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Cass County · North Dakota

Fargo cost of living (ND)

Price levels published by the Bureau of Economic Analysis for Fargo, ND-MN, with the national average set to 100 — so 108 means things cost 8% more here than the US average.

Cash, receipts and a calculator on a table, illustrating local cost of living data

Quick answer

Fargo costs 9.1% below the national average — all-items price level 90.9, rank 85 of 94 covered metros. A $100,000 national-average salary needs to be $90,871 here. Utilities is the reason, at 77.3.

All items
90.9US average = 100
Housing
81.118.9% below the national average
Goods
95.74.3% below the national average
Other services
91.38.7% below the national average

Price level by component

Where the difference actually comes from.

ComponentIndexvs USWhat it covers
Goods95.7-4.3%Groceries, fuel, clothing, durable purchases.
Housing81.1-18.9%Rents and imputed rents — the biggest single swing factor.
Utilities77.3-22.7%Electricity, gas, water and other household energy.
Other services91.3-8.7%Healthcare, dining, repairs, personal services.

What your salary is worth in Fargo, ND

Enter a salary. We deflate it by the local price level (90.9 where 100 is the US average) and show what you would need to earn here to match the same pay somewhere average.

Real value here
$74,959
Needed to match US average
$61,898
Monthly difference
$-518

What a local paycheck is really worth

Nominal pay is only half the story.

$68,116 median household income in Fargo is worth $74,959 in national-average dollars. BEA calls that real income: income × 100 ÷ 90.9.

Run your own salary through the comparison tool →

Other Fargo datasets on this site.

Statewide: North Dakota cities · North Dakota ZIP codes · North Dakota sales tax · North Dakota counties

Source: US Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities

2024 BEA Regional Price Parities, published for Fargo, ND-MN. Parities are metro-wide, so a single neighbourhood can sit well above or below these figures.