What is the cost of living in Richmond?

Richmond has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 97.9, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 99.1, which is below the national average. The average 2-bedroom rent is $1,655/month.

What is the median salary in Richmond?

The median salary in Richmond is $71,318 annually (mean: $75,354). Top occupations include Fast Food and Counter Workers, Retail Salespersons, General and Operations Managers.

How safe is Richmond?

The violent crime rate in the Richmond area is 223 per 100,000 population (state-level data). Property crime rate is 1590 per 100K.

What are the schools like in Richmond?

The state of VA has 1,869 schools (state-level data, no metro-level federal count exists) with an average student-teacher ratio of 13.9:1. Charter schools make up 0.4% of all schools.

How much does childcare cost in Richmond?

Infant center-based childcare in the Richmond area averages $10,407 per year. Preschool averages $7,975/year. These are state-level averages.

Is Richmond a good place to relocate?

Richmond has a Life Score of 50.1/100 (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 Richmond sit among US metros on LiveAbility?

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite, Richmond ranks #179 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

Richmond, VA

BEA RPP 97.9 ranks #272 of 387 scored metros for higher prices (dearer third).

Compiled by PlainRelocate · June 15, 2026

97.9
Cost index (US=100): $1,655
2BR rent / mo: $71,318
Median salary: 52.3
LiveAbility Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, Richmond ranks #179 of 387 US metros on the LiveAbility Score (52.3/100), with its strongest marks in job market and climate.

#179
of 387 US metros · Above median: 8,811,195
metro-area population: 223
violent crimes per 100K (state-level): 1,869
schools in the state (NCES)

Weakest dimension: low hazard (16/100). 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), Richmond ranks #179 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). Cost-of-living index 97.9 (100 = national average), median 2-bedroom rent $1,655/mo, median salary $71,318; LiveAbility Score 52.3/100, strongest in job market and climate.

Signature: BEA RPP 97.9 ranks #272 of 387 scored metros for higher prices (dearer third).

Purchasing power tightens: BEA RPP 97.9 lands in the dearer third of scored metros (cuts at 91.5 / 97.0). Median 2BR rent $1,655/mo.

LiveAbility 52.3/100 keeps Richmond in the middle third (#179 of 387).

BLS OEWS total employment in the Richmond area is 637,140.

Richmond 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)

52 Top 46% higher than 54% 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

Richmond housing and rent

HUD Fair Market Rents for the Richmond MSA; housing RPP 99.1 (100 = national average); 2BR $1,655/mo.

Studio

$1,442

/month

1 Bedroom

$1,507

/month

2 Bedroom

$1,655

/month

3 Bedroom

$2,072

/month

4 Bedroom

$2,553

/month

Richmond wages and employment

Richmond posts 637,140 total employment with median salary $71,318 against a dearer-than-average RPP.

Median Salary

$71,318

Mean Salary

$75,354

Total Employment

637,140

Top Occupations by Employment

Occupation	Median Salary
Fast Food and Counter Workers	$29,500
Retail Salespersons	$33,580
General and Operations Managers	$108,670
Registered Nurses	$93,580
Cashiers	$30,350

Schools & Education

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

Schools

1,869

Enrollment

1,253,620

Student:Teacher

13.9:1

Title I %

Childcare Costs

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

Infant (Center)

$10,407

per year

Toddler (Center)

$8,169

per year

Preschool (Center)

$7,975

per year

Life Score Breakdown

Richmond's composite Life Score is 50.1/100 (D), computed across 7 of 7 dimensions.

Cost

30/100

Weak

Wages

81/100

Elite

Rent

23/100

Weak

Crime

80/100

Elite

Schools

24/100

Weak

Childcare

54/100

Average

Environment

48/100

Average

LiveAbility Score

View full rankings →

Richmond ranks #179 out of 387 metros with a LiveAbility Score of 52.3/100 - a composite of 8 of 8 quality-of-life dimensions from federal data. Customize the weights to match your priorities →

Strongest dimension: Job market (81/100)

Job market

81
Climate

81
Safety

80
Schools

76
Air quality

46
Cost of living

30
Housing

23
Low hazard

16

What this shows Richmond's strongest dimensions are job market and climate; its weakest among scored dims is low hazard at 16/100. Default weights: cost 18%, jobs & housing 15% each, safety & schools 12%, air & hazard 10%, climate 8%.

Compare Richmond to

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

Metros near Richmond on cost, LiveAbility, or wages

Nearest out-of-state neighbors to Richmond 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

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

Richmond runs a $71,318 median salary at a 97.9 cost index, ranking #179 of 387 nationally on LiveAbility.

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