Cost of Living - Is Cincinnati Still Affordable?
Is Cincinnati Affordable Post-Grad?
Introduction
All seniors in college have been met with the daunting task of figuring out the big question - what’s next? We have gotten comfortable in our college towns, living with our best friends and walking a few blocks to the local bars after a big game. But our time as undergraduates are nearing the end, we are all left wondering what life will look like for us, as functioning members of society, without the safety net of school to catch us. Whether our next journey takes us to further our education, or to start our careers, we all are met with the difficult task of where we will go to start our lives. Will we live in our hometowns? Will we stay in our college town? Or will we move somewhere completely new?
There are so many aspects to consider when choosing where you might live. Although I might not be able to predict how well you might like a certain city, I think it’s crucial to at least know if you are able to afford living in that city. As a soon-to-be Xavier University graduate, I realized that I too was going to have to figure out my future plans. As a born and raised Cincinnatian, I have always been in love with this city. Although I have lived here my entire life, there never ceases to be something new and intriguing to visit or try. As I thought more about staying in Cincinnati after graduation, I realized that other soon-to-be graduates might be considering staying as well. Many of those people might not be from this area, and might not have experienced much outside of Norwood. That is why I am diving into the cost of living in Cincinnati, to help people make this daunting decision just a little bit easier.
Finding out if a city is affordable can be more difficult than one might think, after all, the cost of living kind of changes depending on what you do! The point behind this research is to determine if Cincinnati is an affordable city, and in turn help people make that difficult decision of where to live just a little bit easier!
How Will this data help us understand if Cincinnati is truly an affordable city?
I will be using cost of living data from Numbeo, which is the world’s largest cost of living database. I intend to find out if Cincinnati is still an affordable city by looking at the cost of living data from Cincinnati and comparing it two two cities - Columbus and Chicago. I chose these cities for good reason. New York Times has claimed that Cincinnati and Columbus are “twin” cities in terms of population, jobs, income, cost of living, etc. I wanted to compare the two to see how different or similar they really are, and if one might be more affordable than another. I also wanted to compare Cincinnati to Chicago because Chicago is arguably the biggest city in the Midwest. I wanted to look at a bustling, exciting city to see how different they would be in terms of cost of living. Looking and Cincinnati and Chicago it might be obvious that Chicago would be more expensive, but with the rising cost of things in 2023, it really does make you wonder how far apart these cities might be in terms of cost. Lastly yet most importantly, I will be comparing all of these prices to the average price in America, to get a real feel for just how affordable Cincinnati really is on average. All of the data that will be used is individualized to each city (and for the US as a whole), and goes through the typical items/services that might be purchased (milk, gas, coffee, dinner, rent, etc.). Within this analysis, I’m going to be focusing on certain cost of living items/services that are relatable to people post-graduation. That is things like transportation costs, food, coffee (a must), beer, rent, and other things that directly impact us daily. Things like houses, brand new cars, etc. aren’t something that is always attainable for people directly out of college, so I won’t be focusing on those things. This will help us really understand whether it is affordable to live in these cities or not post graduation!
Here is where my data is from: https://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/
The Necessities
In this part I am going to do an analysis on the things that we obviously have to pay for or need in our daily lives and see how affordable things are like food (groceries), a place to live, and transportation/gas. Although this won’t be an extensive list of all the neccesities, these are the main ones that we encounter on a daily basis and are most important to consider when deciding to stay/move to a city. Of course affordability is a broader concept that should also take into account other living expenses beyond just the one’s covered in my analysis.
Groceries
These bar charts all represent the most common grocery store foods and their cost for each city (Cincinnati, Columbus, Chicago, as well as the US Average). Cincinnati tends to have lower average prices for items like “Apples (1 lb)”, “Rice (white, 1 lb)”, and “Potato (1 lb)” when compared to Chicago and Columbus. However, for items like “Chicken Fillets (1 lb)” and “Local Cheese (1 lb)”, Cincinnati’s prices are slightly higher than the USA average but remain competitive with the other cities.
The cost of “Oranges (1 lb)” and “Tomato (1 lb)” is clearly less in Cincinnati than in Chicago and the US Average, which indicate a general trend of affordability in fresh produce.
