What is the cost of living in New Orleans-Metairie?

New Orleans-Metairie has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 92.6, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 86.0, which is below the national average. The average 2-bedroom rent is $1,331/month.

What is the median salary in New Orleans-Metairie?

The median salary in New Orleans-Metairie is $64,688 annually (mean: $68,482). Top occupations include Retail Salespersons, Registered Nurses, General and Operations Managers.

How safe is New Orleans-Metairie?

The violent crime rate in the New Orleans-Metairie area is 410 per 100,000 population (state-level data). Property crime rate is 1773 per 100K.

What are the schools like in New Orleans-Metairie?

The state of LA has 1,330 schools (state-level data, no metro-level federal count exists) with an average student-teacher ratio of 16.8:1. Charter schools make up 11.3% of all schools.

How much does childcare cost in New Orleans-Metairie?

Infant center-based childcare in the New Orleans-Metairie area averages $7,396 per year. Preschool averages $7,111/year. These are state-level averages.

Is New Orleans-Metairie a good place to relocate?

New Orleans-Metairie has a Life Score of 62/100 (C), 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 New Orleans-Metairie in the top decile of scored metros, a genuinely strong all-around profile.

Where does New Orleans-Metairie sit among US metros on LiveAbility?

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite, New Orleans-Metairie ranks #297 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

New Orleans-Metairie, LA

LiveAbility 43.6/100 places New Orleans-Metairie #297 of 387 (bottom third of scored metros).

Compiled by PlainRelocate · June 15, 2026

92.6
Cost index (US=100): $1,331
2BR rent / mo: $64,688
Median salary: 43.6
LiveAbility Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, New Orleans-Metairie ranks #297 of 387 US metros on the LiveAbility Score (43.6/100), with its strongest marks in climate and job market.

#297
of 387 US metros · Below median: 4,597,740
metro-area population: 410
violent crimes per 100K (state-level): 1,330
schools in the state (NCES)

Weakest dimension: schools (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), New Orleans-Metairie ranks #297 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). Cost-of-living index 92.6 (100 = national average), median 2-bedroom rent $1,331/mo, median salary $64,688; LiveAbility Score 43.6/100, strongest in climate and job market.

Signature: LiveAbility 43.6/100 places New Orleans-Metairie #297 of 387 (bottom third of scored metros).

Purchasing power sits mid-band: BEA RPP 92.6 between corpus terciles 91.5 and 97.0. Median 2BR rent $1,331/mo.

LiveAbility 43.6/100 puts New Orleans-Metairie in the bottom third (#297 of 387).

BLS OEWS total employment in the New Orleans-Metairie area is 428,400.

New Orleans-Metairie 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)

44 Top 77% higher than 23% 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

New Orleans-Metairie housing and rent

HUD Fair Market Rents for the New Orleans-Metairie MSA; housing RPP 86.0 (100 = national average); 2BR $1,331/mo.

Studio

$964

/month

1 Bedroom

$1,113

/month

2 Bedroom

$1,331

/month

3 Bedroom

$1,701

/month

4 Bedroom

$1,996

/month

New Orleans-Metairie wages and employment

New Orleans-Metairie posts 428,400 total employment with median salary $64,688.

Median Salary

$64,688

Mean Salary

$68,482

Total Employment

428,400

Top Occupations by Employment

Occupation	Median Salary
Retail Salespersons	$30,400
Registered Nurses	$81,850
General and Operations Managers	$105,110
Fast Food and Counter Workers	$25,470
Waiters and Waitresses	$16,640

Schools & Education

State-level education data for the New Orleans-Metairie area from NCES.

Schools

1,330

Enrollment

674,456

Student:Teacher

16.8:1

Title I %

Childcare Costs

State-average childcare costs for the New Orleans-Metairie area (DOL data).

Infant (Center)

$7,396

per year

Toddler (Center)

$7,237

per year

Preschool (Center)

$7,111

per year

Life Score Breakdown

New Orleans-Metairie's composite Life Score is 62/100 (C), computed across 7 of 7 dimensions.

Cost

58/100

Above average

Wages

61/100

Above average

Rent

47/100

Average

Crime

26/100

Weak

Schools

90/100

Elite

Childcare

84/100

Elite

Environment

97/100

Elite

LiveAbility Score

View full rankings →

New Orleans-Metairie ranks #297 out of 387 metros with a LiveAbility Score of 43.6/100 - a composite of 8 of 8 quality-of-life dimensions from federal data. Customize the weights to match your priorities →

Strongest dimension: Climate (64/100)

Climate

64
Job market

61
Cost of living

58
Low hazard

48
Housing

47
Air quality

27
Safety

26
Schools

10

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

Compare New Orleans-Metairie to

Elmira Enid Erie Eugene-Springfield Evansville Fairbanks-College

Metros near New Orleans-Metairie on cost, LiveAbility, or wages

Nearest out-of-state neighbors to New Orleans-Metairie 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

New Orleans-Metairie cost figures follow BEA Regional Price Parities and HUD Fair Market Rents; New Orleans-Metairie 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 New Orleans-Metairie?

New Orleans-Metairie runs a $64,688 median salary at a 92.6 cost index, ranking #297 of 387 nationally on LiveAbility.

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