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- Persistently high prices are a burden for the American people, but some states’ residents are far less affected than others.
- From housing affordability to insurance, electricity and grocery store bills, CNBC considers Cost of Living among ten categories of competitiveness in our annual America’s Top States for Business study.
- In 2026, America’s Cheapest State features the nation’s lowest average housing costs.
Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh, who is making a point of getting to the point in his new role, did just that in his first news conference as chairman on June 17.
“Persistently high prices are a burden for the American people,” he said.
But one thing he left out about nationwide inflation is that in some states, prices are much less of a burden than they are in others.
The cost of living is an important consideration when companies decide where to do business. A low cost of living can help them attract workers. It also means they might be able to pay them less, saving on wage costs.
That is why CNBC considers Cost of Living as one of ten categories of competitiveness in our America’s Top States for Business study, now in its 20th year.
We rate the states based on an index of prices for a broad range of goods and services calculated by the Council for Community and Economic Research. We also consider housing affordability for both homeowners and renters. And, with the insurance crisis persisting nationwide, we measure the cost to insure a median-priced home based on the most recent available data. Under this year’s methodology, Cost of Living is worth 2% of each state’s total score.
Some states are far more expensive than others, but in the following states, life is a bargain.
These are America’s cheapest states in 2026, along with average prices of some basic items in key metro areas.
Missouri
Townhouse apartments for rent in Missouri. Eyecrave Productions | Istock | Getty Images
Show me the rental listings in Missouri, and I’ll show you some cheap prices. According to ATTOM Data Solutions, the average rent for a three-bedroom home in the Show-Me State last year was just $1,582. That is the fifth-lowest in the country as a percentage of median income, and it is only about half what you would pay in New Jersey.
Housing isn’t the only thing that’s cheap. A head of lettuce in Joplin will cost you 12% less than it will in New York City, according to C2ER. One thing that is not a bargain, however, is insurance. Severe storms, including a tornado in and around St. Louis last year that killed at least four people and caused $1.6 billion in damage, are driving up the cost of insurance. Insurify projects that premiums in Missouri, already the 13th-highest in the country, will rise another 7% this year.
2026 Cost of Living score: 34 out of 50 points (Top States grade: B+)
Consumer Price Index (May, Midwest Region, year-over-year): +5%
Average rent (3-bedroom home): $1,582
Average home price (Springfield): $478,702
Monthly energy bill: $149.83
Dozen eggs (Q1 2026): $3.22
Loaf of bread (Q1 2026): $3.39
Ohio
A completed commercial truck rolls off the assembly line at Ford’s Ohio Assembly Plant in Sheffield Lake, Ohio, US, on Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. Dustin Franz | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Your buck goes farther in Ohio, which has some of the nation’s lowest living costs in addition to the lowest business costs. It’s a big reason why the Buckeye State is America’s Top State for Business overall in 2026. Cleveland rocks for affordable housing, with an average price that is a little more than one-third that of Boston. Statewide, the average rent is the fourth-lowest in the country as a percentage of median income.
2026 Cost of Living score: 35 out of 50 points (Top States grade: A–)
Consumer Price Index (May, Midwest Region): +5%
Average rent (3-bedroom home): $1,565
Average home price (Cleveland): $388,116
Monthly energy bill: $188.39
Dozen eggs: $4.29
Loaf of bread: $3.72
Kansas
Shoppers wait in line at the cash registers at a grocery store on Jan. 23, 2026 in Lenexa, Kansas.Chase Castor | Getty Images
Watch your money grow in Kansas, where a 64-ounce bottle of cooking oil in Salina will cost you about 10% less than it would in Chicago. Housing costs are the third-lowest in the country in the Sunflower State, but as is the case with many of its Midwest neighbors, insurance costs are rising with the increase in severe storms, summer heat, and winter cold. Homeowners’ premiums were the 10th-highest in the country last year, with a 4% increase forecast this year.
2026 Cost of Living score: 36 out of 50 points (Top States grade: A–)
Consumer Price Index (May, Midwest Region): +5%
Average rent (3-bedroom home): $1,538
Average home price (Salina): $348,000
Monthly energy bill: $223.04
Dozen eggs: $3.87
Loaf of bread: $3.63
Iowa
A home for sale in Des Moines, Iowa, US, on Thursday, April 30, 2026. Bryon Houlgrave | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Make your nest in Iowa and you should have plenty of money to spare. Rents as a percentage of median income are the second-lowest in the country (after Michigan). But you may want to buy instead. The Hawkeye State’s housing is among the most affordable in the nation. But Iowa, too, is in the midst of an insurance crisis, six years after a derecho caused more than $11 billion in damage across the Midwest, with the worst of it in Eastern Iowa.
2026 Cost of Living score: 36 out of 50 points (Top States grade: A–)
Consumer Price Index (May, Midwest Region): +5%
Average rent (3-bedroom home): $1,580
Average home price (Burlington): $331,200
Monthly energy bill: $205.61
Dozen eggs: $3.63
Loaf of bread: $3.63
Indiana
A morning commuter rides a bicycle past a gas station price sign on West Third Street in foggy rain in Bloomington, Indiana. Jeremy Hogan | Getty Images
Drive your car through Indiana, the Crossroads of America, and you’ll enjoy the savings. Even at the start of the Iran war in the first quarter of this year, gasoline in Richmond, Indiana, was available for $2.82 a gallon, according to C2ER. Getting a set of tires balanced in Kokomo will cost you roughly half of what you would pay in Conway, Arkansas.
