The full methodology now lives on the CostLiving Engine page. It documents every named source, the single dollar anchor, the resolution paths, and the quarterly refresh cycle that produces the figures on every loc page.
For readers who want the headline numbers without leaving this page, the four lifestyle tiers and eight category weights below are applied identically to every one of our 888 locations. The dollar figures themselves come from the named public datasets, calibrated against a single anchor. Full sources, the refresh cycle, and the validation gate are documented on the CostLiving Engine page.
Each loc page renders the four tiers above. The Moderate tier is the baseline that the engine produces directly; the others are fixed multiples.
| Category | Weight |
|---|---|
| ๐ Housing / Rent | 38% |
| ๐Food & Groceries | 20% |
| ๐Transport | 9% |
| โกUtilities | 7% |
| ๐ฅHealthcare | 7% |
| ๐ญEntertainment | 9% |
| ๐Clothing | 5% |
| ๐ฆMiscellaneous | 5% |
The CostLiving Engine page lists every named data source, what role it plays, the refresh cadence, the operating principles, and what the engine deliberately does not attempt to do. Per-loc figures are on any of our 888 location pages. US household-level figures are on the 2026 US cost of living report.
Based on moderate lifestyle estimates ยท click any location to see full breakdown