Cost of living in Sault Ste. Marie research summary. The cost of living index is set to 100 for the average place in the United States. A cost of living index above 100 means Sault Ste. Marie is expensive. An index value below 100 means the city is a relatively cheap place to live.
On a city-by-city basis in Michigan, home prices and rent have the biggest impact on the cost of living. Here are the key takeaways based on Saturday Night Science:
The cost of living index in Sault Ste. Marie is 80, with 100 being the average.
The cost of living index in Sault Ste. Marie is 0.8x lower than the national average.
Sault Ste. Marie ranks as the #15 cheapest in Michigan out of 175.
Sault Ste. Marie ranks as the #211 cheapest out of 6,412 in the US.
The median home value in Sault Ste. Marie is $104,100.
The median income in Sault Ste. Marie is $45,905.
According to the most recent data on the cost of living, Sault Ste. Marie has an overall cost of living index of 80, which is 0.8x lower than the national index of 100.
Compared to Michigan, Sault Ste. Marie has a cost of living index that's 0.9x lower than Michigan's index of 92.
The standard of living in Sault Ste. Marie ranks as #15 most affordable out of the 175 places we measured in Michigan. By definition, that implies Sault Ste. Marie ranks as the #160 most expensive place in the Wolverine State.
For more reading on life in Sault Ste. Marie, check out:
Six factors go into calculating the cost of living index in Sault Ste. Marie. Here is how it fairs on each of the criteria:
The Services index in Sault Ste. Marie is 90.
The Groceries index in Sault Ste. Marie is 94.
The Health index in Sault Ste. Marie is 102.
The Housing index in Sault Ste. Marie is 49.
The Transportation index in Sault Ste. Marie is 89.
The Utilities index in Sault Ste. Marie is 99.
Living Expense | Sault Ste. Marie | Michigan | National Average | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Overall | 80 | 92 | 100 | |
Services | 90 | 96 | 100 | |
Groceries | 94 | 96 | 100 | |
Health | 102 | 94 | 100 | |
Housing | 49 | 80 | 100 | |
Transportation | 89 | 97 | 100 | |
Utilities | 99 | 100 | 100 |
Housing swings affordability the most between places in Michigan, so we broke down housing costs into more detail. Home and income data comes from the most recent US Census ACS 2017-2021. The key points are:
The Median Home Value in Sault Ste. Marie is $104,100.
The Median Rent in Sault Ste. Marie is $762.
The Median Income in Sault Ste. Marie is $45,905.
The Home Value To Income in Sault Ste. Marie is 2.3x.
The Rent To Monthly Income in Sault Ste. Marie is 0.2x.
Statistic | Sault Ste. Marie | Michigan | United States |
---|---|---|---|
Median Home Value | $104,100 | $172,100 | $244,900 |
Median Rent | $762 | $946 | $1,163 |
Median Income | $45,905 | $63,202 | $69,021 |
Home Value To Income | 2.3x | 2.7x | 3.5x |
Rent To Monthly Income | 0.2x | 0.18x | 0.2x |
Item | Sault Ste. Marie | Michigan |
---|---|---|
Shampoo | $0.91 | $1.06 |
Movie | $11.37 | $10.68 |
Bowling | $12.05 | $14.67 |
Haircut | $10.68 | $18.62 |
Beauty Salon | $22.7 | $39.05 |
Item | Sault Ste. Marie | Michigan |
---|---|---|
Ground Beef | $4.64 | $4.22 |
Fried Chicken | $1.1 | $1.39 |
Milk | $1.93 | $2.05 |
Potatoes | $2.89 | $3.29 |
Pizza | $10.01 | $10.62 |
Beer | $8.19 | $9.38 |
Toothpaste | $2.5 | $2.34 |
Item | Sault Ste. Marie | Michigan |
---|---|---|
Optometrist | $74.0 | $108.57 |
Doctor | $176.5 | $116.17 |
Dentist | $81.33 | $99.13 |
Item | Sault Ste. Marie | Michigan |
---|---|---|
Gasoline | $1.71 | $2.22 |
Tire Balancing | $56.2 | $50.07 |
Item | Sault Ste. Marie | Michigan |
---|---|---|
All Electricity | $160.46 | $167.67 |
Phone | $179.44 | $175.64 |