What is the cost of living in Ithaca?

Ithaca has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 103.3, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 128.4, which is above the national average. The average 2-bedroom rent is $1,753/month.

What is the median salary in Ithaca?

The median salary in Ithaca is $75,348 annually (mean: $79,503). Top occupations include Retail Salespersons, Health Specialties Teachers, Postsecondary, Registered Nurses.

The violent crime rate in the Ithaca area is 380 per 100,000 population (state-level data). Property crime rate is 1661 per 100K.

What are the schools like in Ithaca?

The state of NY has 4,812 schools (state-level data, no metro-level federal count exists) with an average student-teacher ratio of 11.8:1. Charter schools make up 7.1% of all schools.

How much does childcare cost in Ithaca?

Infant center-based childcare in the Ithaca area averages $13,869 per year. Preschool averages $11,679/year. These are state-level averages.

Is Ithaca a good place to relocate?

Ithaca has a Life Score of 35.9/100 (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 Ithaca in the bottom decile of scored metros; compare individual dimensions to see where the biggest gaps are.

Where does Ithaca sit among US metros on LiveAbility?

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite, Ithaca ranks #240 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

Ithaca, NY

BEA RPP 103.3 ranks #345 of 387 scored metros for higher prices (dearer third).

Compiled by PlainRelocate · June 15, 2026

103.3
Cost index (US=100): $1,753
2BR rent / mo: $75,348
Median salary: 48.4
LiveAbility Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, Ithaca ranks #240 of 387 US metros on the LiveAbility Score (48.4/100), with its strongest marks in schools and air quality.

#240
of 387 US metros · Near median: 19,867,248
metro-area population: 380
violent crimes per 100K (state-level): 4,812
schools in the state (NCES)

Weakest dimension: cost of living (11/100). 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), Ithaca ranks #240 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). Cost-of-living index 103.3 (100 = national average), median 2-bedroom rent $1,753/mo, median salary $75,348; LiveAbility Score 48.4/100, strongest in schools and air quality.

Signature: BEA RPP 103.3 ranks #345 of 387 scored metros for higher prices (dearer third).

Purchasing power tightens: BEA RPP 103.3 lands in the dearer third of scored metros (cuts at 91.5 / 97.0). Median 2BR rent $1,753/mo.

LiveAbility 48.4/100 keeps Ithaca in the middle third (#240 of 387).

BLS OEWS total employment in the Ithaca area is 39,380.

Ithaca 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)

48 Top 62% higher than 38% 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

Ithaca housing and rent

HUD Fair Market Rents for the Ithaca MSA; housing RPP 128.4 (100 = national average); 2BR $1,753/mo.

Studio

$1,263

/month

1 Bedroom

$1,466

/month

2 Bedroom

$1,753

/month

3 Bedroom

$2,102

/month

4 Bedroom

$2,624

/month

Ithaca wages and employment

Ithaca posts 39,380 total employment with median salary $75,348 against a dearer-than-average RPP.

Median Salary

$75,348

Mean Salary

$79,503

Total Employment

39,380

Top Occupations by Employment

Occupation	Median Salary
Retail Salespersons	$35,510
Health Specialties Teachers, Postsecondary	$159,720
Registered Nurses	$100,320
Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive	$47,990
Fast Food and Counter Workers	$34,800

Schools & Education

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

Schools

4,812

Enrollment

2,505,133

Student:Teacher

11.8:1

Title I %

Childcare Costs

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

Infant (Center)

$13,869

per year

Toddler (Center)

$12,979

per year

Preschool (Center)

$11,679

per year

Life Score Breakdown

Ithaca's composite Life Score is 35.9/100 (F), computed across 7 of 7 dimensions.

Cost

11/100

Bottom decile

Wages

85/100

Elite

Rent

17/100

Bottom decile

Crime

38/100

Below average

Schools

4/100

Bottom decile

Childcare

20/100

Weak

Environment

62/100

Above average

LiveAbility Score

View full rankings →

Ithaca ranks #240 out of 387 metros with a LiveAbility Score of 48.4/100 - a composite of 8 of 8 quality-of-life dimensions from federal data. Customize the weights to match your priorities →

Strongest dimension: Schools (96/100)

Schools

96
Air quality

92
Job market

85
Climate

47
Safety

38
Low hazard

22
Housing

17
Cost of living

11

What this shows Ithaca's strongest dimensions are schools and air quality; its weakest among scored dims is cost of living at 11/100. Default weights: cost 18%, jobs & housing 15% each, safety & schools 12%, air & hazard 10%, climate 8%.

Compare Ithaca to

Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers Flagstaff Flint Florence-Muscle Shoals Florence Fond du Lac

Metros near Ithaca on cost, LiveAbility, or wages

Nearest out-of-state neighbors to Ithaca 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

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

Ithaca runs a $75,348 median salary at a 103.3 cost index, ranking #240 of 387 nationally on LiveAbility.

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