For a quick estimate of basic cost of living in US states and regions, click on
Economic Policy Institute’s Family Budget Calculator.
The Cordell Hull Foundation offers cost of living estimates to new foreign teachers for the individual region of the US where they plan to work on J-1 exchange teacher visas.
There are many websites offering detailed costs, including https://www.expatistan.com/cost-of-living/index/north-america – double click on the name of the city for detailed living costs – and https://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/
Note that some foreign countries offer tax exemptions for the first 2-3 years but vary widely in their application, as to number of years, whether or not the teacher has to pay back all the taxes withheld if staying the third-fifth years authorized in J-1 teacher visa status. https://www.irs.gov/businesses/international-businesses/united-states-income-tax-treaties-a-to-z
You must check with your individual school to obtain from their accounting offices the specific amount of tax that will be withheld from your salary. In New York City, for example, you are subject to both state and city tax from which you are not exempt. It means in New York City, salaries must be higher to maintain living costs.
Also, please remember that the J-1 visa requires you to hold $100,000 health insurance per accident or illness with a deductible not greater than $500. The Cordell Hull Foundation covers you for medical evacuation and repatriation insurance. If you are a citizen of a country where health care is free, that added cost could be considerably more than you are accustomed to paying, so please do not fail to factor it in when considering a teaching job in the US. Your specific health insurance costs will be estimated on the Cost of Living Reports that CHF provides to each new teacher. After living in your area, you will have an accurate basis upon which to calculate your living costs in subsequent years.
The indices in the chart below are relative to New York City (NYC). For New York City, each index is 100(%). If another city has, for example, a rent index of 120, it means that on an average in that city rents are 20% more expensive than in NYC. If a city has a rent index of 70, on an average in that city rents are 30% less expensive than in New York City.
For a clearer layout in table format of the indices, click on: https://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/
Cost of Living Index (Excl. Rent) is a relative indicator of consumer goods prices, including groceries, restaurants, transportation and utilities.
Rent Index is an estimation of prices of renting apartments compared to NYC. If Rent index is 80, Numbeo estimates price of rents in that city is on an average of 20% less than rent price in New York City.
Groceries Index (Food) is an estimation of grocery prices compared to NYC.
Restaurants Index is a comparison of prices of meals and drinks in restaurants and bars compared to NYC.
Cost of Living Plus Rent Index is an estimation of consumer goods prices including rent comparing to New York City.
Local Purchasing Power shows relative purchasing power in buying goods and services in a given city for the average wage in that city. If domestic purchasing power is 40, this means that the inhabitants of that city with the average salary can afford to buy on an average 60% less goods and services than New York City residents with an average salary.
Indexes:
City* Living / Rent / Living / Food / Restaurant / Buying
/ Rank +Rent Power
1 New York, NY 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00
2 Honolulu, HI 95.67 61.58 79.30 106.64 85.75 101.03
3 Washington,DC 91.99 70.51 81.68 98.45 86.55 126.08
4 San Francisco 91.67 106.05 98.58 94.22 92.11 134.05
5 Brooklyn, NY 90.29 79.99 85.34 87.17 94.34 87.19
6 Oakland, CA 84.24 75.55 80.07 84.69 81.94 134.28
7 Seattle, WA 84.16 63.68 74.32 82.69 80.09 139.20
8 Boston, MA 82.68 72.59 77.84 82.76 81.94 121.89
9 Toronto 80.68 47.90 64.94 81.30 76.09 87.38
10 Miami, FL 80.45 55.81 68.62 79.43 83.45 86.92
11 Philadelphia 80.19 45.39 63.48 80.37 75.08 118.48
12 Albany, NY 78.50 31.09 55.73 77.74 78.72 105.65
13 Los Angeles 78.20 69.26 73.90 74.05 85.12 113.47
14 Sacramento 77.76 44.54 61.81 74.60 74.62 131.20
15 Chicago, IL 77.75 51.61 65.20 73.90 78.96 133.36
16 San Jose, CA 76.36 77.15 76.74 71.81 82.33 172.52
17 Bellingham 75.70 34.84 56.08 78.11 71.24 107.33
18 Charlotte, NC 75.63 40.78 58.90 73.04 76.21 145.53
19 Minneapolis 75.33 46.24 61.36 71.06 77.44 125.90
20 Baltimore, MD 75.24 39.95 58.30 73.03 77.31 125.36
21 Rochester, NY 75.01 30.40 53.59 80.12 71.84 82.22
22 Portland, OR 74.93 48.76 62.36 72.12 72.44 123.51
23 Pittsburgh, PA 74.79 36.44 56.37 71.15 70.18 109.13
24 San Diego, CA 72.67 60.65 66.90 66.20 79.01 136.48
26 Atlanta, GA 72.26 46.18 59.74 68.38 72.08 145.47
27 Buffalo, NY 71.07 28.28 50.52 63.90 78.68 109.47
28 Denver, CO 70.72 51.64 61.56 66.83 76.76 126.76
29 Tampa, FL 70.46 38.84 55.28 70.98 72.07 123.80
30 Asheville, NC 70.44 37.76 54.74 71.94 68.24 98.34
31 Cleveland, OH 70.36 28.39 50.21 64.56 71.54 110.12
32 Milwaukee 70.22 34.74 53.18 66.63 76.10 102.27
33 Raleigh, NC 70.06 35.66 53.54 75.28 65.32 160.35
34 Austin, TX 69.94 49.83 60.29 67.32 75.48 143.76
35 Orlando, FL 69.38 39.35 54.96 68.91 69.62 115.68
38 Kansas City 68.81 29.81 50.08 63.11 74.51 135.13
40 New Orleans 79.29 67.97 73.32 75.15 82.32 75.17
41 Tucson, AZ 67.99 23.87 46.80 57.34 68.03 115.99
47 Indianapolis 67.05 31.91 50.18 63.51 71.07 116.83
49 Dallas, TX 66.95 43.46 55.67 62.43 71.92 158.15
53 Phoenix, AZ 65.88 34.65 50.88 62.10 68.95 143.14
54 Columbus, OH 65.79 34.86 50.94 59.70 65.31 127.33
63 Albuquerque 64.20 27.13 46.40 64.70 64.83 122.06
66 Cincinnati, OH 63.48 31.27 48.01 61.53 59.85 126.99
67 Madison, WI 63.48 35.90 50.23 58.55 64.97 136.40
68 Salt Lake City 63.38 35.82 50.14 59.97 64.55 144.68
69 Detroit, MI 60.04 33.78 47.43 56.44 56.66 100.19
*Some cities were removed where CHF does not sponsor teachers.
Not all cities where CHF sponsors teachers are included in the list.