Here’s The Cost of Expenses in America’s 40 Sunniest Cities

If you subscribe to the belief “rain, rain, go away” then the allure of America’s sunniest cities may be quite enticing.

With seemingly endless blue skies, warm temperatures year-round and a lifestyle that borders on a permanent vacation, many of the sunniest and largest cities in the United States offer you all you could want when you retire or just daily. However, the perks of paradise often come with a plump price tag. 

GOBankingRates conducted a study to determine the average cost of expenses when living in some of America’s sunniest cities. The estimates were found by average monthly costs of groceries, healthcare, transportation, utilities and other miscellaneous costs and then they were ranked by least to most precipitation.

Here are some key takeaways:

• Of the 40 cities listed, the top 10 all have less than 10 inches of annual rainfall. 
• It comes as no surprise that states such as Arizona, Texas and California have several cities on the list, but Colorado has three listings in the top 20. 
• What you spend is only compounded by what you make. On the low end of the spectrum is Presidio, Texas with a household median income of $22,917, whereas Los Alamos, New Mexico comes in on the higher end with a median household income of $130,342.

Living in America’s sunniest cities comes with a variety of costs. Ultimately, the choice of city will depend on your budget and lifestyle preferences, but the sunny skies remain a constant benefit across these locations.

Here’s a breakdown of the 40 sunniest cities ranked from least to most annual precipitation, and what it costs to live there. 

• Annual precipitation in inches: 4.8
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $2,090
• Average household mortgage payment: $2,319
• Total monthly cost of living: $4,409

• Annual precipitation in inches: 5.1
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $1,829
• Average household mortgage payment: $1,331
• Total monthly cost of living: $3,160

• Annual precipitation in inches: 6.7
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $2,095
• Average household mortgage payment: $1,779
• Total monthly cost of living: $3,874

• Annual precipitation in inches: 7.8
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $2,039
• Average household mortgage payment: $2,189
• Total monthly cost of living: $4,228

• Annual precipitation in inches: 8.2
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $2,041
• Average household mortgage payment: $2,924
• Total monthly cost of living: $4,965

• Annual precipitation in inches: 8.3
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $1,859
• Average household mortgage payment: $1,920
• Total monthly cost of living: $3,779

• Annual precipitation in inches: 8.9
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $1,864
• Average household mortgage payment: $760
• Total monthly cost of living: $2,624

• Annual precipitation in inches: 9.1
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $1,799
• Average household mortgage payment: $1,734
• Total monthly cost of living: $3,533

• Annual precipitation in inches: 9.6
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $2,066
• Average household mortgage payment: $3,842
• Total monthly cost of living: $5,908

• Annual precipitation in inches: 9.8
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $1,848
• Average household mortgage payment: $1,308
• Total monthly cost of living: $3,156

• Annual precipitation in inches: 10
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $1,749
• Average household mortgage payment: $2,611
• Total monthly cost of living: $4,359

• Annual precipitation in inches: 10
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $2,137
• Average household mortgage payment: $1,688
• Total monthly cost of living: $3,824

• Annual precipitation in inches: 10.2
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $1,893
• Average household mortgage payment: $1,822
• Total monthly cost of living: $3,715

• Annual precipitation in inches: 10.9
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $1,788
• Average household mortgage payment: $2,207
• Total monthly cost of living: $3,996

• Annual precipitation in inches: 11
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $1,966
• Average household mortgage payment: $2,547
• Total monthly cost of living: $4,513

• Annual precipitation in inches: 11.1
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $1,976
• Average household mortgage payment: $3,595
• Total monthly cost of living: $5,571

• Annual precipitation in inches: 12.2
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $1,736
• Average household mortgage payment: $2,450
• Total monthly cost of living: $4,187

• Annual precipitation in inches: 12.4
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $1,786
• Average household mortgage payment: $906
• Total monthly cost of living: $2,692

• Annual precipitation in inches: 12.7
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $1,760
• Average household mortgage payment: $2,074
• Total monthly cost of living: $3,834

