Dallas guide

How much does it cost to live in Dallas?

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This article is part of our Moving to Dallas guide.

Last updated October 23, 2026

A single adult with no children needs about $48,489 a year before taxes to cover basic costs in Dallas, according to the MIT Living Wage Calculator. That works out to $23.31 an hour for full-time work, or about $4,041 a month. Housing is the biggest line, followed by transportation, because most Dallas households drive. Texas has no state income tax, but you pay for that through an 8.25% sales tax and high property taxes, which landlords build into rent.

Basic budget, 1 adult$48,489/yrMIT, Dallas County, Feb 2026
Living wage$23.31/hrMIT, Feb 2026
Average 1-bedroom rent$1,317/moZumper, Oct 2026
State income taxNoneSales tax 8.25%

What does a basic monthly budget look like in Dallas?

MIT’s calculator adds up what one adult with no children needs to pay for the basics in Dallas County. It is a bare-bones budget. It leaves out savings, eating out, travel and paying down debt. The monthly column below is the annual figure divided by 12.

ExpensePer monthPer year
Housing$1,484$17,805
Transportation$703$8,440
Taxes$591$7,090
Other necessities$339$4,067
Food$335$4,019
Medical$253$3,032
Civic$215$2,583
Internet and mobile$121$1,454
Total$4,041$48,489

For context, Texas uses the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour. MIT’s living wage for Dallas is more than three times that.

How much is rent?

Rent is falling in Dallas. Zumper’s listings put the average one-bedroom at $1,317 a month and the average two-bedroom at $1,839 as of October 17, 2026. Those are down 9% and 11% from a year earlier. In May 2026, Zumper’s one-bedroom figure was $1,350, so the slide has continued through the summer.

Prices vary a lot by neighborhood and building age. Expect to pay a security deposit too; Texas does not cap it, but the landlord must refund it within 30 days of move-out once you give a forwarding address. Our guide to how renting works in Dallas covers applications, fees and leases. To compare specific buildings by year built, size and pet policy, try our sister site, DallasApartmentBuildings.com.

What taxes will you pay?

  • No state income tax. Texas does not tax wages, so your paycheck only loses federal income tax, Social Security and Medicare.
  • Sales tax is 8.25%. That is 6.25% for the state, 1% for the city and 1% for DART.
  • Property taxes are high. Texas leans on them to fund schools, cities and counties.

For the 2025 tax year, a property in the City of Dallas and Dallas ISD pays these rates per $100 of taxable value, according to the Dallas County Tax Office:

Taxing unit2025 rate per $100
Dallas ISD$0.993835
City of Dallas$0.698800
Dallas County$0.215500
Parkland Hospital$0.212000
Dallas College$0.106575
Total$2.226710

That is roughly 2.2% of a property’s taxable value each year. For the 2026 tax year, the City of Dallas trimmed its rate to $0.6978 (adopted September 16, 2026), while Dallas County adopted $0.248650, an increase.

Renters don’t get a tax bill, but they still pay. Landlords fold property taxes into rent. The Texas Public Policy Foundation, citing Texas Apartment Association testimony, estimates that about 20% of rent goes to local property taxes.

How much does it cost to get around?

Transportation is the second-largest cost in MIT’s budget, at $703 a month. Most of that is owning a car. Read do you need a car in Dallas before you decide.

  • Car insurance is expensive. NerdWallet puts full coverage in Dallas at about $4,230 a year (October 2026), compared with $3,652 statewide. Insurify’s October 2026 figures are lower: $244 a month for full coverage and $135 for liability only. Your rate depends on your age, record, credit and ZIP code.
  • Registration has fixed fees. Texas charges $50.75 plus $1 for TexasSure, plus county fees and a $90 new-resident tax. You need a passing emissions test in Dallas County first.
  • Tolls add up. Since July 1, 2025, NTTA charges TollTag users 22 cents a mile. Drivers without a tag pay ZipCash rates, roughly double. NTTA adjusts tolls every two years.
  • DART is the cheaper option. A local 3-hour pass is $3, a local day pass is $6 and a monthly pass is $126. The regional day pass dropped from $12 to $9 on March 1, 2026. Reduced fares are half price.

See how public transit works in Dallas for routes and passes.

