Several major US cities are seeing living costs rise faster than others, with New York City and multiple West Coast metros emerging as hotspots of growing affordability pressure, according to a new analysis shared with Newsweek.
The findings come from a study conducted by Plasma, a company that develops stablecoin products and financial infrastructure, which examined how rising expenses are reshaping affordability across the country’s largest urban areas.
Plasma analyzed the 30 most populous US cities using a weighted system that combined inflation data with housing costs, average monthly living expenses, and local salary levels. The review included rent prices, groceries, utilities, transportation, childcare, clothing, and leisure costs.
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To capture public concern, the study also tracked search trends for the term “cost of living”, using data from KeywordTool. Housing, salary, and expense figures were sourced from Numbeo, a crowdsourced database that tracks everyday cost metrics.
All data was current as of January 14, 2026, according to Newsweek.
New York City tops the rankings
New York City ranked first among US cities where cost-of-living anxiety is most pronounced. “The Big Apple ranks as the no. 1 US city where cost-of-living anxiety is rampant, with more than 26,100 related searches made each month,” the report said.
Despite an average monthly salary of $5,250, housing costs remain a major strain.
A one-bedroom apartment in the city center averages $4,564 per month, while essential living expenses total about $1,646. Inflation across the metro area stands at 3.4 percent, compounding affordability concerns.
West Coast cities dominate the top five
San Diego ranked second on the list. The report noted, “Though residents of this seaside city may be raking home $5,759 on average each month, this hasn’t shielded them from rising costs.”
One-bedroom rents average $3,206, with monthly living expenses exceeding $1,300.
San Francisco placed third, even though it boasts the highest average monthly salary at $7,508. “Costs remain relentlessly high,” the report said, pointing to average rent of $3,458 and living expenses above $1,600. The city logged over 6,200 related searches.
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Los Angeles and Seattle rounded out the top five.
A Plasma spokesperson told Newsweek that the spike in search activity points to widespread concern. “Many Americans are worried about the cost of living and the level of search demand illustrates the level of anxiety about rising costs,” the spokesperson said, noting that economic pressures in one city increasingly affect financial mobility nationwide.