America’s 50 Most Affordable Cities With the Best Weather Year-Round
The trade-off for living in a city with incredible weather usually means paying a lot of money to soak up this year-round perk. But this isn’t true of every locale. A new MoneyLion study has identified 50 U.S. cities where the weather is amazing and the total cost of living does not exceed $75,000 annually.
MoneyLion analyzed several resources, including Farmers’ Almanac, to determine which U.S. cities have the best weather. All qualifying cities included in the study were required to have at least 10,000 total population. Additional factors sourced include each city’s median household income, average home value (via the Zillow Home Value Index), annual cost of living and livability score. The ranking is in order of most affordable cities with the best weather.
Key Findings
Nogales, Arizona, ranked first as America’s most affordable city with the best year-round weather. Rounding out the top five are Rio Grande City, Texas; Orangeburg, South Carolina; Las Cruces, New Mexico; and Raymondville, Texas.
Texas dominated with 14 total ranking cities and four metros snagging spots in the top 10. The cities and ranks are as follows: Rio Grande City (#2), Raymondville (#5), Del Rio (#6), Fredericksburg (#9), Kingsville (#13), Beaumont (#14), Beeville (#15), Galveston (#16), Rockport (#27), El Paso (#31), Corpus Christi (#35), Abilene (#42), Midland (#44) and San Antonio (#50).
Georgia had an impressive turnout with eight ranking cities: Tifton (#8), Vidalia (#19), Brunswick (#22), Dublin (#23), Athens (#25), Columbus (#32), Augusta (#40) and Macon (#48).
Only two Florida cities managed to crack the top 50. The costs of living in Ocala (#33) and Lakeland (#47) are less than $50,000 annually in each respective Sunshine State locale.
On a tight budget? The total cost of living is less than $35,000 annually in eight cities. Five of these cities, including Raymondville, Rio Grande City, Kingsville, Beeville and Beaumont, are in Texas. The remaining three are Orangeburg; Memphis, Tennessee; and Douglas, Arizona.
Here are the top 50 U.S. cities with the best year-round weather and overall affordability.
1. Nogales, Arizona
Median household income: $43,214
Average home value: $226,873
Total cost of living (annually): $36,788
Livability: 66
2. Rio Grande City, Texas
Median household income: $44,577
Average home value: $146,670
Total cost of living (annually): $31,488
Livability: 65
3. Orangeburg, South Carolina
Median household income: $38,635
Average home value: $169,748
Total cost of living (annually): $33,239
Livability: 52
4. Las Cruces, New Mexico
Median household income: $55,422
Average home value: $294,884
Total cost of living (annually): $41,892
Livability: 60
5. Raymondville, Texas
Median household income: $51,442
Average home value: $111,958
Total cost of living (annually): $29,314
Livability: 59
6. Del Rio, Texas
Median household income: $66,158
Average home value: $212,815
Total cost of living (annually): $36,445
Livability: 70
7. Port Townsend, Washington
Median household income: $62,606
Average home value: $661,541
Total cost of living (annually): $67,400
Livability: 60
8. Tifton, Georgia
Median household income: $45,298
Average home value: $215,554
Total cost of living (annually): $36,992
Livability: 71
9. Fredericksburg, Texas
Median household income: $64,534
Average home value: $527,372
Total cost of living (annually): $58,489
Livability: 73
10. Safford, Arizona
Median household income: $65,647
Average home value: $291,257
Total cost of living (annually): $42,272
Livability: 61
11. Albuquerque, New Mexico
Median household income: $68,317
Average home value: $353,448
Total cost of living (annually): $46,626
Livability: 72
12. Santa Fe, New Mexico
Median household income: $73,482
Average home value: $610,674
Total cost of living (annually): $64,335
Livability: 74
13. Kingsville, Texas
Median household income: $58,148
Average home value: $145,801
Total cost of living (annually): $32,366
Livability: 69
14. Beaumont, Texas
Median household income: $56,997
Average home value: $177,580
Total cost of living (annually): $34,603
Livability: 65
15. Beeville, Texas
Median household income: $50,784
Average home value: $167,409
Total cost of living (annually): $33,991
Livability: 69
16. Galveston, Texas
Median household income: $55,631
Average home value: $332,121
Total cost of living (annually): $45,379
Livability: 77
17. Spartanburg, South Carolina
Median household income: $51,964
Average home value: $237,828
Total cost of living (annually): $38,944
Livability: 75
18. Greenville, South Carolina
Median household income: $71,472
Average home value: $330,479
Total cost of living (annually): $45,354
Livability: 82
19. Vidalia, Georgia
Median household income: $49,370
Average home value: $191,010
Total cost of living (annually): $35,760
Livability: 61
20. Hattiesburg, Mississippi
Median household income: $46,342
Average home value: $225,064
Total cost of living (annually): $38,137
Livability: 78
21. Boise, Idaho
Median household income: $83,904
Average home value: $512,973
Total cost of living (annually): $57,977
Livability: 84
22. Brunswick, Georgia
Median household income: $40,288
Average home value: $260,358
Total cost of living (annually): $40,590
Livability: 53
23. Dublin, Georgia
Median household income: $42,988
Average home value: $197,044
Total cost of living (annually): $36,255
Livability: 62
24. Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
