What is the cost of living in Kenosha?

Kenosha has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 101.1, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 95.8, which is below the national average. The average 2-bedroom rent is $1,402/month.

What is the median salary in Kenosha?

The median salary in Kenosha is $68,406 annually (mean: $72,325). Top occupations include Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand, Stockers and Order Fillers, Retail Salespersons.

The violent crime rate in the Kenosha area is 280 per 100,000 population (state-level data). Property crime rate is 1157 per 100K.

What are the schools like in Kenosha?

The state of WI has 2,205 schools (state-level data, no metro-level federal count exists) with an average student-teacher ratio of 14.4:1. Charter schools make up 10.7% of all schools.

How much does childcare cost in Kenosha?

Infant center-based childcare in the Kenosha area averages $11,256 per year. Preschool averages $10,203/year. These are state-level averages.

Is Kenosha a good place to relocate?

Kenosha has a Life Score of 43.8/100 (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 Kenosha sit among US metros on LiveAbility?

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite, Kenosha ranks #260 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

Kenosha, WI

BEA RPP 101.1 ranks #322 of 387 scored metros for higher prices (dearer third).

Compiled by PlainRelocate · June 15, 2026

101.1
Cost index (US=100): $1,402
2BR rent / mo: $68,406
Median salary: 47.1
LiveAbility Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, Kenosha ranks #260 of 387 US metros on the LiveAbility Score (47.1/100), with its strongest marks in job market and low hazard.

#260
of 387 US metros · Near median: 5,960,975
metro-area population: 280
violent crimes per 100K (state-level): 2,205
schools in the state (NCES)

Weakest dimension: cost of living (17/100). 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), Kenosha ranks #260 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). Cost-of-living index 101.1 (100 = national average), median 2-bedroom rent $1,402/mo, median salary $68,406; LiveAbility Score 47.1/100, strongest in job market and low hazard.

Signature: BEA RPP 101.1 ranks #322 of 387 scored metros for higher prices (dearer third).

Purchasing power tightens: BEA RPP 101.1 lands in the dearer third of scored metros (cuts at 91.5 / 97.0). Median 2BR rent $1,402/mo.

LiveAbility 47.1/100 puts Kenosha in the bottom third (#260 of 387).

BLS OEWS total employment in the Kenosha area is 69,670.

Kenosha 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)

47 Top 67% higher than 33% 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

Kenosha housing and rent

HUD Fair Market Rents for the Kenosha MSA; housing RPP 95.8 (100 = national average); 2BR $1,402/mo.

Studio

$1,085

/month

1 Bedroom

$1,092

/month

2 Bedroom

$1,402

/month

3 Bedroom

$1,899

/month

4 Bedroom

$2,174

/month

Kenosha wages and employment

Kenosha posts 69,670 total employment with median salary $68,406 against a dearer-than-average RPP.

Median Salary

$68,406

Mean Salary

$72,325

Total Employment

69,670

Top Occupations by Employment

Occupation	Median Salary
Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand	$46,990
Stockers and Order Fillers	$46,030
Retail Salespersons	$33,580
Fast Food and Counter Workers	$29,070
Cashiers	$32,380

Schools & Education

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

Schools

2,205

Enrollment

814,921

Student:Teacher

14.4:1

Title I %

Childcare Costs

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

Infant (Center)

$11,256

per year

Toddler (Center)

$10,203

per year

Preschool (Center)

$10,203

per year

Life Score Breakdown

Kenosha's composite Life Score is 43.8/100 (F), computed across 7 of 7 dimensions.

Cost

17/100

Bottom decile

Wages

71/100

Strong

Rent

39/100

Below average

Crime

61/100

Above average

Schools

47/100

Average

Childcare

41/100

Below average

Environment

24/100

Weak

LiveAbility Score

View full rankings →

Kenosha ranks #260 out of 387 metros with a LiveAbility Score of 47.1/100 - 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: Job market (71/100)

Job market

71
Low hazard

67
Safety

61
Schools

53
Housing

39
Climate

31
Cost of living

17

What this shows Kenosha's strongest dimensions are job market and low hazard; its weakest among scored dims is cost of living at 17/100. 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 Kenosha to

North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota Norwich-New London-Willimantic Ocala Odessa Ogden Oklahoma City

Metros near Kenosha on cost, LiveAbility, or wages

Nearest out-of-state neighbors to Kenosha 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

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

Kenosha runs a $68,406 median salary at a 101.1 cost index, ranking #260 of 387 nationally on LiveAbility.

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