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Shelby County · Tennessee

Memphis cost of living (TN)

Price levels published by the Bureau of Economic Analysis for Memphis, TN-MS-AR, 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

Memphis costs 7.8% below the national average — all-items price level 92.2, rank 79 of 94 covered metros. A $100,000 national-average salary needs to be $92,179 here. Utilities is the reason, at 74.1.

All items
92.2US average = 100
Housing
79.820.2% below the national average
Goods
96.23.8% below the national average
Other services
95.44.6% below the national average

Price level by component

Where the difference actually comes from.

ComponentIndexvs USWhat it covers
Goods96.2-3.8%Groceries, fuel, clothing, durable purchases.
Housing79.8-20.2%Rents and imputed rents — the biggest single swing factor.
Utilities74.1-25.9%Electricity, gas, water and other household energy.
Other services95.4-4.6%Healthcare, dining, repairs, personal services.

What your salary is worth in Memphis, TN

Enter a salary. We deflate it by the local price level (92.2 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
$52,016
Needed to match US average
$44,198
Monthly difference
$-312

What a local paycheck is really worth

Nominal pay is only half the story.

$47,948 median household income in Memphis is worth $52,016 in national-average dollars. BEA calls that real income: income × 100 ÷ 92.2.

Run your own salary through the comparison tool →

Other Memphis datasets on this site.

Statewide: Tennessee cities · Tennessee ZIP codes · Tennessee sales tax · Tennessee counties

Source: US Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities

2024 BEA Regional Price Parities, published for Memphis, TN-MS-AR. Parities are metro-wide, so a single neighbourhood can sit well above or below these figures.