Even amid increasing strains put on your income by rising cost of living, there are still a number of large cities where you can get the most from your paycheck.
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Recently, GOBankingRates studied the top 100 American cities by population via the U.S. Census Bureau, analyzing household median incomes and annual cost of living — all to determine just how far the average salary can stretch in the biggest cities in the country.
Costs and wages vary across the country, with coastal states trending more expensive than those in the Midwest and the South. Keep reading to see the Southern cities where an average paycheck can go the furthest (ranked from least to most) — and don’t be surprised to the South’s biggest state, Texas, dominating the list.
10. Corpus Christi, Texas
- Median household income: $66,325
- Annual cost of necessities: $38,489
- What’s left: $27,836
Corpus Christi, the first of six Texas cities in GOBankingRates’ top 10, appears here thanks to a cost of living that eats up only about 58% of the average yearly salary for the city. That leaves nearly $28,000 on average to be set aside for savings, emergencies and luxuries. That’s plenty of money to begin investing for a retirement, as well as spending on a city that offers a variety of seaside attractions and activities.
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9. Oklahoma City
- Median household income: $66,702
- Annual cost of necessities: $38,459
- What’s left: $28,243
Oklahoma City is another city where the cost of living takes up just 58% of the median household income, which again leaves roughly $28,000 annually to be spent on savings and fun. Oklahoma City maintains low costs thanks to a cheap real estate market (due to an abundance of developable land for housing and business), as well as a generally low cost of living.
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8. Austin, Texas
- Median household income: $91,461
- Annual cost of necessities: $63,080
- What’s left: $28,381
Austin’s cost of living takes up quite a bit more household income than Corpus Christi or Oklahoma City (roughly 69%). That said, residents still have over $28,000 per year left after the bills are paid, thanks to Austin’s rather high median income. Austin is a very tech-forward city and a hub for innovative (and well-paying) companies like Tesla and Oracle.
7. Garland, Texas
- Median household income: $74,717
- Annual cost of necessities: $46,285
- What’s left: $28,432
Sure, Garland can be little pricey. The Texas city’s cost of living takes a 61% bite out of the median household income, but its lucrative job market pays such that an average Garland resident can keep $28,432 per year. A suburb of the much larger and far more expensive Dallas, Garland allows residents to enjoy the nearby big-city amenities but come home to smaller-town (and more affordable) living.
6. Irving, Texas
- Median household income: $79,641
- Annual cost of necessities: $49,659
- What’s left: $29,982
Thirty thousand dollars: That’s how much the median Irving household gets to hold onto after the annual cost of living. Irving has a standard housing market and a rather comfortable median income of nearly $80,000.
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5. Fort Worth, Texas
- Median household income: $76,602
- Annual cost of necessities: $46,456
- What’s left: $30,146
With a cost of living that takes up nearly 61% of the median household income, Fort Worth isn’t the cheapest city in the Southern top 10, but it is one that leaves the average resident with just over $30,000 in spending money.
4. Arlington, Virginia
- Median household income: $140,160
- Annual cost of necessities: $104,844
- What’s left: $35,316
While the cost of living in Arlington is high, the median household will spend nearly 75% of its income solely on bills — the median household income is also quite high. As a result, even with 75% of a household’s income spent, residents are left with a not-insignificant $35,316 to invest in things like retirement, travel and luxury.
3. Virginia Beach, Virginia
- Median household income: $90,685
- Annual cost of necessities: $54,621
- What’s left: $36,064
Looking for a beachside city with a high median income? Don’t feel like spending more than 60% of your income on things like groceries, gas and mortgage costs? Want over $35,000 annually to play with? Consider Virginia Beach as a potentially perfect city for you.
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2. Chesapeake, Virginia
- Median household income: $94,189
- Annual cost of necessities: $54,639
- What’s left: $39,550
Chesapeake offers many of the same amenities and good living as Virginia Beach, but with less costs and more leftover money. Residents there get to keep 42% of their annual income.
1. Plano, Texas
- Median household income: $108,649
- Annual cost of necessities: $59,976
- What’s left: $48,673
Residents of Plano spend just 55% of their median household income on necessities. Thanks to a varied job market made up of lucrative telecommunications, technology and finance industries, the median income there is high. That means the average Plano resident has nearly $50,000 left over after paying bills and monthly mortgage.
Methodology: For this study, GOBankingRates analyzed the top 100 cities by population, as sourced from the U.S. Census 2023 American Community Survey. Cost of living was sourced from Sperling’s BestPlaces, the average expenditure cost for all households was sourced from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Expenditure Survey. The average home value was sourced from Zillow Home Value Index; by assuming a 10% down payment and using the national average 30-year fixed mortgage rate, as sourced from the Federal Reserve Economic Data, the average mortgage was calculated. The average mortgage and expenditures were used to calculate the total cost of living for necessities in each location. Using the median household income, the leftover savings was calculated and sorted to show the largest savings first. All data was collected on and is up to date as of Aug. 18, 2025.
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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: 10 Southern Cities Where Your Paycheck Goes the Furthest
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