25 Best Cities To Move to With Cheap Housing and a Strong Job Market

With many American families struggling with high rent, credit card debt and student loans, it might be difficult to find an affordable place to lay down roots.

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Finding a place to live with good-paying jobs and affordable housing is certainly a delicate balance. Many U.S. cities have one or the other, with American families assuming that a city with decent wages will come with high housing costs. But luckily, there are plenty of cities that offer the best of both worlds.

To identify cities in the U.S. that have plenty of jobs and cheap housing, GOBankingRates gathered information on the 200 biggest housing markets in the U.S., according to Zillow. We gathered data available regarding the typical home value and monthly rent as of June 2024, as well as its Metro Statistical Area unemployment rate, according to the June 2024 Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

The 25 cities in the final ranking have values lower than the U.S. national average in all of the above factors. Additional data on labor force participation and livability score was gathered from the American Community Survey and AreaVibes.

Keep reading to find out if your city has cheap housing and job opportunities.

• Typical home value: $126,757
• Typical rent: $1,338
• Unemployment rate: 2.7%
• Labor force participation rate: 57.9%
• Median household income: $42,464
• Livability score (out of 100): 67

• Typical home value: $329,429
• Typical rent: $1,205
• Unemployment rate: 1.9%
• Labor force participation rate: 74.2%
• Median household income: $71,785
• Livability score (out of 100): 85

• Typical home value: $208,871
• Typical rent: $1,114
• Unemployment rate: 2.9%
• Labor force participation rate: 70%
• Median household income: $62,378
• Livability score (out of 100): 83

• Typical home value: $143,945
• Typical rent: $1,301
• Unemployment rate: 3%
• Labor force participation rate: 59.7%
• Median household income: $54,166
• Livability score (out of 100): 64

• Typical home value: $287,351
• Typical rent: $1,382
• Unemployment rate: 2.5%
• Labor force participation rate: 63.4%
• Median household income: $67,874
• Livability score (out of 100): 83

• Typical home value: $214,995
• Typical rent: $1,202
• Unemployment rate: 3.4%
• Labor force participation rate: 64.8%
• Median household income: $58,697
• Livability score (out of 100): 72

• Typical home value: $202,017
• Typical rent: $1,286
• Unemployment rate: 3.4%
• Labor force participation rate: 65.6%
• Median household income: $60,628
• Livability score (out of 100): 66

• Typical home value: $284,822
• Typical rent: $1,294
• Unemployment rate: 3%
• Labor force participation rate: 70.9%
• Median household income: $67,846
• Livability score (out of 100): 84

• Typical home value: $181,423
• Typical rent: $1,006
• Unemployment rate: 3.9%
• Labor force participation rate: 59.2%
• Median household income: $43,135
• Livability score (out of 100): 82

• Typical home value: $194,348
• Typical rent: $1,309
• Unemployment rate: 3.5%
• Labor force participation rate: 58.1%
• Median household income: $48,524
• Livability score (out of 100): 73

• Typical home value: $208,400
• Typical rent: $1,259
• Unemployment rate: 3.5%
• Labor force participation rate: 67.4%
• Median household income: $64,251
• Livability score (out of 100): 81

• Typical home value: $211,819
• Typical rent: $1,256
• Unemployment rate: 3.7%
• Labor force participation rate: 64.7%
• Median household income: $56,648
• Livability score (out of 100): 75

• Typical home value: $187,450
• Typical rent: $1,744
• Unemployment rate: 3.2%
• Labor force participation rate: 62.1%
• Median household income: $58,349
• Livability score (out of 100): 77

• Typical home value: $202,485
• Typical rent: $1,094
• Unemployment rate: 4%
• Labor force participation rate: 66%
• Median household income: $60,712
• Livability score (out of 100): 68

• Typical home value: $192,114
• Typical rent: $981
• Unemployment rate: 4.2%
• Labor force participation rate: 64%
• Median household income: $49,853
• Livability score (out of 100): 66

• Typical home value: $212,016
• Typical rent: $1,322
• Unemployment rate: 3.7%
• Labor force participation rate: 64%
• Median household income: $49,733
• Livability score (out of 100): 79

• Typical home value: $262,440
• Typical rent: $1,210
• Unemployment rate: 3.6%
• Labor force participation rate: 64.5%
• Median household income: $42,351
• Livability score (out of 100): 73

• Typical home value: $286,124
• Typical rent: $1,390
• Unemployment rate: 3.3%
• Labor force participation rate: 69.9%
• Median household income: $70,202
• Livability score (out of 100): 83

• Typical home value: $235,075
• Typical rent: $1,228
• Unemployment rate: 3.8%
• Labor force participation rate: 59.6%
• Median household income: $43,450
• Livability score (out of 100): 74

• Typical home value: $194,277
• Typical rent: $1,499
• Unemployment rate: 3.7%
• Labor force participation rate: 57%
• Median household income: $43,584
• Livability score (out of 100): 77

• Typical home value: $227,390
• Typical rent: $1,469
• Unemployment rate: 3.7%
• Labor force participation rate: 61.6%
• Median household income: $44,156
• Livability score (out of 100): 76

• Typical home value: $302,883
• Typical rent: $1,603
• Unemployment rate: 3.2%
• Labor force participation rate: 70%
• Median household income: $60,998
• Livability score (out of 100): 81

• Typical home value: $246,401
• Typical rent: $1,395
• Unemployment rate: 3.8%
• Labor force participation rate: 69%
• Median household income: $65,256
• Livability score (out of 100): 78

• Typical home value: $231,648
• Typical rent: $1,389
• Unemployment rate: 3.9%
• Labor force participation rate: 60.2%
• Median household income: $46,184
• Livability score (out of 100): 79

• Typical home value: $235,574
• Typical rent: $1,267
• Unemployment rate: 4.1%
• Labor force participation rate: 66.2%
• Median household income: $58,233
• Livability score (out of 100): 84

Laura Beck and Jordan Rosenfeld contributed to the reporting for this article. 

Methodology: In order to identify cities in the U.S. that have plenty of jobs and cheap housing, GOBankingRates gathered information on the top 200 biggest housing markets in the U.S., according to Zillow. To be considered for ranking, each city had to have data available on: its June 2024 typical home value, according to Zillow, its June 2024 typical monthly rent, according to Zillow and (3) its Metro Statistical Area unemployment rate, according to the June 2024 Bureau of Labor Statistics data. The 48 cities in the final ranking have values lower than the U.S. national average in all 3 of the above factors. The highlighted cities were then scored on all three factors and ranked against each other, with factors and carrying half as much weight as factor. Supplemental information was also provided on the final 25 cities including labor force participation rate (for the population 16+), median household income from the 2022 American Community Survey and livability score from AreaVibes. All data was collected on and is up-to-date as of Aug. 5, 2024.