13 Cities Where You’re Broke Earning $100,000

It used to be that earning six figures meant living in relative luxury in most of the United States. After all, a $100,000 salary has long been viewed as an important milestone in a person's career — a sign that you've really made it.

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Unfortunately, the goalposts for success appear to have moved for a considerable portion of America. Many affluent cities that produce the highest salaries have also seen basic costs of living spiral higher and higher. While earning $100,000 a year might make you "rich" in much of the U.S., in some places it isn't even enough to cover your bills.

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GOBankingRates conducted a study to identify cities where $100,000 won't cover the average cost for a home and basic necessities. Using Zillow to find the median home price and Sperling's Best Places to calculate the average cost of living, the study found 13 cities where even six-figure earners need to find ways to make ends meet.

Here are cities in which you'll break the bank even if you're making bank.

Last updated: Sep. 22, 2021

San Francisco

• Metro area: San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward
• Average home value: $1,537,590
• Overall annual expenditures: $166,290.06
• Amount left over from $100,000: -$66,290.06

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Fremont, California

• Metro area: San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward
• Average home value: $1,318,350
• Overall annual expenditures: $140,355.48
• Amount left over from $100,000: -$40,355.48

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San Jose, California

• Metro area: San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara
• Average home value: $1,264,171
• Overall annual expenditures: $132,451.61
• Amount left over from $100,000: -$32,451,61

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Glendale, California

• Metro area: Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim
• Average home value: $1,121,069
• Overall annual expenditures: $119,546.06
• Amount left over from $100,000: -$19,546.06

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New York

• Metro area: New York-Newark-Jersey City
• Average home value: $702,291
• Overall annual expenditures: $115,594.13
• Amount left over from $100,000: -$15,594.13

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Irvine, California

• Metro area: Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim
• Average home value: $1,144,752
• Overall annual expenditures: $115,532.38
• Amount left over from $100,000: -$15,532.38

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Huntington Beach, California

• Metro area: Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim
• Average home value: $1,061,933
• Overall annual expenditures: $113,494.66
• Amount left over from $100,000: -$13,494.66

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Honolulu

• Metro area: Urban Honolulu
• Average home value: $1,125,424
• Overall annual expenditures: $108,986.99
• Amount left over from $100,000: -$8,986.99

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Oakland, California

• Metro area: San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward
• Average home value: $971,984
• Overall annual expenditures: $107,690.26
• Amount left over from $100,000: -$7,690.26

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Los Angeles

• Metro area: Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim
• Average home value: $894,348
• Overall annual expenditures: $107,011.02
• Amount left over from $100,000: -$7,011.02

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Seattle

• Metro area: Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue
• Average home value: $888,306
• Overall annual expenditures: $106,393.53
• Amount left over from $100,000: -$6,393.53

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Arlington, Virginia

• Metro area: Washington-Arlington-Alexandria
• Average home value: $929,614
• Overall annual expenditures: $104,170.56
• Amount left over from $100,000: -$4,170.56

Learn: The Best Place To Buy a Home in Every State

Boston

• Metro area: Boston-Cambridge-Newton
• Average home value: $687,024
• Overall annual expenditures: $100,280.38
• Amount left over from $100,000: -$280.38

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Cynthia Measom contributed to the reporting for this article.

Methodology: GOBankingRates determined the cities where you're broke earning $100,000 in the U.S. along the following criteria: (1) average annual expenditures for all consumer units as sourced from the midyear 2019/2020 Consumer Expenditure Survey from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and then adjusted to each city's overall annual expenditures using Sperling's Best Places' Overall Cost-of-Living Index. Those cities with over $100,000 in annual expenditures were included. For the 13 qualifying cities GOBankingRates also found each city's (2) average 2021 home value, based on Zillow's data from January to July 2021; itemized costs of living for necessities, sourced from Sperling's Best Places, such as (4) groceries cost of living; (5) healthcare cost of living; (6) utilities cost of living; (7) transportation cost of living; (8) annual cost of neccessities, which is the sum of rent, groceries, healthcare, utilities and transportation.  All data compiled on Aug. 31, 2021.

About the Author

Joel Anderson

Joel Anderson is a business and finance writer with over a decade of experience writing about the wide world of finance. Based in Los Angeles, he specializes in writing about the financial markets, stocks, macroeconomic concepts and focuses on helping make complex financial concepts digestible for the retail investor.

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