• Annual precipitation in inches: 13.1
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $1,771
• Average household mortgage payment: $820
• Total monthly cost of living: $2,591

• Annual precipitation in inches: 13.3
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $1,824
• Average household mortgage payment: $2,098
• Total monthly cost of living: $3,922

• Annual precipitation in inches: 13.5
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $1,636
• Average household mortgage payment: $1,375
• Total monthly cost of living: $3,011

For You: ​​

• Annual precipitation in inches: 14.2
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $1,823
• Average household mortgage payment: $1,232
• Total monthly cost of living: $3,055

• Annual precipitation in inches: 14.6
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $1,706
• Average household mortgage payment: $3,430
• Total monthly cost of living: $5,136

• Annual precipitation in inches: 15
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $2,160
• Average household mortgage payment: $2,347
• Total monthly cost of living: $4,507

• Annual precipitation in inches: 15.2
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $1,916
• Average household mortgage payment: $3,375
• Total monthly cost of living: $5,291

• Annual precipitation in inches: 15.3
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $2,024
• Average household mortgage payment: $1,625
• Total monthly cost of living: $3,648

• Annual precipitation in inches: 15.7
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $1,907
• Average household mortgage payment: $4,262
• Total monthly cost of living: $6,169

• Annual precipitation in inches: 15.8
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $1,793
• Average household mortgage payment: $2,850
• Total monthly cost of living: $4,643

• Annual precipitation in inches: 16.4
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $2,367
• Average household mortgage payment: $6,926
• Total monthly cost of living: $9,293

• Annual precipitation in inches: 16.4
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $2,048
• Average household mortgage payment: $1,592
• Total monthly cost of living: $3,640

• Annual precipitation in inches: 16.7
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $1,828
• Average household mortgage payment: $2,705
• Total monthly cost of living: $4,533

• Annual precipitation in inches: 17
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $1,950
• Average household mortgage payment: $1,741
• Total monthly cost of living: $3,690

• Annual precipitation in inches: 17.1
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $1,842
• Average household mortgage payment: $572
• Total monthly cost of living: $2,414

• Annual precipitation in inches: 17.2
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $2,177
• Average household mortgage payment: $3,784
• Total monthly cost of living: $5,961

• Annual precipitation in inches: 17.2
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $2,009
• Average household mortgage payment: $2,014
• Total monthly cost of living: $4,022

• Annual precipitation in inches: 18
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $2,077
• Average household mortgage payment: $2,331
• Total monthly cost of living: $4,408

• Annual precipitation in inches: 18.2
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $1,857
• Average household mortgage payment: $937
• Total monthly cost of living: $2,794

• Annual precipitation in inches: 18.3
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $2,093
• Average household mortgage payment: $6,753
• Total monthly cost of living: $8,846

• Annual precipitation in inches: 18.4
• Average monthly cost of expenditures: $2,231
• Average household mortgage payment: $2,928
• Total monthly cost of living:  $5,158

For the methodology of this study, GOBankingRates analyzed the sunniest cities in the United States to find the cost of expenses. First GOBankingRates found the sunniest cities by using the National Centers for Environmental Information’s Climate at a Glance data to find the total amount of precipitation a location has received in the last 12 months from March 2023 to April 2024, in order to estimate the amount of sunshine a location gets. For each city a number of factors were found including; cost of living indexes as sourced from Sperlings BestPlaces, livability index as sourced from AreaVibes, and the average single-family home value from April 2024 as sourced from Zillow Home Value Index. The cost of living indexes was used along with the average expenditure cost for all residents as sourced from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Expenditure Survey, to find the average cost of expenditures in each city. By assuming a 10% downpayment and using the national average 30-year fixed mortgage rate as sourced from the Federal Reserve Economic Data, the average mortgage cost can be calculated for each city. Using the mortgage and expenditure costs, the total average monthly cost of living can be calculated. The cost of living expenditures were listed to show some of the monthly expenditure costs including; grocery, transportation, utilities, healthcare, and misc. The cities were sorted to show the sunnies cities first. All data was collected on and is up to date as of June 12, 2024.