What is the cost of living in Jacksonville?

Jacksonville has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 92.1, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 72.1, which is below the national average. The average 2-bedroom rent is $1,173/month.

What is the median salary in Jacksonville?

The median salary in Jacksonville is $57,430 annually (mean: $60,511). Top occupations include Retail Salespersons, Fast Food and Counter Workers, Cooks, Fast Food.

How safe is Jacksonville?

The violent crime rate in the Jacksonville area is 365 per 100,000 population (state-level data). Property crime rate is 1930 per 100K.

What are the schools like in Jacksonville?

The state of NC has 2,703 schools (state-level data, no metro-level federal count exists) with an average student-teacher ratio of 15.8:1. Charter schools make up 7.6% of all schools.

How much does childcare cost in Jacksonville?

Infant center-based childcare in the Jacksonville area averages $9,487 per year. Preschool averages $6,548/year. These are state-level averages.

Is Jacksonville a good place to relocate?

Jacksonville has a Life Score of 53.4/100 (D), 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 middle-of-the-pack score, where the composite lands for most US metros; look at individual dimensions to see the real trade-offs.

Where does Jacksonville sit among US metros on LiveAbility?

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite, Jacksonville ranks #160 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

Jacksonville, NC

BEA RPP 92.1 sits mid-pack (#147 of 387 metros); cost is not the extreme signal here.

Compiled by PlainRelocate · June 15, 2026

92.1
Cost index (US=100): $1,173
2BR rent / mo: $57,430
Median salary: 53.4
LiveAbility Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, Jacksonville ranks #160 of 387 US metros on the LiveAbility Score (53.4/100), with its strongest marks in safety and climate.

#160
of 387 US metros · Above median: 11,046,024
metro-area population: 365
violent crimes per 100K (state-level): 2,703
schools in the state (NCES)

Weakest dimension: job market (5/100). 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), Jacksonville ranks #160 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). Cost-of-living index 92.1 (100 = national average), median 2-bedroom rent $1,173/mo, median salary $57,430; LiveAbility Score 53.4/100, strongest in safety and climate.

Signature: BEA RPP 92.1 sits mid-pack (#147 of 387 metros); cost is not the extreme signal here.

Purchasing power sits mid-band: BEA RPP 92.1 between corpus terciles 91.5 and 97.0. Median 2BR rent $1,173/mo.

LiveAbility 53.4/100 keeps Jacksonville in the middle third (#160 of 387).

BLS OEWS total employment in the Jacksonville area is 46,520.

Jacksonville 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

Jacksonville housing and rent

HUD Fair Market Rents for the Jacksonville MSA; housing RPP 72.1 (100 = national average); 2BR $1,173/mo.

Studio

$929

/month

1 Bedroom

$935

/month

2 Bedroom

$1,173

/month

3 Bedroom

$1,631

/month

4 Bedroom

$1,968

/month

Jacksonville wages and employment

Jacksonville posts 46,520 total employment with median salary $57,430.

Median Salary

$57,430

Mean Salary

$60,511

Total Employment

46,520

Top Occupations by Employment

Occupation	Median Salary
Retail Salespersons	$29,480
Fast Food and Counter Workers	$27,330
Cooks, Fast Food	$22,900
Cashiers	$26,380
Stockers and Order Fillers	$33,880

Schools & Education

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

Schools

2,703

Enrollment

1,544,406

Student:Teacher

15.8:1

Title I %

Childcare Costs

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

Infant (Center)

$9,487

per year

Toddler (Center)

$7,856

per year

Preschool (Center)

$6,548

per year

Life Score Breakdown

Jacksonville's composite Life Score is 53.4/100 (D), computed across 7 of 7 dimensions.

Cost

62/100

Above average

Wages

5/100

Bottom decile

Rent

69/100

Strong

Crime

94/100

Elite

Schools

60/100

Above average

Childcare

58/100

Above average

Environment

36/100

Below average

LiveAbility Score

View full rankings →

Jacksonville ranks #160 out of 387 metros with a LiveAbility Score of 53.4/100 - a composite of 7 of 8 quality-of-life dimensions from federal data (missing dims omitted; remaining weights renormalized). Customize the weights to match your priorities →

Strongest dimension: Safety (94/100)

Safety

94
Climate

70
Housing

69
Cost of living

62
Low hazard

41
Schools

40
Job market

5

What this shows Jacksonville's strongest dimensions are safety and climate; its weakest among scored dims is job market at 5/100. Default weights: cost 18%, jobs & housing 15% each, safety & schools 12%, air & hazard 10%, climate 8%; this metro uses 7 of 8 dims with renormalized weights.

Compare Jacksonville to

Kiryas Joel-Poughkeepsie-Newburgh Knoxville Kokomo La Crosse-Onalaska Lafayette Lafayette-West Lafayette

Metros near Jacksonville on cost, LiveAbility, or wages

Nearest out-of-state neighbors to Jacksonville 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

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

Jacksonville runs a $57,430 median salary at a 92.1 cost index, ranking #160 of 387 nationally on LiveAbility.

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