Cost of living in Baltimore: rent, homes and salary
Cost of living in Baltimore sits 4.5% above the US average, and in 2024 BEA put the regional price parity (RPP) covering the Baltimore, MD metro area at 104.5, with housing alone at 118.2 and the US at 100.
- Level of prices
- 104.5US = 100, BEA 2024
- Price level for housing
- 118.2. For rents, US = 100.
Index of Baltimore cost of living
A regional price parity measures what the same goods and services cost in one place against the US average, which is set at 100. BEA prices the whole Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD metro area together, and Baltimore sits inside it. Housing (rents) is the part that sits furthest from the US average, at 118.2, or 18.2% above it.
| Price level, US = 100 | Baltimore, MD metro | Maryland | Metro against the US |
|---|---|---|---|
| All items | 104.5 | 105.0 | +4.5% |
| Goods | 102.4 | 102.5 | +2.4% |
| Housing (rents) | 118.2 | 121.1 | +18.2% |
| Utilities | 110.2 | 110.9 | +10.2% |
| Other services | 101.5 | 101.6 | +1.5% |
2024 metro area and state price parity figures, published by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA). Regional price parities
Baltimore rents
The Zillow Observed Rent Index (ZORI), covering rent on homes listed now, puts Baltimore's typical asking rent at $1,762 a month, +3.6% on a year. In the US, that same figure is $1,932. At $1,345, the Census median gross rent counts every renting household, not only new leases. Twelve months of asking rent equals 33% of median household income.
| Rent | Baltimore | United States |
|---|---|---|
| Typical asking rent, Zillow ZORI | $1,762 | $1,932 |
| Asking rent, 12-month change | +3.6% | |
| Median gross rent, Census ACS 2024 | $1,345 | $1,487 |
| Share of median income for one year of asking rent | 33% | 28% |
Zillow Observed Rent Index; one-year estimates from the Census Bureau American Community Survey 2024.
Baltimore home prices
Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI) puts a typical Baltimore home at $184,804 in September 2026, measuring what a home in the middle of the market is worth. Over a year, the change is −3.7%, while the US figure is $366,157. That works out to 2.9 years of median household income, against 4.5 in the US.
| Home prices | Baltimore | United States |
|---|---|---|
| Typical home value, September 2026 | $184,804 | $366,157 |
| 12-month change | −3.7% | +1.2% |
| 10-year change | +61.9% | +77.4% |
| Price to income (years of median income) | 2.9 | 4.5 |
| Price to rent (years of asking rent) | 8.7 | 15.8 |
Days on market, the forecast, and a price chart going back to 2000: Baltimore housing market data.
The salary you need to live in Baltimore
The salary in Baltimore that lets your pay buy what it buys now rests on two questions: where you live, and how much you earn.
- Moving from
- Salary
Side by side figures for every city, and the method behind them: cost of living comparison across cities.
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Baltimore cost of living compared with other cities
| City | Level of prices | Housing | The typical rent | Typical value of a home |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Baltimore | 104.5 | 118.2 | $1,762 | $184,804 |
| New York City | 112.6 | 148.6 | $4,089 | $825,854 |
| Los Angeles | 113.6 | 170.4 | $2,772 | $927,891 |
| Chicago | 103.6 | 112.0 | $2,311 | $334,108 |
| Houston | 98.6 | 104.5 | $1,544 | $259,465 |
| Phoenix | 103.3 | 121.2 | $1,571 | $404,067 |
| Philadelphia | 102.6 | 113.1 | $1,757 | $231,584 |
| San Antonio | 94.7 | 94.6 | $1,381 | $244,623 |
| San Diego | 111.9 | 179.3 | $3,004 | $980,490 |
Price levels: BEA regional price parities 2024, with US = 100. Rent data: Zillow ZORI. Home values come from Zillow ZHVI, September 2026.
All cities, ranked: comparison of cost of living by city. Every state, too: cost of living in each state.