Once again, California has reinforced its reputation as one of the most expensive states to live in the U.S.
New data shows that over half of the 20 priciest American cities are in the Golden State — and the Bay Area alone claims four spots near the top.
Leading the pack is San Jose, where the cost of living has been making headlines for all the wrong reasons.
According to a new study by SmartAsset, a single adult needs to earn $147,430 per year to live comfortably in the city. For a family of four, that number skyrockets to $371,571. This puts San Jose ahead of even New York City, which held the top spot for singles last year.
But what does "living comfortably" really mean?
To ground the concept, SmartAsset based its analysis on the MIT Living Wage Calculator, which estimates the minimum income required to cover essentials — like housing, food, transportation, and taxes — for different household sizes across the U.S.
SmartAsset then layered in the popular 50/30/20 budgeting rule, where 50% of income goes toward necessities, 30% toward wants, and 20% toward savings or debt payments.
Even with these high thresholds, some Bay Area residents seem to be managing just fine — perhaps thanks to the region’s high-paying job market, where about 1 in 48 jobs pays over $500,000 annually.
In San Jose, the required comfortable salary for a single person is actually about $11,000 more than the median household income, which currently sits at $136,229.
The trend extends throughout the Bay Area. San Francisco, for instance, requires a comfortable salary of $121,930 for a single adult — just below the city’s median household income, which is about $127,000.
Fremont residents fare even better: the median household income there is $170,934, well above the $125,009 needed to live comfortably.
But the picture isn't as rosy in Oakland. While it’s tied with Fremont for the ninth spot on the list of most expensive cities, Oakland’s median household income is just $96,828 — about $27,000 short of the $123,268 deemed necessary for comfortable living.
For perspective, Indianapolis offers a much more affordable alternative. There, a single adult can live comfortably on just $85,197 a year — nearly half of what’s required in San Jose.
