The Most Affordable Cities in the U.S.: What Can You Rent with the Average Salary in 2025?

Rental costs vary greatly across America. And if you’re looking to keep housing costs low, some cities might be more appealing than others.

To help renters find the best fit — and save — CashNetUSA researched which cities offer the greatest affordability based on the price of rent compared to the average local wage. We compiled a list showing the level of affordable rentals in cities, looking at both the percentage of affordable units and how much floor space the average salary would secure at an affordable price.

According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, An ‘affordable price’ for housing is 30% or less of an individual’s salary, and this is the definition we used in our analysis.

What we did.

We used Bureau of Labor Statistics data to source the average annual salary in each of the 100 most populated U.S. cities, plus the five most populated cities in each state. Using publicly available data from Zillow.com, we then counted how many rental properties per city were listed at an affordable monthly price and the average floor space of these rental listings. We then converted the number of affordable rental properties available in each city into a percentage for that city. An affordable price, as defined by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, is equivalent to 30% or less of an individual’s salary.

Key Findings: The most affordable cities in the U.S.

• Toledo, Ohio, is the American city with the most affordable rents — 91.21% of available rentals cost less than 30% of the average Toledo wage.
• America’s least affordable rents are in Irvine, California, where just 0.03% of properties cost under 30% of the average Irvine wage.
• The average size of affordable rentals in North Las Vegas, Nevada, is 1,179 square feet — the biggest of any large U.S. city.
• San Francisco has the third-smallest average affordable rentals in America, at 419 square feet.

Ohio and Iowa cities among best for finding affordable rentals.

First, we found out what percentage of available rentals in each city are affordable on the average salary.

We found three cities where nine out of ten rental listings are locally affordable: Toledo, Ohio (91.21%), Minot, North Dakota (91.14%) and Davenport, Iowa (90.44%). Three of the twenty cities with the most affordable rentals are in Iowa, and the top twenty span the states from east to west and north to south.

In Toledo, the average monthly salary is $4965.83, which means housing that costs $1,489.75 or less is considered affordable. We found that 91.21% of currently available rentals satisfy this requirement, and the average size of these rentals is 900 square feet.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development awarded Toledo a $4 million grant in January 2025 to improve housing production, strategies and infrastructure. Among other initiatives, the city proposes to use these funds to provide “targeted financial incentives to encourage housing development in high Low-to-Moderate Income and weak market neighborhoods.”

By contrast, we also found two cities where significantly fewer than one in 100 rentals are affordable: Irvine, California (0.03%) and Mount Pleasant, South Carolina (0.36%). In fact, six of the 20 cities with the fewest affordable rentals are in California.

The cut-off point for affordable rentals in Irvine is $1,905.00, and out of 2,893 listings, we found just one listed below that figure. “There’s a lot of fear that surrounds the idea of affordable housing,” says Michael Massie, chief development officer for Irvine’s Jamboree Housing Corporation. “[Those who live in an area] say they want it, just not here.”

North Las Vegas has the largest affordable rentals.

Next, we looked at the average floor space that you get with an affordable rental in each city.

In North Las Vegas, only 16.38% of available rentals cost under 30% of the average local salary. But among this 16.38%, the average size is 1,179 feet — the biggest average of any city. The balance is better in second-placed Waterbury, Connecticut, where 63.09% of available rentals are affordable, with an average size of 1,141 feet.

North Las Vegas has increased its housing stock by 67% over the past twenty years. However, efforts to reform the city’s rent control have failed, leaving many renters at the mercy of the “Wall Street-backed companies and hedge funds” that control much of Southern Nevada’s rental market.

But Waterbury’s property market has heated up. Real estate listings have risen by 40% year-on-year rise, with many buyers looking to generate rental income. The area received a boost during the pandemic as New York buyers moved to the area, some of whom now rent out the housing they bought so much more easily than had they tried to get on the ladder in the Big Apple.

Meanwhile, in both Irvine, California, and Kailua, Hawaii, affordable rentals are hard to find and among the smallest in America. Irvine’s average affordable rental is 300 feet — around the size of a one-car garage — and Kailua’s is 353 feet.

In Seattle, more than half (57.70%) of available properties are considered affordable, but the average size is just 469 feet (see inside a similarly-sized apartment in Toronto). A 2023 study found that new apartments in Seattle were 3.6% smaller on average than ten years previously, and that, on balance, small homes are getting smaller while large homes are getting larger.

Finding affordable rentals.

Finally, we gathered our full data in this interactive table. Use the tabs to sort the list by the percentage of affordable properties in each city or the average size of affordable rentals. You can also use the search bar to find your city among the 239 cities with available data.

If you’re concerned about finding an affordable rental, you’re not alone. Due to the variability in local rent levels, people of both low and medium income in some areas have found themselves rent-burdened. In fact, a December 2024 study by the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies found that the burden is rising fastest among those earning between $45,000 and $74,999.

One good place to start is to calculate your rent affordability. And don’t panic if your rent is more than 30% of your income. The 30% rule is just one benchmark — other budgeting strategies may help you manage your household finances, or you may be able to find local resources and government services that can provide additional support.

Methodology

We used Bureau of Labor Statistics data to source the average annual salary in each of the 100 most populous U.S. cities, plus the five most populated cities in each state.

Using publicly available data from Zillow.com, we then counted how many rental properties per city were listed at a monthly price equivalent to 30% or less of a city’s average annual salary and the average floor space of these rental listings. According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, rent affordability is calculated at 30% of gross income. We then converted the number of affordable rental properties available per city into a percentage for each city.

The number of affordable rental properties available per city was then converted into a percentage for each city.

Data is correct as of July 2025.

DISCLAIMER: This content is for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial, investment, tax or legal advice.