The Cost of Living for Singles in the City

In the 15 largest cities in the United States, single homeowners' annual housing costs can vary between $7,188 and $24,168, according to the Economic Policy Institute's recently updated family budget calculator.

It may come as no surprise that annual housing costs in San Jose and San Francisco are the most expensive in CNBC's list of cities for singles, at between $20,592 and $24,168 annually. For total cost of living expenses, the price tag skyrockets to between $61,549 and $69,072 annually. On the more affordable end of the spectrum, Indianapolis has the cheapest housing costs for singles, $7,188 per year, but San Antonio claims the title of most affordable cost of living at $2,716 per month, or $32,587 per year.

The calculator factors in geographic differences in cost of living and six main expenses: housing, food, transportation, health care, other basic necessities and taxes. "In order to keep the budgets modest, the calculator notably does not include many expenses associated with a middle-class lifestyle, such as paying off student loans or saving for college or retirement," the EPI notes. The EPI gathered data for 10 family types in all 3,142 counties and in all 611 metro areas.

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