Renting vs. Buying a Home: Which Is Cheaper in All 50 States
In 44 of 50 states, renting costs less than owning. The state-by-state breakdown and when buying still makes financial sense.
In 44 out of 50 states, it costs more to own a home than to rent one right now.
That’s not a prediction. It’s the current math, based on Zillow home values, current 30-year mortgage rates, and rental averages from Apartments.com. Data collected in December 2025, reported by Yahoo Finance.
If you’re trying to decide whether to buy or keep renting, start here.
The Short Answer: Renting Is Cheaper in Most of the Country
A 20% down payment on the median home, financed at today’s 30-year mortgage rate, costs more per month than the average rent in 44 states.
The states where buying is cheaper are the exception, not the rule. Six of them: New York, Illinois, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Mississippi, and Louisiana. In every other state, you’re paying a premium to own.
The biggest gap is Hawaii. Renters there pay $1,815 a month on average. Buyers pay $4,697 a month. That’s $2,882 more per month to own. Over $34,000 a year. Not a rounding error.
The 6 States Where Owning Beats Renting
If you’re in one of these states, the monthly math actually favors buying.
| State | Monthly Rent | Monthly Mortgage | Monthly Savings (Own) |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York | $2,994 | $2,367 | $627 |
| Illinois | $1,665 | $1,395 | $270 |
| Pennsylvania | $1,525 | $1,366 | $159 |
| West Virginia | $970 | $828 | $142 |
| Mississippi | $994 | $909 | $85 |
| Louisiana | $1,054 | $1,023 | $31 |
New York is the most interesting one here. At $627/month cheaper to own than rent, that’s real money. But it comes with New York property taxes, maintenance on an older housing stock, and a commitment to staying put long enough to recoup transaction costs. The monthly math works. The full picture is more complicated.
Louisiana’s $31/month advantage is practically a coin flip. Insurance costs in coastal Louisiana could wipe that out entirely.
All 50 States: Rent vs. Mortgage
Here’s the full picture. Data source: Yahoo Finance analysis using Zillow Home Value Index and Apartments.com rental averages, December 2025. Mortgage calculations assume 20% down at current 30-year rates.
| State | Monthly Rent | Monthly Mortgage | Cheaper Option |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $1,051 | $1,120 | Rent |
| Alaska | $1,306 | $1,933 | Rent |
| Arizona | $1,327 | $2,100 | Rent |
| Arkansas | $959 | $1,058 | Rent |
| California | $2,207 | $3,839 | Rent |
| Colorado | $1,564 | $2,688 | Rent |
| Connecticut | $1,868 | $2,220 | Rent |
| Delaware | $1,516 | $1,948 | Rent |
| Florida | $1,678 | $1,937 | Rent |
| Georgia | $1,425 | $1,626 | Rent |
| Hawaii | $1,815 | $4,697 | Rent |
| Idaho | $1,366 | $2,277 | Rent |
| Illinois | $1,665 | $1,395 | Own |
| Indiana | $1,109 | $1,222 | Rent |
| Iowa | $962 | $1,132 | Rent |
| Kansas | $1,073 | $1,166 | Rent |
| Kentucky | $1,070 | $1,107 | Rent |
| Louisiana | $1,054 | $1,023 | Own |
| Maine | $1,699 | $1,945 | Rent |
| Maryland | $1,667 | $2,156 | Rent |
| Massachusetts | $2,513 | $3,265 | Rent |
| Michigan | $1,140 | $1,225 | Rent |
| Minnesota | $1,330 | $1,701 | Rent |
| Mississippi | $994 | $909 | Own |
| Missouri | $1,124 | $1,258 | Rent |
| Montana | $1,413 | $2,249 | Rent |
| Nebraska | $1,097 | $1,322 | Rent |
| Nevada | $1,325 | $2,260 | Rent |
| New Hampshire | $1,852 | $2,524 | Rent |
| New Jersey | $2,087 | $2,833 | Rent |
| New Mexico | $1,175 | $1,517 | Rent |
| New York | $2,994 | $2,367 | Own |
| North Carolina | $1,344 | $1,627 | Rent |
| North Dakota | $968 | $1,388 | Rent |
| Ohio | $1,073 | $1,178 | Rent |
| Oklahoma | $907 | $1,057 | Rent |
| Oregon | $1,472 | $2,456 | Rent |
| Pennsylvania | $1,525 | $1,366 | Own |
| Rhode Island | $1,833 | $2,436 | Rent |
| South Carolina | $1,380 | $1,478 | Rent |
| South Dakota | $979 | $1,531 | Rent |
| Tennessee | $1,350 | $1,603 | Rent |
| Texas | $1,243 | $1,461 | Rent |
| Utah | $1,387 | $2,646 | Rent |
| Vermont | $1,838 | $1,908 | Rent |
| Virginia | $1,774 | $2,005 | Rent |
| Washington | $1,830 | $2,966 | Rent |
| West Virginia | $970 | $828 | Own |
| Wisconsin | $1,243 | $1,586 | Rent |
| Wyoming | $1,161 | $1,752 | Rent |
What This Data Doesn’t Include
The monthly comparison above is useful. But it’s not the whole answer.
