What salary do you need to live in Cleveland, OH?

Cleveland housing costs at a glance

Median gross rent, meaning contract rent plus tenant-paid utilities, runs $852, $1,088 and $1,256 a month for one, two and three bedrooms across Cleveland, OH. The largest of those is 47% more than the smallest.

On the ownership side, the typical owner-occupied home is valued at $215,400. Against a median household income of $70,678, the ratio is 3.0× — one of the gentler home-price-to-income ratios in the country.

The Regional Price Parity, BEA's index of local prices with the US at 100, is 93.9 here. Below 100 means a paycheck stretches further: $100,000 in Cleveland has the buying power of roughly $106,470 at national average prices.

The salary lines for a two-bedroom in Cleveland

With a two-bedroom at the median rent, the score enters Tight at $30,000, Okay at $59,000 and Comfortable at $119,000 a year before tax. At the Comfortable line, a year of rent takes 11% of income and the median home is 1.8× income.

The Royal grade is within reach at $365,000 a year, where both rent and the median home price look small next to income.

Nothing here is a separate rule of thumb; plug any of these incomes into the calculator with two bedrooms and Cleveland shows the matching grade.

Cleveland at four common salaries

Choosing a bigger place in Cleveland at $75,000 trims the score from 56 to 50 without leaving Okay.

Read down the two-bedroom column and the first Comfortable row is $150,000, consistent with the $119,000 line above.

Where Cleveland falls nationally

Ranked against all 387 metros, Cleveland sits 183rd on overall price level and 227th on the two-bedroom rent median, counting from the most expensive. Its median home value ranks 271st.

Kankakee, IL ($1,089) and Lake Charles, LA ($1,086) bracket Cleveland on two-bedroom rent.

Comparing Cleveland with Ohio

How Cleveland stacks up against its state: $1,088 for a two-bedroom against Ohio's $1,063, $215,400 for the median home against $214,800, and a price level of 93.9 against 92.8.

The Ohio figure for the Comfortable line, using state medians, is $114,000 against $119,000 for Cleveland.

Within Ohio, the metros closest to Cleveland on rent and overall prices are Akron, OH, Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN, and Dayton-Kettering-Beavercreek, OH. Their Comfortable lines for two bedrooms sit at $116,000, $137,000, and $108,000.

Where the typical Cleveland household lands

What about a typical local household? Census puts median household income here at $70,678, which grades Okay (50) for a two-bedroom at the median rent. That falls $48,322 short of the $119,000 Comfortable line, a reminder that the typical household here spends a larger share on housing than the Comfortable band allows. Statewide, the Ohio median household ($71,389) grades Okay on the state's own medians. A household figure may pool several earners, unlike a single salary.

These are pre-tax estimates from public statistics, not financial advice.