What is the cost of living in Madison?

Madison has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 97.3, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 99.7, which is below the national average. The average 2-bedroom rent is $1,195/month.

What is the median salary in Madison?

The median salary in Madison is $72,527 annually (mean: $76,013). Top occupations include Registered Nurses, Fast Food and Counter Workers, Home Health and Personal Care Aides.

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

What are the schools like in Madison?

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 Madison?

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

Is Madison a good place to relocate?

Madison has a Life Score of 53.8/100 (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 Madison sit among US metros on LiveAbility?

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite, Madison ranks #107 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

Madison, WI

LiveAbility 56.1/100 places Madison #107 of 387 (top third of scored metros).

Compiled by PlainRelocate · June 15, 2026

97.3
Cost index (US=100): $1,195
2BR rent / mo: $72,527
Median salary: 56.1
LiveAbility Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, Madison ranks #107 of 387 US metros on the LiveAbility Score (56.1/100), with its strongest marks in job market and low hazard.

#107
of 387 US metros · Above median: 5,960,975
metro-area population: 280
violent crimes per 100K (state-level): 2,205
schools in the state (NCES)

Weakest dimension: climate (19/100). 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), Madison ranks #107 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). Cost-of-living index 97.3 (100 = national average), median 2-bedroom rent $1,195/mo, median salary $72,527; LiveAbility Score 56.1/100, strongest in job market and low hazard.

Signature: LiveAbility 56.1/100 places Madison #107 of 387 (top third of scored metros).

Purchasing power tightens: BEA RPP 97.3 lands in the dearer third of scored metros (cuts at 91.5 / 97.0). Median 2BR rent $1,195/mo.

LiveAbility 56.1/100 puts Madison in the top third (#107 of 387).

BLS OEWS total employment in the Madison area is 399,040.

Madison 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)

56 Top 28% higher than 72% 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

Madison housing and rent

HUD Fair Market Rents for the Madison MSA; housing RPP 99.7 (100 = national average); 2BR $1,195/mo.

Studio

$824

/month

1 Bedroom

$911

/month

2 Bedroom

$1,195

/month

3 Bedroom

$1,645

/month

4 Bedroom

$1,798

/month

Madison wages and employment

Madison posts 399,040 total employment with median salary $72,527 against a dearer-than-average RPP.

Median Salary

$72,527

Mean Salary

$76,013

Total Employment

399,040

Top Occupations by Employment

Occupation	Median Salary
Registered Nurses	$101,190
Fast Food and Counter Workers	$29,820
Home Health and Personal Care Aides	$37,220
Retail Salespersons	$35,830
Cashiers	$34,550

Schools & Education

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

Schools

2,205

Enrollment

814,921

Student:Teacher

14.4:1

Title I %

Childcare Costs

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

Infant (Center)

$11,256

per year

Toddler (Center)

$10,203

per year

Preschool (Center)

$10,203

per year

Life Score Breakdown

Madison's composite Life Score is 53.8/100 (D), computed across 7 of 7 dimensions.

Cost

32/100

Weak

Wages

86/100

Elite

Rent

64/100

Above average

Crime

61/100

Above average

Schools

48/100

Average

Childcare

41/100

Below average

Environment

25/100

Weak

LiveAbility Score

View full rankings →

Madison ranks #107 out of 387 metros with a LiveAbility Score of 56.1/100 - a composite of 8 of 8 quality-of-life dimensions from federal data. Customize the weights to match your priorities →

Strongest dimension: Job market (86/100)

Job market

86
Low hazard

67
Housing

64
Safety

61
Air quality

60
Schools

52
Cost of living

32
Climate

19

What this shows Madison's strongest dimensions are job market and low hazard; its weakest among scored dims is climate at 19/100. Default weights: cost 18%, jobs & housing 15% each, safety & schools 12%, air & hazard 10%, climate 8%.

Compare Madison to

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

Metros near Madison on cost, LiveAbility, or wages

Nearest out-of-state neighbors to Madison 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

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

Madison runs a $72,527 median salary at a 97.3 cost index, ranking #107 of 387 nationally on LiveAbility.

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