What is the cost of living in Washington-Arlington-Alexandria?

Washington-Arlington-Alexandria has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 108.9, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 151.1, which is above the national average. The average 2-bedroom rent is $2,246/month.

What is the median salary in Washington-Arlington-Alexandria?

The median salary in Washington-Arlington-Alexandria is $82,744 annually (mean: $87,302). Top occupations include General and Operations Managers, Business Operations Specialists, All Other, Software Developers.

How safe is Washington-Arlington-Alexandria?

The violent crime rate in the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria area is 1015 per 100,000 population (state-level data). Property crime rate is 3726 per 100K.

What are the schools like in Washington-Arlington-Alexandria?

The state of DC has 243 schools (state-level data, no metro-level federal count exists) with an average student-teacher ratio of 12.3:1. Charter schools make up 51.9% of all schools.

How much does childcare cost in Washington-Arlington-Alexandria?

Infant center-based childcare in the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria area averages $25,480 per year. Preschool averages $20,410/year. These are state-level averages.

Is Washington-Arlington-Alexandria a good place to relocate?

Washington-Arlington-Alexandria has a Life Score of 42.1/100 (F), 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 below-average score, several dimensions likely pull the composite down; compare specific dimensions to see which ones.

Where does Washington-Arlington-Alexandria sit among US metros on LiveAbility?

According to PlainRelocate's LiveAbility composite, Washington-Arlington-Alexandria ranks #110 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

Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV

BEA RPP 108.9 ranks #373 of 387 scored metros for higher prices (dearer third).

Compiled by PlainRelocate · June 15, 2026

108.9
Cost index (US=100): $2,246
2BR rent / mo: $82,744
Median salary: 56.1
LiveAbility Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, Washington-Arlington-Alexandria ranks #110 of 387 US metros on the LiveAbility Score (56.1/100), with its strongest marks in low hazard and job market.

#110
of 387 US metros · Above median: 702,250
metro-area population: 1015
violent crimes per 100K (state-level): 243
schools in the state (NCES)

Weakest dimension: cost of living (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), Washington-Arlington-Alexandria ranks #110 of 387 scored US metros by LiveAbility Score (highest score = #1). Cost-of-living index 108.9 (100 = national average), median 2-bedroom rent $2,246/mo, median salary $82,744; LiveAbility Score 56.1/100, strongest in low hazard and job market.

Signature: BEA RPP 108.9 ranks #373 of 387 scored metros for higher prices (dearer third).

Purchasing power tightens: BEA RPP 108.9 lands in the dearer third of scored metros (cuts at 91.5 / 97.0). Median 2BR rent $2,246/mo.

LiveAbility 56.1/100 puts Washington-Arlington-Alexandria in the top third (#110 of 387).

BLS OEWS total employment in the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria area is 3,082,600.

Washington-Arlington-Alexandria 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)

56 Top 28% higher than 72% 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

Washington-Arlington-Alexandria housing and rent

HUD Fair Market Rents for the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria MSA; housing RPP 151.1 (100 = national average); 2BR $2,246/mo.

Studio

$1,953

/month

1 Bedroom

$2,015

/month

2 Bedroom

$2,246

/month

3 Bedroom

$2,835

/month

4 Bedroom

$3,332

/month

Washington-Arlington-Alexandria wages and employment

Washington-Arlington-Alexandria posts 3,082,600 total employment with median salary $82,744 against a dearer-than-average RPP.

Median Salary

$82,744

Mean Salary

$87,302

Total Employment

3,082,600

Top Occupations by Employment

Occupation	Median Salary
General and Operations Managers	$156,460
Business Operations Specialists, All Other	$104,770
Software Developers	$154,930
Retail Salespersons	$36,610
Management Analysts	$126,830

Schools & Education

State-level education data for the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria area from NCES.

Schools

243

Enrollment

93,368

Student:Teacher

12.3:1

Title I %

Childcare Costs

State-average childcare costs for the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria area (DOL data).

Infant (Center)

$25,480

per year

Toddler (Center)

$23,431

per year

Preschool (Center)

$20,410

per year

Life Score Breakdown

Washington-Arlington-Alexandria's composite Life Score is 42.1/100 (F), computed across 7 of 7 dimensions.

Cost

4/100

Bottom decile

Wages

99/100

Elite

Rent

5/100

Bottom decile

Crime

98/100

Elite

Schools

6/100

Bottom decile

Childcare

0/100

Bottom decile

Environment

55/100

Above average

LiveAbility Score

View full rankings →

Washington-Arlington-Alexandria ranks #110 out of 387 metros with a LiveAbility Score of 56.1/100 - a composite of 7 of 8 quality-of-life dimensions from federal data (missing dims omitted; remaining weights renormalized). Customize the weights to match your priorities →

Strongest dimension: Low hazard (100/100)

Low hazard

100
Job market

99
Safety

98
Schools

94
Air quality

23
Housing

5
Cost of living

4

What this shows Washington-Arlington-Alexandria's strongest dimensions are low hazard and job market; its weakest among scored dims is cost of living at 4/100. Default weights: cost 18%, jobs & housing 15% each, safety & schools 12%, air & hazard 10%, climate 8%; this metro uses 7 of 8 dims with renormalized weights.

Compare Washington-Arlington-Alexandria to

Lincoln Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway Logan Longview-Kelso Longview Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim

Metros near Washington-Arlington-Alexandria on cost, LiveAbility, or wages

Nearest out-of-state neighbors to Washington-Arlington-Alexandria 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

Washington-Arlington-Alexandria cost figures follow BEA Regional Price Parities and HUD Fair Market Rents; Washington-Arlington-Alexandria 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 Washington-Arlington-Alexandria?

Washington-Arlington-Alexandria runs a $82,744 median salary at a 108.9 cost index, ranking #110 of 387 nationally on LiveAbility.

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