Across most grocery items shown, Cincinnati does not have the highest average price, often falling below Chicago and the USA average, and sometimes below Columbus.
Considering all of these data points, Cincinnati seems to be an affordable city for grocery shopping when compared to Chicago and the USA average, with competitive prices in Columbus. This cost-effectiveness for groceries can be a super important factor in the overall affordability of a city for someone considering where to live post-grad.
Apartments
This analysis displays apartment costs, where Cincinnati is showing as more affordable in comparison to Chicago, especially within the city center. The cost of apartments, both in the city center and on the outskirts, is significantly lower than in Chicago. When compared to Columbus, Cincinnati’s housing costs are slightly higher, yet they remain below the USA average, suggesting Cincinnati is a relatively economical option for housing post-graduation.
I specifically chose to focus on apartments instead of mortgages because as a post-grad, it’s not likely we will be buying a house within the year, although I am sure there are some exceptions!
Gas
This dives into the cost of gasoline. Cincinnati’s gasoline prices are notably lower than Chicago, which may reflect lower transportation expenses. The prices are comparable but still lower than Columbus and sit just the USA average, reinforcing Cincinnati’s position as a cost-effective city for transportation.
The Fun Stuff
In this part I am going to do an analysis on the fun things and hobbies in life that we typically pay for like alcohol/beer, clothes shopping, or a fun night out for dinner.
Alcohol: Beer & Wine
We all have our preferences on what we like to drink, but I broke it down into two simple categories of wine and beer. Although this doesn’t cover everyone’s favorite drink, I still think that the prices of these basic alcoholic beverages are a great tell-tale of the prices of other alcohol that could be purchased.
The first chart indicates that Cincinnati is much more affordable for purchasing domestic beer than Chicago and is about on par with Columbus. This could imply a lower cost for social and leisure activities in Cincinnati compared to the larger metro of Chicago.
As for the wine graph, the cost of a bottle of wine in Cincinnati is between the slightly higher Chicago prices and the lower prices in Columbus, but sits on par with the US average, which suggests a middle ground in terms of affordability for alcoholic beverages.
Clothes
This analysis compares the prices of different clothing items that most people end up purchasing in their life. This analysis shows that Cincinnati is relatively cheaper for purchasing jeans and dresses than Chicago, though Columbus offers the lowest prices among the three cities for the most part. Cincinnati’s prices are above the USA average for business shoes, indicating mixed feelings about the clothing category. Luckily in this day and age, we do a lot of online shopping, which means that the prices typically stay the same no matter where you are or where you decide to live!
Date night? Meal with friends?
We all know that cooking at home can be a drag sometimes and it’s inevitable that we will want to treat ourselves to a night night out on the town and sit down at a fun restaurant! Lets look at how those average prices compare.
The data indicates that Cincinnati has the lowest price point at $60.00 which suggests that it is the most affordable city compared to Chicago, Columbus, and even the USA average to have a little date night out! Chicago is the most expensive at $100.00, while Columbus and the national average are closer in range at $70.00 and $75.00. For a recent graduate, Cincinnati’s lower cost could be a significant advantage considering that as a young recent graduate, we will often be mixing and mingling at different restaurants - whether that’s networking, dating, or just catching up with friends.
City Price
1 Cincinnati 60.00 $
2 Chicago 100.00 $
3 Columbus 70.00 $
4 USA Average 75.00 $Conclusion
Throughout my analysis, Cincinnati seems to emerge as an affordable city when compared to Chicago, Columbus, and the USA average across a variety of different living expenses. From grocery items to housing costs, transportation, and leisure activities like dining out and enjoying a drink, Cincinnati offers lower average prices, which contributes to a potentially lower overall cost of living. While Columbus sometimes presents as the least expensive option, particularly in clothing and certain grocery items, Cincinnati strikes a balance between affordability and the amenities offered by a larger city. Chicago, as expected with its big-city status, often has the highest costs. For recent graduates considering their finances, which are typically constrained by entry-level salaries and student loans, Cincinnati’s cost profile is pretty attractive. I believe my analysis suggests that one can enjoy the benefits of an urban setting without the financial pressures associated with more expensive metropolitan areas like Chicago. The balance of affordable living with the cultural and professional opportunities available in Cincinnati could make it an ideal choice for those looking to establish themselves financially and professionally post-grad!!