Palm Beach Cost of Living

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Anyone who has ever relocated to another city knows that number crunching before packing up the moving van is the first step. After all, knowing how far your paycheck can stretch once you’re in your new city is an important consideration for any relocating family or individual.

If you’re used to affordable housing prices, reasonable grocery bills, and inexpensive health care, you don’t want to be surprised if your new city is much pricier. You’ll want to make sure you can maintain your current lifestyle if moving from a city like Raleigh, NC, where the cost of living is lower. Conversely, if moving from San Francisco, you can sustain a reduction in income without reducing your present lifestyle.

How Palm Beach County Measures Up

When compared to cities that are similar – in terms of major industries and population, among other factors – your hard-earned dollar might not stretch quite as far in Palm Beach County.  In fact, you’ll likely pay more for housing, groceries, transportation, and healthcare – and we’ve got the stats to prove it. You may pay less for utilities, which could be a factor of Palm Beach County’s climate.

The Council for Community and Economic Research is a national organization dedicated to economic development and policy research, and it publishes an annual Cost of Living Index that ranks a range of living expenses in major cities. The index measures differences between areas in the cost of consumer goods and services, minus taxes and non-consumer expenditures.

It also measures relative price levels for consumer goods and services in participating areas. The average for a participating place—both metropolitan and non-metro—is 100, and each city’s index is read as a percentage of the average for all places. See the chart on the opposite page to see how Palm Beach County areas rank against other large metro areas, and you’ll see that it’s more expensive in just about every category measured to plant your roots here.

Whether you’re thinking about moving here, or have just made the move, it’s safe to say that the Palm Beach County area is a thriving, desirable region, but paradise does not come cheap.

Palm Beach by the Numbers

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