What is the cost of living in Rochester?

Rochester has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 90.8, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 78.6, which is below the national average. The average 2-bedroom rent is $1,407/month.

What is the median salary in Rochester?

The median salary in Rochester is $75,687 annually (mean: $76,977). Top occupations include Registered Nurses, Home Health and Personal Care Aides, Retail Salespersons.

How safe is Rochester?

The violent crime rate in the Rochester area is 259 per 100,000 population (state-level data). Property crime rate is 1625 per 100K.

What are the schools like in Rochester?

The state of MN has 2,391 schools (state-level data, no metro-level federal count exists) with an average student-teacher ratio of 15.8:1. Charter schools make up 11.9% of all schools.

How much does childcare cost in Rochester?

Infant center-based childcare in the Rochester area averages $11,722 per year. Preschool averages $9,850/year. These are state-level averages.

Is Rochester a good place to relocate?

Rochester has a Life Score of 57.7/100 (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 is an above-average score, Rochester outperforms most scored metros on the combined measure.

Where does Rochester sit among US metros on LiveAbility?

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite, Rochester ranks #172 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

Rochester, MN

BEA RPP 90.8 ranks #113 of 387 scored metros for lower prices (cheaper third).

Compiled by PlainRelocate · June 15, 2026

90.8
Cost index (US=100): $1,407
2BR rent / mo: $75,687
Median salary: 52.7
LiveAbility Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, Rochester ranks #172 of 387 US metros on the LiveAbility Score (52.7/100), with its strongest marks in job market and cost of living.

#172
of 387 US metros · Above median: 5,793,151
metro-area population: 259
violent crimes per 100K (state-level): 2,391
schools in the state (NCES)

Weakest dimension: climate (4/100). 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), Rochester ranks #172 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). Cost-of-living index 90.8 (100 = national average), median 2-bedroom rent $1,407/mo, median salary $75,687; LiveAbility Score 52.7/100, strongest in job market and cost of living.

Signature: BEA RPP 90.8 ranks #113 of 387 scored metros for lower prices (cheaper third).

Purchasing power opens up: BEA RPP 90.8 lands in the cheaper third of scored metros (cuts at 91.5 / 97.0). Median 2BR rent $1,407/mo.

LiveAbility 52.7/100 keeps Rochester in the middle third (#172 of 387).

BLS OEWS total employment in the Rochester area is 100,480.

Rochester 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)

53 Top 44% higher than 56% 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

Rochester housing and rent

HUD Fair Market Rents for the Rochester MSA; housing RPP 78.6 (100 = national average); 2BR $1,407/mo.

Studio

$1,112

/month

1 Bedroom

$1,189

/month

2 Bedroom

$1,407

/month

3 Bedroom

$1,957

/month

4 Bedroom

$2,360

/month

Rochester wages and employment

Rochester posts 100,480 total employment with median salary $75,687 against a cheaper-than-average RPP.

Median Salary

$75,687

Mean Salary

$76,977

Total Employment

100,480

Top Occupations by Employment

Occupation	Median Salary
Registered Nurses	$101,660
Home Health and Personal Care Aides	$39,270
Retail Salespersons	$36,000
Cashiers	$34,960
Fast Food and Counter Workers	$31,190

Schools & Education

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

Schools

2,391

Enrollment

872,336

Student:Teacher

15.8:1

Title I %

Childcare Costs

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

Infant (Center)

$11,722

per year

Toddler (Center)

$10,737

per year

Preschool (Center)

$9,850

per year

Life Score Breakdown

Rochester's composite Life Score is 57.7/100 (C-), computed across 7 of 7 dimensions.

Cost

71/100

Strong

Wages

88/100

Elite

Rent

37/100

Below average

Crime

65/100

Strong

Schools

54/100

Average

Childcare

34/100

Weak

Environment

18/100

Bottom decile

LiveAbility Score

View full rankings →

Rochester ranks #172 out of 387 metros with a LiveAbility Score of 52.7/100 - a composite of 8 of 8 quality-of-life dimensions from federal data. Customize the weights to match your priorities →

Strongest dimension: Job market (88/100)

Job market

88
Cost of living

71
Safety

65
Schools

46
Air quality

45
Housing

37
Low hazard

30
Climate

4

What this shows Rochester's strongest dimensions are job market and cost of living; its weakest among scored dims is climate at 4/100. Default weights: cost 18%, jobs & housing 15% each, safety & schools 12%, air & hazard 10%, climate 8%.

Compare Rochester to

Charleston-North Charleston Charleston Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia Charlottesville Chattanooga Cheyenne

Metros near Rochester on cost, LiveAbility, or wages

Nearest out-of-state neighbors to Rochester 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

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

Rochester runs a $75,687 median salary at a 90.8 cost index, ranking #172 of 387 nationally on LiveAbility.

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