What is the cost of living in Mount Vernon-Anacortes?

Mount Vernon-Anacortes has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 102.4, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 108.2, which is above the national average. The average 2-bedroom rent is $1,720/month.

What is the median salary in Mount Vernon-Anacortes?

The median salary in Mount Vernon-Anacortes is $74,635 annually (mean: $77,970). Top occupations include Retail Salespersons, Fast Food and Counter Workers, Cashiers.

How safe is Mount Vernon-Anacortes?

The violent crime rate in the Mount Vernon-Anacortes area is 329 per 100,000 population (state-level data). Property crime rate is 2498 per 100K.

What are the schools like in Mount Vernon-Anacortes?

The state of WA has 2,465 schools (state-level data, no metro-level federal count exists) with an average student-teacher ratio of 17.6:1. Charter schools make up 0.6% of all schools.

How much does childcare cost in Mount Vernon-Anacortes?

Infant center-based childcare in the Mount Vernon-Anacortes area averages $15,987 per year. Preschool averages $12,531/year. These are state-level averages.

Is Mount Vernon-Anacortes a good place to relocate?

Mount Vernon-Anacortes has a Life Score of 45.5/100 (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 Mount Vernon-Anacortes sit among US metros on LiveAbility?

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite, Mount Vernon-Anacortes ranks #253 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

Mount Vernon-Anacortes, WA

BEA RPP 102.4 ranks #335 of 387 scored metros for higher prices (dearer third).

Compiled by PlainRelocate · June 15, 2026

102.4
Cost index (US=100): $1,720
2BR rent / mo: $74,635
Median salary: 47.4
LiveAbility Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, Mount Vernon-Anacortes ranks #253 of 387 US metros on the LiveAbility Score (47.4/100), with its strongest marks in air quality and job market.

#253
of 387 US metros · Near median: 7,958,180
metro-area population: 329
violent crimes per 100K (state-level): 2,465
schools in the state (NCES)

Weakest dimension: climate (10/100). 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), Mount Vernon-Anacortes ranks #253 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). Cost-of-living index 102.4 (100 = national average), median 2-bedroom rent $1,720/mo, median salary $74,635; LiveAbility Score 47.4/100, strongest in air quality and job market.

Signature: BEA RPP 102.4 ranks #335 of 387 scored metros for higher prices (dearer third).

Purchasing power tightens: BEA RPP 102.4 lands in the dearer third of scored metros (cuts at 91.5 / 97.0). Median 2BR rent $1,720/mo.

LiveAbility 47.4/100 keeps Mount Vernon-Anacortes in the middle third (#253 of 387).

BLS OEWS total employment in the Mount Vernon-Anacortes area is 46,720.

Mount Vernon-Anacortes 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 66% higher than 34% 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

Mount Vernon-Anacortes housing and rent

HUD Fair Market Rents for the Mount Vernon-Anacortes MSA; housing RPP 108.2 (100 = national average); 2BR $1,720/mo.

Studio

$1,186

/month

1 Bedroom

$1,311

/month

2 Bedroom

$1,720

/month

3 Bedroom

$2,392

/month

4 Bedroom

$2,599

/month

Mount Vernon-Anacortes wages and employment

Mount Vernon-Anacortes posts 46,720 total employment with median salary $74,635 against a dearer-than-average RPP.

Median Salary

$74,635

Mean Salary

$77,970

Total Employment

46,720

Top Occupations by Employment

Occupation	Median Salary
Retail Salespersons	$39,240
Fast Food and Counter Workers	$36,890
Cashiers	$37,960
Home Health and Personal Care Aides	$42,690
Registered Nurses	$106,730

Schools & Education

State-level education data for the Mount Vernon-Anacortes area from NCES.

Schools

2,465

Enrollment

1,092,149

Student:Teacher

17.6:1

Title I %

Childcare Costs

State-average childcare costs for the Mount Vernon-Anacortes area (DOL data).

Infant (Center)

$15,987

per year

Toddler (Center)

$12,531

per year

Preschool (Center)

$12,531

per year

Life Score Breakdown

Mount Vernon-Anacortes's composite Life Score is 45.5/100 (D), computed across 7 of 7 dimensions.

Cost

13/100

Bottom decile

Wages

93/100

Elite

Rent

20/100

Weak

Crime

46/100

Average

Schools

72/100

Strong

Childcare

13/100

Bottom decile

Environment

59/100

Above average

LiveAbility Score

View full rankings →

Mount Vernon-Anacortes ranks #253 out of 387 metros with a LiveAbility Score of 47.4/100 - a composite of 8 of 8 quality-of-life dimensions from federal data. Customize the weights to match your priorities →

Strongest dimension: Air quality (96/100)

Air quality

96
Job market

93
Low hazard

87
Safety

46
Schools

28
Housing

20
Cost of living

14
Climate

10

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

Compare Mount Vernon-Anacortes to

Waco Walla Walla Warner Robins Washington-Arlington-Alexandria Waterbury-Shelton Waterloo-Cedar Falls

Metros near Mount Vernon-Anacortes on cost, LiveAbility, or wages

Nearest out-of-state neighbors to Mount Vernon-Anacortes 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

Mount Vernon-Anacortes cost figures follow BEA Regional Price Parities and HUD Fair Market Rents; Mount Vernon-Anacortes 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 Mount Vernon-Anacortes?

Mount Vernon-Anacortes runs a $74,635 median salary at a 102.4 cost index, ranking #253 of 387 nationally on LiveAbility.

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