Phoenix ranks among top 20 cities where $100K goes the furthest

PHOENIX — Phoenix ranks among the top 20 major cities where a $100,000 salary goes the furthest, according to a personal finance website.

Go Banking Rates looked at the nation’s 50 largest cities’ taxes and average costs to determine how much of a six-figure income would be left over after basic expenses.

Phoenix came in at No. 19 with more than $36,000 left over, while Mesa ranked 25th with nearly $35,800 left over.

Tucson beat both Valley cities, coming in at No. 12 with over $38,000 left over.

“Median monthly rent in Phoenix of $1,399 is pretty excellent in the grand scheme of things … especially for a city that’s expanding and booming like that,” Andrew DePietro, lead researcher for the website, told KTAR News 92.3 FM on Wednesday.

“The other, smaller itemized costs of living in Phoenix aren’t that bad either, in terms of food, groceries per month.”

DePietro said the one thing knocking Phoenix down was its average driving costs per year of over $12,000.

Memphis, Tennessee, came in first with more than $46,000 left over, followed by El Paso, Texas, and Detroit.

San Francisco came in last, where, notably, $100,000 wasn’t enough to even cover basic expenses. The average income left over dropped into the negatives by more than $2,700.

“I think it’s important for people looking for jobs … (to) really think about affordability, and look into the cities,” DePietro said.

“Phoenix is a large city and very diverse. You can definitely find options there, and you would get affordability, too.”

KTAR News 92.3 FM’s Peter Samore contributed to this report. 

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