Cost Of Living in Oak Ridge, NC

The cost of living index is based on a national average of 100. For example, if the cost of living is 90, then it is 10% lower than average. If the cost of living is 110, then it is 10% higher than average. The breakdown for each index is as follows: goods & services (33%), groceries (13%), health care (5%), housing (30%), transportation (9%) and utilities (10%). If the cost of living data was unavailable for this city, estimates based upon nearby cities were used.
Index	Oak Ridge	North Carolina	National
Cost of living	134	94	100
Goods & Services	106	98	100
Groceries	97	98	100
Health care	113	108	100
Housing	214	85	100
Transportation	92	92	100
Utilities	89	94	100

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Cost Of Living Quick Facts

The cost of living in Oak Ridge is 44% higher than the North Carolina average
The cost of living in Oak Ridge is 34% higher than the national average
Oak Ridge housing is 114% higher than the national average
North Carolina general sales tax is 7% lower than the national average
North Carolina state income tax is 83% higher than the national average

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Price difference in compared to

Cost of living index
Goods & Services index
Groceries index
Health care index
Housing index
Transportation index
Utilities index

Median Income & Debt-To-Income Ratio

Median Income	Per Year	Per Month	Max Budget (28% DTI)	Max Budget (36% DTI)
Owners	$128,750	$10,729	$3,004	$3,863
Renters	$84,667	$7,056	$1,975	$2,540

The percent of monthly income spent on housing can be a good indicator of the affordability of housing in Oak Ridge, NC, as well as the overall cost of living. As a general rule of thumb, the debt-to-income ratio (DTI) for homeowners or renters should be not more than 28 percent of gross income to be spent on housing related costs and not more than 36 percent of income on all expenses, including debts. The median income for Oak Ridge homeowners, is $128,750. This would allow for a maximum of $3,004 per month to be spent on housing costs. For renters, the median monthly income is $84,667 which would result in a maximum of $1,975 to be spent on rental costs.

North Carolina Sales Tax

State	General Sales Tax	With Max Surtax
North Carolina	4.75%	7.5%

North Carolina Income Tax

State	Income Tax (Low)	Income Tax (High)
North Carolina	4.75%	4.75%

Goods & Services

Item	Oak Ridge	National avg.	Difference
Haircut	$22.17	$24.26	8.6%
Beauty Salon	$52.72	$45.56	15.7%
Toothpaste	$3.64	$3.70	1.7%
Shampoo	$1.25	$1.28	2.6%
Movie	$11.58	$12.13	4.6%
Bowling	$20.00	$18.00	11.1%

Groceries

Item	Oak Ridge	National avg.	Difference
Ground Beef	$5.81	$5.84	0.6%
Fried Chicken	$1.41	$1.57	10.6%
Milk	$4.58	$4.67	2.0%
Potatoes	$5.01	$4.93	1.5%
Pizza	$11.34	$12.09	6.2%
Beer	$10.17	$10.41	2.3%

Health Care

Item	Oak Ridge	National avg.	Difference
Optometrist	$147.25	$125.68	17.2%
Doctor	$157.28	$135.78	15.8%
Dentist	$126.56	$113.29	11.7%
Ibuprofen	$10.47	$10.65	1.7%
Lipitor	$548.33	$468.60	17.0%

Housing

Item	Oak Ridge	National avg.	Difference
Home Price	$395,100.00	$184,700.00	113.9%
Avg. Mortgage Payment	$1,737.79	$2,346.69	25.9%
Apartment Rent	$0.00	$949.00	100.0%

Transportation

Item	Oak Ridge	National avg.	Difference
Gasoline	$3.31	$3.46	4.2%
Tire Balancing	$48.78	$59.92	18.6%

Utilities

Item	Oak Ridge	National avg.	Difference
All Electricity	$163.41	$193.99	15.8%
Phone	$186.82	$192.25	2.8%

Although the cost of living data is updated regularly, this cost of living information is to be used as estimates only as prices can change on an ongoing basis.

Nearby cities with low cost of living

City	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Walnut Cove, NC	2,088	90	10.2%
Germanton, NC	1,124	93	7.1%
Walkertown, NC	5,166	94	5.8%
Winston-Salem, NC	245,787	95	4.7%
Midway, NC	4,851	95	4.6%
Oak Ridge, NC	6,979	134	34.4%

Cities with similar population

City	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Old Greenwich, CT	6,980	282	182.1%
King, NC	6,980	96	4.0%
Great Neck Plaza, NY	6,980	145	44.9%
Benton, IL	6,977	85	15.0%
Decatur, TX	6,976	106	5.5%
Oak Ridge, NC	6,979	134	34.4%

Date & Last Updated: This data reflects 2023 and was released from C2ER in January, 2024; this is the most current data available.

Cost of Living in Oak Ridge, NC