A Dallas suburb has landed on top of a new list of the most affordable places to live: McKinney ranked No. 1 based on its relative cost of living and high median household income.
The report by personal finance experts Motley Fool Money, "The 10 Most Affordable Cities With High Salaries and Low Costs of Living," compared hundreds of U.S. cities based on their income-to-expense ratio, where a higher ratio means better affordability. Median income was sourced from U.S. Census data, while cost of living was taken from a 2024 cost of living index from the Council for Community and Economic Research.
McKinney had the highest income-to-expense ratio (1.55) out of every U.S. city on the list to claim the No. 1 spot as the most affordable place to live. According to the report's analysts, McKinney's cost of living index is three points below the national average.
Residents in this Dallas suburb make a median income of $116,654, a staggering 43 percent higher than the national median. That's more than enough to cover the report's estimate of $75,348 for the city's cost of living.
Motley Fool Money says McKinney is alluring for "mid-career Americans."
"The average age [in McKinney] is 37 and the median property value is $440,000, which is about $20,000 higher than the national median home sales price," the report's author wrote. "The largest industries are professional, scientific and technical services, retail, and healthcare."
Plano also earned a spot in the top 10 most affordable places to live, coming in at No. 6 with an income-to-expense ratio of 1.28.
The findings show Plano households make about $108,594 in median annual income to offset an $84,931 cost of living estimate. No wonder residents are happier here than in any other city in Texas.
Photo by David Downs/Visit Plano
Plano's economy is the strongest factor attracting people to this popular suburb, as well as greater Dallas-Fort Worth's entrepreneurial spirit.
"Toyota Motor North America has its headquarters in Plano, and other large companies have significant footprints there including JPMorgan, JCPenney, and Frito-Lay," the report said.
Plano also excels as one of the best places to raise a family, demonstrating the city's true versatility for both career-focused and family-focused Americans.
Though both McKinney and Plano ranked on the list of the most affordable cities to live, neither appeared in Motley Fool Money's separate ranking of the cheapest places to live. Earning the No. 1 spot in that category was Decatur, Illinois.
The only Texas cities to rank on the list of the cheapest places to live were the Rio Grande Valley cities of Edinburg (No. 3) and Harlingen (No. 6), as well as Amarillo (No. 10) in West Texas.
The top 10 most affordable places to live in the U.S. are:
- No. 1 – McKinney, Texas
- No. 2 – Morristown, New Jersey
- No. 3 – Edmond, Oklahoma
- No. 4 – Midland, Texas
- No. 5 – Austin, Texas
- No. 6 – Plano, Texas
- No. 7 – Joliet, Illinois
- No. 8 – Kansas City metropolitan area
- No. 9 – Atlanta, Georgia
- No. 10 – Charleston, South Carolina
