveAbility Score

View full rankings →

Hagerstown-Martinsburg ranks #159 out of 387 metros with a LiveAbility Score of 53.4/100 - a composite of 8 of 8 quality-of-life dimensions from federal data. Customize the weights to match your priorities →

Strongest dimension: Low hazard (81/100)

Low hazard

81
Schools

71
Air quality

61
Housing

56
Job market

49
Cost of living

46
Climate

46
Safety

25

What this shows Hagerstown-Martinsburg's strongest dimensions are low hazard and schools; its weakest among scored dims is safety at 25/100. Default weights: cost 18%, jobs & housing 15% each, safety & schools 12%, air & hazard 10%, climate 8%.

Compare Hagerstown-Martinsburg to

Pueblo Punta Gorda Racine-Mount Pleasant Raleigh-Cary Rapid City Reading

Metros near Hagerstown-Martinsburg on cost, LiveAbility, or wages

Nearest out-of-state neighbors to Hagerstown-Martinsburg 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

Hagerstown-Martinsburg cost figures follow BEA Regional Price Parities and HUD Fair Market Rents; Hagerstown-Martinsburg 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 Hagerstown-Martinsburg?

Hagerstown-Martinsburg runs a $64,224 median salary at a 94.2 cost index, ranking #159 of 387 nationally on LiveAbility.

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