Median household income: $60,394
Average home value: $375,347
Total cost of living (annually): $48,654
Livability: 67
25. Athens, Georgia
Median household income: $52,974
Average home value: $360,063
Total cost of living (annually): $47,661
Livability: 80
26. Douglas, Arizona
Median household income: $42,019
Average home value: $172,295
Total cost of living (annually): $34,774
Livability: 69
27. Rockport, Texas
Median household income: $72,174
Average home value: $314,555
Total cost of living (annually): $44,578
Livability: 69
28. Green Valley, Arizona
Median household income: $62,063
Average home value: $310,018
Total cost of living (annually): $44,281
Livability: 58
29. Beaufort, South Carolina
Median household income: $61,220
Average home value: $419,387
Total cost of living (annually): $51,821
Livability: 71
30. Saint George, Utah
Median household income: $76,508
Average home value: $541,156
Total cost of living (annually): $60,204
Livability: 79
31. El Paso, Texas
Median household income: $59,745
Average home value: $238,814
Total cost of living (annually): $39,429
Livability: 81
32. Columbus, Georgia
Median household income: $58,073
Average home value: $177,245
Total cost of living (annually): $35,246
Livability: 64
33. Ocala, Florida
Median household income: $56,376
Average home value: $271,413
Total cost of living (annually): $41,753
Livability: 71
34. Bend, Oregon
Median household income: $96,394
Average home value: $753,250
Total cost of living (annually): $74,936
Livability: 84
35. Corpus Christi, Texas
Median household income: $67,394
Average home value: $228,934
Total cost of living (annually): $38,855
Livability: 78
36. Tucson, Arizona
Median household income: $57,073
Average home value: $334,596
Total cost of living (annually): $46,153
Livability: 73
37. Sierra Vista, Arizona
Median household income: $70,291
Average home value: $305,594
Total cost of living (annually): $44,193
Livability: 78
38. Indianapolis
Median household income: $66,219
Average home value: $238,039
Total cost of living (annually): $39,558
Livability: 76
39. North Augusta, South Carolina
Median household income: $86,092
Average home value: $284,115
Total cost of living (annually): $42,790
Livability: 69
40. Augusta, Georgia
Median household income: $55,485
Average home value: $189,501
Total cost of living (annually): $36,289
Livability: 64
41. Hampton, Virginia
Median household income: $69,621
Average home value: $285,884
Total cost of living (annually): $42,953
Livability: 74
42. Abilene, Texas
Median household income: $62,648
Average home value: $222,581
Total cost of living (annually): $38,598
Livability: 75
43. North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
Median household income: $72,722
Average home value: $487,882
Total cost of living (annually): $56,916
Livability: 69
44. Midland, Texas
Median household income: $89,585
Average home value: $332,426
Total cost of living (annually): $46,225
Livability: 78
45. Portland, Maine
Median household income: $79,540
Average home value: $590,351
Total cost of living (annually): $64,045
Livability: 85
46. Memphis, Tennessee
Median household income: $51,736
Average home value: $145,775
Total cost of living (annually): $33,463
Livability: 70
47. Lakeland, Florida
Median household income: $64,185
Average home value: $316,852
Total cost of living (annually): $45,253
Livability: 77
48. Macon, Georgia
Median household income: $51,234
Average home value: $175,625
Total cost of living (annually): $35,623
Livability: 75
49. Wichita, Kansas
Median household income: $64,620
Average home value: $209,512
Total cost of living (annually): $37,958
Livability: 68
50. San Antonio
Median household income: $65,056
Average home value: $252,694
Total cost of living (annually): $40,936
Livability: 80
Methodology: For this study, MoneyLion analyzed cities across the U.S. to find the most affordable cities with the best weather year-round. First MoneyLion found cities with the best weather using online sources including 247WallSt.com, ClimeCostmos.com, Grillio.com, U.S. News & World Report, HowStuffWorks.com, UnofficialNetworks.com, clutter.com, currentresults.com, extraspace.com, farmersalmanac.com, homesnacks.com, iroamly.com, moneytalksnews.com, Redfin.com and WorldAtlas.com. For each city several factors were sourced from the U.S. Census 2024 5-Year ACS including total population, population ages 65 and over, total households, and median household income. To qualify for this study, the city must have at least 10,000 total population. For each city the cost-of-living indexes were sourced from Sperling's BestPlaces and using the national average expenditure costs, as sourced from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Expenditure Survey, the average expenditure costs were calculated for each city. The average single-family home value was sourced from Zillow Home Value Index. 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 can be calculated for each city. Using the average mortgage and expenditure costs, the total cost of living for necessities was calculated for each city. The livability index was sourced from AreaVibes and included as supplemental information. The cities were sorted to show the most affordable cities with the best weather. All data is up to date as of July 28, 2026.
This article was provided by MoneyLion.com for informational purposes only and should not be construed as financial, legal or tax advice.
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