What salary do you need to live in Sacramento, CA?

Rent, home values and prices in Sacramento

Median gross rent, meaning contract rent plus tenant-paid utilities, runs $1,486, $1,808 and $2,168 a month for one, two and three bedrooms across Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA. The largest of those is 46% more than the smallest.

On the ownership side, the typical owner-occupied home is valued at $589,500. Set against the $97,188 median household income, that is a ratio of 6.1×, which keeps the buying part of the score low for most incomes.

The Regional Price Parity, BEA's index of local prices with the US at 100, is 106.7 here. Above 100 means a paycheck stretches less: $100,000 in Sacramento has the buying power of roughly $93,747 at national average prices.

Sacramento: the pre-tax income for each grade

For two bedrooms, $333,000 is where Sacramento turns Comfortable. Below that, $166,000 marks the start of Okay and $82,000 the start of Tight; under $82,000 the score reads Stretched. Rent at the Comfortable line is 7% of gross pay.

The Royal grade is within reach at $1,047,000 a year, where both rent and the median home price look small next to income.

These lines come straight from the calculator's formula: the income is raised until the two-bedroom score crosses each cutoff, then rounded up to the next $1,000.

Sacramento at four common salaries

At $75,000, a one-bedroom scores 26 (Tight), a two-bedroom 22 (Stretched) and a three-bedroom 20 (Stretched). The $8,184 a year between the smallest and largest home is what moves the grade.

Comfortable is above every row of the table here. At $150,000 a two-bedroom still grades Tight, with rent taking 14% of income.

Sacramento on the national list

Out of 387 metros, Sacramento has the 22nd highest price parity and the 24th highest two-bedroom rent, which puts it among the priciest tenth on overall prices and in the top 10% on rent.

Naples-Marco Island, FL ($1,827) and Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX ($1,795) bracket Sacramento on two-bedroom rent.

Sacramento vs. the rest of California

Compared with California as a whole, two-bedroom rent in Sacramento is 14% lower ($1,808 vs. $2,103) and the median home is 20% lower ($589,500 vs. $734,700).

On statewide medians, a two-bedroom budget reaches Comfortable at $439,000 — above Sacramento's $333,000 line.

If Sacramento is on your list, Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA, Stockton-Lodi, CA, and San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles, CA are the most similar California metros by two-bedroom rent and price level; the table shows where each turns Comfortable.

Does the typical Sacramento income clear the bar?

What about a typical local household? Census puts median household income here at $97,188, which grades Tight (30) for a two-bedroom at the median rent. The Comfortable line is 243% above what the median household makes. For California as a whole, the median household income of $99,122 scores 23 against statewide rents. Since a household can have two or more earners, compare it with a combined income rather than one paycheck.

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