What does it cost to live in Salt Lake City, UT? Based on 7 federal sources (BEA Regional Price Parities 2024, HUD Fair Market Rents FY2026, EIA energy prices, IRS/state tax), a single adult's modeled annual budget is $59,082 and a family of four's is $105,258 (2025).
How much does a family of four need in Salt Lake City?
A family of four (2 adults, 2 children) needs about $105,258/yr to break even in Salt Lake City — roughly $8,772 a month. Housing is the largest single cost. This is a break-even budget of basic needs, not a recommended salary and not a composite index.
Components carry different grains, from ZIP or county (housing) to national adjusted to state price level (CEX rows via BEA Regional Price Parities). Not a recommended salary; not a poverty threshold; components are not weighted into a composite score. See family-of-four methodology →
BEA Regional Price Parities
How expensive is Salt Lake City versus the U.S.?
The overall price level in Salt Lake City-Murray, UT metro area is 100.9 against a U.S. average of 100 — +0.9% more expensive than the national average.
All items
100.9
Goods
96.4
Rents
123.3
Utilities
79.0
Other services
99.0
Category
Index (U.S. = 100)
vs U.S.
All items
100.9
+0.9%
Goods
96.4
−3.6%
Rents
123.3
+23.3%
Utilities
79.0
−21.0%
Other services
99.0
−1.0%
Source: BEA Regional Price Parities 2024 · Salt Lake City-Murray, UT metro area · methodology →
ACS 5-Year 2020–2024
What do homeowners pay each month in Salt Lake City?
Owners with a mortgage in Salt Lake City pay a median of 2,070/mo in selected owner costs.
Owner cost & property tax — place-grain from the ACS 5-Year 2020–2024. Median monthly selected owner costs (SMOC) cover mortgage payments, property taxes, insurance, utilities, and condo fees where applicable; real-estate taxes paid is the median property-tax bill for owner-occupied units.
Utility prices in Utah — applies to Utah statewide (electricity and natural gas) or its PADD region (gasoline). Residential rates are state averages, not what any specific household pays.
Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) · state-grain · methodology →
Census Gov Finances FY2022
State tax burden.
Tax burden in Utah — combined state + local taxes per capita, from the U.S. Census Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances (FY2022). Population denominator: Census PEP 2022 state estimate. State-grain only; this is revenue divided by people, not a household tax bill. "vs U.S. state average" compares one state to the unweighted mean across all 51 states + DC.
Measure
Value
vs U.S. state average
Total state + local taxes per capita
$6,248
6,836 avg · -9%
Property taxes per capita
$1,348
1,886 avg · -29%
Sales & gross receipts taxes per capita
$2,388
2,255 avg · +6%
Individual income taxes per capita
$2,015
1,617 avg · +25%
Corporate income taxes per capita
$277
393 avg · -30%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances · FY2022 · state-grain · methodology →
State Income Tax TY2025
State income tax.
Measure
Value
Note
Top state income tax rate (single filer)
4.55%
flat rate · TY2025
Effective state income tax at $75k (single)
4.55%
after $0 standard deduction · TY2025
Flat-tax schedule
Income range (single)
Marginal rate
$0+
4.55%
Flat 4.55% rate for tax year 2025. Reduced from 4.65% in 2024 under SB 69 (2024). Utah does not provide a standard deduction; instead a non-refundable taxpayer credit (~6% of federal standard deduction) phases out at higher incomes.
Income tax: state-level only. Local income taxes (e.g., NYC resident tax, Yonkers surcharge, Portland-OR Metro tax, Maryland county tax, Philadelphia wage tax, OH/KY/MI city income taxes) appear in the Local income tax section below when modeled. Effective rate at $75k is illustrative only — single filer with state standard deduction, no itemized deductions, no credits.
population-weighted state average · Tax Foundation TY2025
Combined sales tax rate
7.44%
state + avg local · TY2025
Sales tax: state-grain. The "average local rate" is Tax Foundation's population-weighted state-average; actual local rates vary by city, county, and special taxing district. Selective sales taxes (hotels, meals, car rentals) and excise taxes (gasoline, tobacco, alcohol) are excluded.
Source: Tax Foundation · state statutes · TY2025 · methodology →
USDA Food Plans + Food Atlas
Food and grocery access.
Food and grocery access. USDA national food-cost reference plus USDA Food Environment Atlas county-level food access. National plan values are not adjusted for local prices.