Mortgage payments include principal. Every month you pay down a loan, a portion of that payment builds equity. Renters get no equity credit for their monthly payment. Over 30 years, the homeowner owns an asset. The renter doesn’t.
On the other side, owning comes with costs renters don’t pay. Property taxes. Homeowner’s insurance. Maintenance. The general rule is to budget 1-2% of home value per year for upkeep. On a $400,000 home, that’s $4,000 to $8,000 a year that doesn’t show up in a mortgage payment comparison.
Then there’s the down payment. That 20% you put down isn’t gone. It’s in the house. But it’s also not in the stock market. $80,000 down on a $400,000 home is $80,000 that can’t compound elsewhere.
The honest version of the rent vs. buy question isn’t just about monthly cost. It’s about where your money works harder over time, given your specific numbers.
The Real Question: What Do You Do With the Difference?
If renting is $700/month cheaper in your state, that $700 matters.
Spend it and it’s gone. Invest it consistently for 20 years and it can be worth a lot more than whatever equity you might have built.
This is exactly what our Mortgage Payoff vs. Invest Scenario Planner is built for. Put in your actual mortgage balance, rate, and how much extra cash you have each month. It shows you two paths side by side: accelerate the payoff, or invest the difference. You see the numbers at any horizon you pick.
For real estate investors running the numbers on whether to buy a rental property in any of these states, the Cap Rate Calculator lets you run net operating income against purchase price to see what the actual return looks like before you commit. Readers thinking bigger than a single rental should also see our LoopNet commercial real estate guide, which covers triple-net leases, cap-rate norms by asset class, and how the commercial side actually prices.
If you’re considering relocating for the affordability difference (or for the no-state-tax states like Texas, Florida, Tennessee, Nevada, Washington), the Move-To-City Financial Comparison extends the math to disposable income after state tax and cost-of-living adjustments. Big enough delta and the move accelerates FIRE by years on the same gross salary. Plan to retire before 65 in any of those states? The pre-Medicare healthcare bridge tool handles the second-biggest cost of leaving a job early after housing - the ACA premium math and HSA drawdown order to get to Medicare without a five-figure surprise.
When Buying Still Makes Sense
Even in states where renting is cheaper month-to-month, buying can win over time if:
You plan to stay for at least 7 to 10 years. Transaction costs on buying and selling a home run 8-10% of the purchase price when you add it all up. You need time for appreciation and equity to absorb that.
You’re in a market where rents are rising fast. If your rent increases 5% a year and your mortgage payment is fixed, the math shifts in favor of owning within a few years.
You value stability. A fixed mortgage rate locks your payment for 30 years. Your landlord can raise your rent annually.
You’re building toward retirement. Owning a paid-off home by retirement eliminates housing costs from your monthly budget permanently. That changes the FIRE number math significantly.
None of this means you should buy a home you can’t afford. But it does mean the “renting is always throwing money away” and “buying always beats renting” camps are both wrong.
The Bottom Line
Renting is cheaper in 44 states right now. That’s the current reality of high home prices and elevated mortgage rates.
It doesn’t mean buying is wrong. It means the math needs to be your math, not a general rule.
If you’re in one of the 44 states where renting is currently cheaper, run your actual numbers before assuming you should rush into ownership. If you’re in New York, Illinois, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Mississippi, or Louisiana, the monthly math already works in favor of buying, which changes the calculus entirely.
Use the Mortgage Payoff vs. Invest Scenario Planner to see how your specific numbers play out over time. That’s the calculation that matters.
If you’re considering moving states entirely to chase better housing math, see where Americans are moving in 2026 and run a side-by-side on the Cost of Living Calculator (117 US cities).
RELATED READING