What about utilities?

Most of Dallas has a deregulated electricity market. Oncor owns the wires and bills a delivery charge that every customer pays. You pick the retail provider and plan yourself, usually on PowerToChoose.org.

On October 22, 2026, the median 12-month fixed-rate plan in Dallas cost about 15.4 cents per kWh at 1,000 kWh of use, delivery included, according to ElectricRates.org. That is about $154 for a 1,000 kWh month. The cheapest 12-month fixed plan was about 14.1 cents. Plan prices change often, so check current offers before you sign. Summer is the expensive season: air conditioning can push a home to 1,500 to 2,000 kWh a month, and variable-rate plans can spike from July through September. A smaller apartment uses less, but budget for higher bills in summer. The Dallas weather guide explains why.

What salary do you need?

To meet MIT’s basic budget alone, you need $48,489 a year. The table below shows MIT’s typical Texas salaries by job type. These are statewide Texas figures, not Dallas-specific ones.

Occupation groupTypical Texas salary
Management$133,180
Legal$121,730
Computer and math$110,420
Architecture and engineering$102,180
Healthcare practitioners$97,480
Business and financial$86,050
Education$60,370
Sales$50,320
Office and admin$47,040
Food preparation$31,040

For the metro area itself, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the average wage across all jobs in Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington was $33.96 an hour in May 2025. That is about $70,600 a year for full-time work, slightly above the national average of $33.54. Our Dallas job market guide has more on who is hiring.

How does Dallas compare with other big cities?

Dallas sits near Houston on cost and well below New York. Basic budgets and living wages are MIT figures for one adult with no children, by county.

City (county)Basic budgetLiving wageState income taxSales taxTransit fare
Dallas (Dallas)$48,489$23.31None8.25%$3
Houston (Harris)$44,989$21.63None8.25%$1.25
Chicago (Cook)$52,909$25.444.95%10.5%$2.50
New York (Manhattan)$79,469$38.21Up to 10.9%8.875%$3
Miami (Miami-Dade)$54,037$25.98None7%$2.25 ($2.75 from 2027)

Dallas’s $3 fare is a 3-hour DART pass, which covers transfers. Houston’s basic budget is about $3,500 a year lower. Chicago and Miami cost roughly $4,400 to $5,500 more, and Chicago adds a state income tax and a higher sales tax. Manhattan’s basic budget is about $31,000 higher than Dallas’s.

Dallas ranks 4th of the nine cities in our Big City Moving Index on how easy it is to afford alone: a typical one-bedroom takes about 33% of the income MIT says one adult needs there. The index puts rent, the income you need, minimum wage, taxes and transit for all nine cities side by side.

How can you keep costs down?

  1. Negotiate rent. With rents down about 9% in a year, ask for a lower rate, free weeks or waived fees.
  2. Live near DART rail. Going car-free, or down to one car, saves insurance, gas, parking and tolls.
  3. Get a TollTag if you drive. Paying ZipCash costs about twice as much per mile.
  4. Shop for electricity. Compare fixed-rate plans on PowerToChoose.org and read the fact label for the 1,000 kWh price.
  5. Compare car insurance quotes. Rates differ by thousands of dollars between companies and ZIP codes.
  6. Plan your move. See what a cross-country move costs and our moving to Dallas hub.

Frequently asked questions about the cost of living in Dallas

Is Dallas cheaper than Houston?

Not quite. MIT’s basic budget for a single adult is $48,489 in Dallas County and $44,989 in Harris County. Both have no state income tax and 8.25% sales tax.

Is $50,000 a good salary in Dallas?

It covers MIT’s basic budget of $48,489 for one adult, but with little room for savings. The metro average wage is about $70,600 a year.

Do renters pay property tax in Dallas?

Not directly. Landlords pay it and pass it into rent; one estimate puts it at about 20% of what renters pay.

How much is electricity in a Dallas summer?

At the October 2026 median of about 15.4 cents per kWh, a home using 1,500 to 2,000 kWh would pay roughly $230 to $310 a month. Apartments usually use less.

Sources

Go Big City Team
Author: Go Big City Team

More Dallas questions

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Next step: see the full Moving to Dallas guide for rent, costs, transit, weather, jobs and neighborhoods in one place.

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