2026 Cost of Living score: 36 out of 50 points (Top States grade: A–)
Consumer Price Index (May, Midwest Region): +5%
Average rent (3-bedroom home): $1,711
Average home price (Kokomo): $293,267
Monthly energy bill: $197.80
Dozen eggs: $3.92
Loaf of bread: $3.53
Wyoming
Redtea | Istock | Getty Images
Wyoming has managed to corral the insurance crisis for now. Homeowners’ premiums in the Cowboy State are on the low side at $1,929 per year, the 16th-lowest in the country. Perhaps as important, they are not expected to increase at all this year. Wyoming has seen some inflation in other areas, though. Food prices, while not out of hand, are elevated. Meanwhile, you can rent an apartment in Laramie for about one-third of what it would cost in Arlington, Virginia.
2026 Cost of Living score: 37 out of 50 points (Top States grade: A–)
Consumer Price Index (May, West Region): +3.5%
Average rent (3-bedroom home): $1,791
Average home price (Laramie): $449,444
Monthly energy bill: $208.17
Dozen eggs: $3.28
Loaf of bread: $4.29
South Dakota
Roadside sign in Nebraska with directions to Martin and Pierre, South Dakota.Gemstocks | Istock | Getty Images
Enjoy monumental savings on housing in The Mount Rushmore State, where South Dakota homeowners enjoy the fourth-lowest monthly payments in the nation based on ATTOM Data Solutions and U.S. Census numbers. Buying a home in Pierre will cost you about 25% less than it would in Miami. Prefer to rent? Rental costs are in the bottom 10 in the nation. Insurify projects that homeowners’ insurance premiums, roughly in the middle of the pack nationwide now, will rise only 1% this year.
2026 Cost of Living score: 38 out of 50 points (Top States grade: A)
Consumer Price Index (May, Midwest Region): +5%
Average rent (3-bedroom home): $1,785
Average home price (Pierre): $474,200
Monthly energy bill: $175.72
Dozen eggs: $3.28
Loaf of bread: $3.82
Alabama
Bananas are displayed for sale.Brandon Bell | Getty Images
Alabama is known as the Yellowhammer State, named after the state bird, a woodpecker that is also called the Northern Flicker. Here’s something else that’s yellow: bananas, which are inexpensive here. You’ll pay 20% less per pound in Decatur than you would in Orange County, California. Whether you own or rent your sweet home, prices are reasonable. Rents are the 10th-lowest in the nation as a percentage of median income. The average price of a home in Anniston is roughly half what it is in Phoenix.
2026 Cost of Living score: 38 out of 50 points (Top States grade: A)
Consumer Price Index (May, South Region): +3.9%
Average rent (3-bedroom home): $1,542
Average home price (Anniston): $284,340
Monthly energy bill: $239.21
Dozen eggs: $4.72
Loaf of bread: $3.80
North Dakota
Cavan Images / Kimberli Fredericks | Cavan | Getty Images
North Dakota gets its nickname, the Peace Garden State, from the International Peace Garden. It spans the U.S.–Canada border in the Turtle Mountains, established in 1932, when the U.S. and Canada were on somewhat better terms. If you want a garden that’s a little more to yourself, this state offers some of the most affordable housing in the nation. A newly built, four-bedroom home in Bismarck, with room to plant your own garden, will cost you less than half of what a comparable house will cost in Bozeman, Montana. How about a nice pair of casual slacks to wear while tending to your flowerbeds? They’ll cost you nearly one-third less than they would in Asheville, North Carolina.
2026 Cost of Living score: 41 out of 50 points (Top States grade: A+)
Consumer Price Index (May, Midwest Region): +5%
Average rent (3-bedroom home): $1,908
Average home price (Bismarck): $378,598
Monthly energy bill: $157.22
Dozen eggs: $3.27
Loaf of bread: $3.83
America’s cheapest state in 2026: West Virginia
Imagebroker | Steve Heap | Imagebroker | Getty Images
Here in West Virginia, your monthly housing costs are almost heaven. Nearly 81% of people in the Mountain State pay less than one-third of their monthly income on housing. That is the best figure of any state. Insurance premiums are among the lowest in the country as well. Buying a home in Charleston will cost you about one-fifth as much as a comparable place in Seattle. You’ll like your grocery bill, too. A bag of frozen sweet peas costs about 30% less than it does in Arlington, Virginia. And filling your gas tank for the drive to the grocery store will cost you about half what it would in Los Angeles.
2026 Cost of Living score: 43 out of 50 points (Top States grade: A+)
Consumer Price Index (May, South Region): +3.9%
Average rent (3-bedroom home): $1,726
Average home price (Charleston): $274,429
Monthly energy bill: $190.36
Dozen eggs: $3.98
Loaf of bread: $3.68
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