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State relocation profile · Federal data

Georgia

Cost of living, fair-market rent, wages, safety, schools and childcare for Georgia - every figure straight from federal data.

96.3
Cost index (US=100)
$1,202
2BR rent / mo
$69,371
Median salary
50.9
Life Score

The verdict

As of June 2026, Georgia scores 50.9/100 (D) on the composite Life Score, with its strongest marks in childcare and cost of living.

50.9
Life Score · D
96.3
Cost of living (US=100)
$69,371
Median annual salary (BLS)
$1,202
2BR fair-market rent / mo (HUD)

Weakest dimension: environment (38/100). State-level figures are a benchmark, individual metros can diverge sharply, so weigh each dimension against your own priorities.

According to the Bureau of Economic Analysis, Bureau of Labor Statistics, and five other federal agencies, Georgia has a cost-of-living index of 96.3 (100 = national average), a median 2-bedroom rent of $1,202/mo, and a median salary of $69,371. Its composite Life Score is 50.9/100 (D), with its strongest marks in childcare and cost of living.

How Georgia ranks nationally

Where Georgia's composite Life Score falls among all 51 US states scored.

Life Score distribution - Georgia marked 0 US states at 0–10 0 0 US states at 10–20 10 0 US states at 20–30 20 5 US states at 30–40 5 30 16 US states at 40–50 16 40 24 US states at 50–60 24 50 6 US states at 60–70 6 60 0 US states at 70–80 70 0 US states at 80–90 80 0 US states at 90–100 90 Life Score →
Bottom 49% by Life Score Lower Life Score than 51% of all 51 US states.

Georgia has life score of 50.9. Distribution: 0 US states at 0-10; 0 US states at 10-20; 0 US states at 20-30; 5 US states at 30-40; 16 US states at 40-50; 24 US states at 50-60; 6 US states at 60-70; 0 US states at 70-80; 0 US states at 80-90; 0 US states at 90-100.

Evaluating Georgia as a relocation target starts with the statewide BEA Regional Price Parity of 96.3 - where 100 is the national average, so every point above or below translates to percent-level cost of living difference. Housing costs in Georgia index at 88.7, goods at 98.9, and services at 92.8. HUD Fair Market Rents averaged across Georgia counties put a 2-bedroom at $1,202/month, the figure HUD uses to cap Section 8 voucher payments, so it reflects real submarket rents rather than listings bias.

On the income side, BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics report a statewide median salary of $69,371 with a mean of $73,794 across 4,827,220 tracked jobs. For safety context, FBI UCR data shows a violent crime rate of 300 per 100,000 residents and a property crime rate of 1567 per 100K. These state-level reads let you benchmark Georgia against both your origin state and national medians before zooming into specific metros.

Family and education costs often decide a move. Department of Labor data for Georgia shows center-based infant care running $6,591/year, preschool at $6,034/year, and toddler care at $6,153/year. Georgia contains 14 metropolitan statistical areas in our dataset - Albany, Athens-Clarke County, Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell and more - each with its own rent, wage and crime profile that can diverge sharply from the statewide average. The composite Life Score of 50.9/100 (D) folds all seven federal sources into one number for quick comparison.

Key Metrics

Cost of Living (RPP)
96.3
100 = national avg
Avg 2BR Rent (FMR)
$1,202
per month
Median Salary
$69,371
annual
Violent Crime Rate
300
per 100K

Childcare Costs

State-average childcare costs for Georgia (DOL data).

Infant (Center)
$6,591
per year
Toddler (Center)
$6,153
per year
Preschool (Center)
$6,034
per year

Life Score Breakdown

Georgia's composite Life Score is 50.9/100 (D), computed across 7 dimensions.

Strongest dimension: Childcare (95/100)

Georgia - Life Score dimensions

Percentile vs all US states (100 = best in the nation for that dimension)

/100

What this shows Georgia's strongest dimensions are childcare and cost of living; its weakest is environment at 38/100. Each dimension is a federal-data percentile; the composite folds all seven into one comparable figure.

Source BEA · HUD · BLS · FBI · NCES · DOL · EPA As of Federal data, latest available vintage
Cost
52/100
Average
Wages
38/100
Below average
Rent
48/100
Average
Crime
48/100
Average
Schools
52/100
Average
Childcare
95/100
Elite
Environment
38/100
Below average

Metros in Georgia

Explore detailed relocation data for 14 metropolitan areas in Georgia.

Albany, GA Athens-Clarke County, GA Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA Augusta-Richmond County, GA-SC Brunswick-St. Simons, GA Columbus, GA-AL Dalton, GA Gainesville, GA Hinesville, GA Macon-Bibb County, GA Rome, GA Savannah, GA Valdosta, GA Warner Robins, GA

Relocation Guides

In-depth guides to help with your relocation research.

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Cost vs. Quality of Life

How cost of living correlates with livability across US metros.

Best Cities for Remote Workers

Top metros for remote workers optimizing for cost, safety, and lifestyle.

Relocating within or to Georgia?

State figures are the benchmark, drill into a metro before you commit.

  • Georgia has 14 metro areas with rent, wage and crime profiles that diverge from the statewide average, start with Albany. View Albany
  • Put two places on the same scorecard across cost, rent, wages, safety and schools before you decide. Compare metros
  • See how every US metro ranks on the composite LiveAbility Score, then re-weight it to your priorities. Rankings

Cost, rent and wages are state-level reads; safety, schools and childcare use state data where metro-level isn't published. Always verify the latest figures at the official source before you move.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the cost of living in Georgia?
Georgia has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) of 96.3, where 100 represents the national average. Housing costs index at 88.7, which is below the national average. The average 2-bedroom fair market rent is $1,202/month.
What is the median salary in Georgia?
The median salary in Georgia is $69,371 annually (mean: $73,794). Total employment across the state is 4,827,220.
How safe is Georgia?
The violent crime rate in Georgia is 300 per 100,000 population. The property crime rate is 1567 per 100K.
How much does childcare cost in Georgia?
Infant center-based childcare in Georgia averages $6,591 per year. Preschool averages $6,034/year. Toddler care averages $6,153/year. These are state-level averages from the Department of Labor.
How many metro areas are in Georgia?
Georgia has 14 metropolitan statistical areas tracked by PlainRelocate, including Albany, Athens-Clarke County, Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell and 11 more.
Is Georgia a good state to relocate to?
Georgia has a Life Score of 50.9/100 (D), based on 7 dimensions: cost of living, wages, rent, crime, schools, childcare, and environment. This is a middle-of-the-pack score, where the composite lands for most US states; look at individual dimensions to see the real trade-offs.

Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, HUD Fair Market Rents, BLS OES, FBI UCR, NCES, DOL, EPA June 2026

Data Sources

  • Cost of Living: Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) Regional Price Parities
  • Rent: HUD Fair Market Rents (FMR)
  • Wages: Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES)
  • Crime: FBI Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR)
  • Schools: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES)
  • Childcare: Department of Labor (DOL)
  • Environment: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

This information is for research purposes only.

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

Related

Browse all → | Rankings →

Verify with U.S. Census Bureau →

Every figure on PlainRelocate is rendered directly from federal source data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on federal source data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.