What is the cost of living in Spokane-Spokane Valley?

Spokane-Spokane Valley has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 100.3, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 97.1, which is below the national average. The average 2-bedroom rent is $1,531/month.

What is the median salary in Spokane-Spokane Valley?

The median salary in Spokane-Spokane Valley is $74,608 annually (mean: $78,112). Top occupations include Home Health and Personal Care Aides, Fast Food and Counter Workers, Retail Salespersons.

How safe is Spokane-Spokane Valley?

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

What are the schools like in Spokane-Spokane Valley?

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 Spokane-Spokane Valley?

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

Is Spokane-Spokane Valley a good place to relocate?

Spokane-Spokane Valley has a Life Score of 46.9/100 (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 Spokane-Spokane Valley sit among US metros on LiveAbility?

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite, Spokane-Spokane Valley ranks #298 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

Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA

BEA RPP 100.3 ranks #307 of 387 scored metros for higher prices (dearer third).

Compiled by PlainRelocate · June 15, 2026

100.3
Cost index (US=100): $1,531
2BR rent / mo: $74,608
Median salary: 43.6
LiveAbility Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, Spokane-Spokane Valley ranks #298 of 387 US metros on the LiveAbility Score (43.6/100), with its strongest marks in low hazard and job market.

#298
of 387 US metros · Below median: 7,958,180
metro-area population: 329
violent crimes per 100K (state-level): 2,465
schools in the state (NCES)

Weakest dimension: climate (9/100). 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), Spokane-Spokane Valley ranks #298 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). Cost-of-living index 100.3 (100 = national average), median 2-bedroom rent $1,531/mo, median salary $74,608; LiveAbility Score 43.6/100, strongest in low hazard and job market.

Signature: BEA RPP 100.3 ranks #307 of 387 scored metros for higher prices (dearer third).

Purchasing power tightens: BEA RPP 100.3 lands in the dearer third of scored metros (cuts at 91.5 / 97.0). Median 2BR rent $1,531/mo.

LiveAbility 43.6/100 puts Spokane-Spokane Valley in the bottom third (#298 of 387).

BLS OEWS total employment in the Spokane-Spokane Valley area is 246,430.

Spokane-Spokane Valley 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

Spokane-Spokane Valley housing and rent

HUD Fair Market Rents for the Spokane-Spokane Valley MSA; housing RPP 97.1 (100 = national average); 2BR $1,531/mo.

Studio

$1,103

/month

1 Bedroom

$1,193

/month

2 Bedroom

$1,531

/month

3 Bedroom

$2,088

/month

4 Bedroom

$2,506

/month

Spokane-Spokane Valley wages and employment

Spokane-Spokane Valley posts 246,430 total employment with median salary $74,608 against a dearer-than-average RPP.

Median Salary

$74,608

Mean Salary

$78,112

Total Employment

246,430

Top Occupations by Employment

Occupation	Median Salary
Home Health and Personal Care Aides	$47,410
Fast Food and Counter Workers	$35,780
Retail Salespersons	$36,880
Registered Nurses	$111,750
Stockers and Order Fillers	$40,510

Schools & Education

State-level education data for the Spokane-Spokane Valley 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 Spokane-Spokane Valley area (DOL data).

Infant (Center)

$15,987

per year

Toddler (Center)

$12,531

per year

Preschool (Center)

$12,531

per year

Life Score Breakdown

Spokane-Spokane Valley's composite Life Score is 46.9/100 (D), computed across 7 of 7 dimensions.

Cost

21/100

Weak

Wages

85/100

Elite

Rent

29/100

Weak

Crime

46/100

Average

Schools

73/100

Strong

Childcare

12/100

Bottom decile

Environment

60/100

Above average

LiveAbility Score

View full rankings →

Spokane-Spokane Valley ranks #298 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: Low hazard (87/100)

Low hazard

87
Job market

86
Safety

46
Air quality

45
Housing

29
Schools

28
Cost of living

21
Climate

9

What this shows Spokane-Spokane Valley's strongest dimensions are low hazard and job market; its weakest among scored dims is climate at 9/100. Default weights: cost 18%, jobs & housing 15% each, safety & schools 12%, air & hazard 10%, climate 8%.

Compare Spokane-Spokane Valley to

Baton Rouge Battle Creek Bay City Beaumont-Port Arthur Beckley Bellingham

Metros near Spokane-Spokane Valley on cost, LiveAbility, or wages

Nearest out-of-state neighbors to Spokane-Spokane Valley 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

Spokane-Spokane Valley cost figures follow BEA Regional Price Parities and HUD Fair Market Rents; Spokane-Spokane Valley 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 Spokane-Spokane Valley?

Spokane-Spokane Valley runs a $74,608 median salary at a 100.3 cost index, ranking #298 of 387 nationally on LiveAbility.

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