Measure
Value
Grain / source
Thrifty Food Plan, family of 4
$996/mo
national reference, USDA CNPP
Moderate-Cost Plan, family of 4
$1,341/mo
national reference, USDA CNPP
Liberal Plan, family of 4
$1,619/mo
national reference, USDA CNPP
Grocery stores per 1,000 pop
0.14
county-grain, USDA ERS Atlas 2020
Low food-access population share
11.5%
county-grain, USDA ERS Atlas 2019
SNAP participation rate
4.6%
county-grain, USDA ERS Atlas 2022
Food Atlas county: Salt Lake County, UT. USDA Food Plans observation: July 2025. Alaska and Hawaii shoppers should expect substantially higher prices than the national figure. See food methodology.
Monthly Household Budget Benchmark
Full budget itemization.
Monthly Household Budget Benchmark — estimated monthly cost of basic needs, composed from federal public-domain sources. Two compositions: single adult (1BR rental) and family of four, two adults working, two children ages 4 and 8 (3BR rental). Not a recommended salary, not a poverty threshold, not a composite index. Methodology informed by the MIT Living Wage Calculator and EPI Family Budget Calculator; figures independently computed from primary federal sources.
Single adult · 1BR rental
Component
Monthly
Grain / source
Housing (1BR rental)
$1,460/mo
HUD SAFMR FY2026, ZIP 84180
Food
$290/mo
national, USDA Low-Cost Plan 2025, state price-adjusted
Transportation
$1,070/mo
national, BLS CEX 2024, state price-adjusted
Healthcare (out-of-pocket)
$180/mo
national, BLS CEX 2024, state price-adjusted
Internet + cellular
$122/mo
national, BLS CEX 2024 (no sub-state federal source for ISP price)
Other necessities
$472/mo
national, BLS CEX 2024, state price-adjusted
Civic engagement
$308/mo
national, BLS CEX 2024, state price-adjusted
Taxes (federal + FICA + state)
$1,022/mo
TY2025, iteratively solved
Total monthly
$4,924/mo
mixed grain
Total annual
$59,082/yr
mixed grain
Gross income required (pre-tax)
$59,082/yr
mixed grain, TY2025 tax solver
Single adult, no dependents, single filing status.
Family of four · 3BR rental
Two adults working, two children (ages 4 and 8). Married Filing Jointly.
Component
Monthly
Grain / source
Housing (3BR rental)
$2,340/mo
HUD SAFMR FY2026, ZIP 84180, 3BR
Food
$1,097/mo
national, USDA Family-of-4 Plan 2025, state price-adjusted
national, BLS CEX 2024 (no sub-state federal source for ISP price)
Other necessities
$472/mo
national, BLS CEX 2024, state price-adjusted
Civic engagement
$308/mo
national, BLS CEX 2024, state price-adjusted
Taxes (federal + FICA + state, MFJ)
$1,416/mo
TY2025, iteratively solved, MFJ + EITC + CTC
Total monthly
$8,772/mo
mixed grain
Total annual
$105,258/yr
mixed grain
Gross income required (pre-tax, combined)
$105,258/yr
mixed grain, TY2025 MFJ solver
Includes CTC $4,400/yr (TY2025 federal credits, MFJ).
Note: USDA family-of-4 food plan uses children ages 6–8 and 9–11; childcare modeled at ages 4 and 8. Small ~5% age-band inconsistency documented in methodology.
Component grains range from ZIP or county (housing, per HUD SAFMR/FMR coverage) to national (CEX-based rows adjusted to state price level via BEA Regional Price Parities). Childcare: county-grain DOL NDCP 2022, inflated by BLS CPI Child Care subindex (factor 1.2293, Jan 2022 → Apr 2026). Local income tax modeled for ~3,100+ jurisdictions in 16 states. Not a recommended salary; not a poverty threshold; components are not weighted into a composite score. See household budget methodology, family-of-four methodology, and local income tax methodology.
Source detail
Cost-of-living and household budget context
Source agency
Every City In The USA (derived from federal primary sources)
Dataset
Every City — Monthly Household Budget Composite (derived)
Vintage / period
Derived · updated after each upstream refresh
Native geography
Mixed public-source grain: city, county, metro, ZIP/FMR area, state, regional, and national inputs.
Transformation
Every City attaches documented source layers to a city and computes budget components; it does not publish one universal cost score.
Known limit: Benchmark context, not a salary recommendation, policy threshold, or city-precise price index.
Salt Lake City's closest published peers by population — same-state first, then nearest nationwide (fallback cohort; a full size, region, and cost-of-living model is planned).
Headline figures: BEA Regional Price Parities 2024 and the family-of-four Monthly Household Budget Benchmark. Build a full side-by-side on Compare cost of living.
Methodology
How these figures are computed.
Every figure on this page comes from a primary federal source. No composite index is produced; figures are presented per-component with grain labels so readers can trace each number to its source.
