10 Most Expensive Places To Live In Delaware [2026]

Before you decide to relocate to Delaware, it’s important to research the exact cost of living around the state. And that’s what we’re going to help you do.

These are the places in Delaware that cost a pretty penny — the most expensive cities in the state.

We used Saturday Night Science to compare the 2020-2024 American Community Survey on cost of living for the 19 places in Delaware with more than 5,000 people.

After we saved up for months and could finally afford it, we landed on this list of the ten most expensive cities in Delaware for 2026.

No. 1 most expensive place in Delaware

Hockessin, DE

13,439 peopleSnackAbility 7.5/10

7.5/10

$171,204 median income · $600,793 median home · #2 home prices in Delaware

Located in New Castle County, Delaware

Median home value +49% vs DE

$600,793

DE $403k

Median income +102% vs DE

$171,204

DE $85k

Hockessin is a census-designated place in New Castle County, Delaware, United States. The population was 13,527 at the 2010 census. The place name may be derived from the Lenape word “hksa” meaning “pieces of bark” or from a misspelling of “occasion,” as pronounced by the Quakers who settled the area originally.

Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers

No. 2 most expensive place in Delaware

North Star, DE

7,834 peopleSnackAbility 7.5/10

7.5/10

$150,733 median income · $668,090 median home · #1 home prices in Delaware

Located in New Castle County, Delaware

Median home value +66% vs DE

$668,090

DE $403k

Median income +77% vs DE

$150,733

DE $85k

Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers

No. 3 most expensive place in Delaware

Pike Creek, DE

7,129 peopleSnackAbility 7/10

7/10

$139,635 median income · $483,584 median home · #3 home prices in Delaware

Located in New Castle County, Delaware

Median home value +20% vs DE

$483,584

DE $403k

Median income +64% vs DE

$139,635

DE $85k

Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers

No. 4 most expensive place in Delaware

Glasgow, DE

15,546 peopleSnackAbility 7/10

7/10

$113,982 median income · $427,957 median home · #4 home prices in Delaware

Located in New Castle County, Delaware

Median home value +6% vs DE

$427,957

DE $403k

Median income +34% vs DE

$113,982

DE $85k

Glasgow is a census-designated place in New Castle County, Delaware, United States. The population was 14,303 at the 2010 census.

Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers

No. 5 most expensive place in Delaware

Newark, DE

30,330 peopleSnackAbility 7.5/10

7.5/10

$76,912 median income · $364,096 median home · #9 home prices in Delaware

Located in New Castle County, Delaware

Median home value -10% vs DE

$364,096

DE $403k

Median income -9% vs DE

$76,912

DE $85k

Newark is a city in New Castle County, Delaware, United States. It is located 12 miles west-southwest of Wilmington. According to the 2010 Census, the population of the city is 31,454. Newark is home to the University of Delaware, which is often regarded as a top ten ranked University in the United States.

Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers

No. 6 most expensive place in Delaware

Millsboro, DE

7,424 peopleSnackAbility 8/10

8/10

$78,707 median income · $396,649 median home · #7 home prices in Delaware

Located in Sussex County, Delaware

Median home value -2% vs DE

$396,649

DE $403k

Median income -7% vs DE

$78,707

DE $85k

Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers

No. 7 most expensive place in Delaware

Bear, DE

22,370 peopleSnackAbility 7/10

7/10

$91,687 median income · $414,666 median home · #5 home prices in Delaware

Located in New Castle County, Delaware

Median home value +3% vs DE

$414,666

DE $403k

Median income +8% vs DE

$91,687

DE $85k

Bear is a census-designated place in New Castle County, Delaware, United States. The population was 17,593 at the 2000 census.

Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers

No. 8 most expensive place in Delaware

Pike Creek Valley, DE

12,431 peopleSnackAbility 7.5/10

7.5/10

$102,434 median income · $389,500 median home · #8 home prices in Delaware

Located in New Castle County, Delaware

Median home value -3% vs DE

$389,500

DE $403k

Median income +21% vs DE

$102,434

DE $85k

Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers

No. 9 most expensive place in Delaware

Edgemoor, DE

6,349 peopleSnackAbility 6/10

6/10

$59,424 median income · $332,385 median home · #12 home prices in Delaware

Located in New Castle County, Delaware

Median home value -18% vs DE

$332,385

DE $403k

Median income -30% vs DE

$59,424

DE $85k

Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers

No. 10 most expensive place in Delaware

New Castle, DE

5,579 peopleSnackAbility 7/10

7/10

$89,205 median income · $280,916 median home · #17 home prices in Delaware

Located in New Castle County, Delaware

Median home value -30% vs DE

$280,916

DE $403k

Median income +5% vs DE

$89,205

DE $85k

New Castle is a city in New Castle County, Delaware, six miles south of Wilmington, situated on the Delaware River. In 1900, 3,380 people lived here; in 1910, 3,351. According to the 2010 Census, the population of the city is 5,285.

Data | Crime | Cost of living | Movers

The receipts

Compare the top ten

Pick a metric. The bars rescale. The red line is Delaware’s statewide median.

City Cost of living index vs DE

1 Hockessin 143 —

2 North Star 136 —

3 Pike Creek 127 —

4 Glasgow 116 —

5 Newark 114 —

6 Millsboro 112 —

7 Bear 110 —

8 Pike Creek Valley 110 —

9 Edgemoor 109 —

10 New Castle 108 —

City Median home value vs DE

1 Hockessin $600,793 +49%

2 North Star $668,090 +66%

3 Pike Creek $483,584 +20%

4 Glasgow $427,957 +6%

5 Newark $364,096 -10%

6 Millsboro $396,649 -2%

7 Bear $414,666 +3%

8 Pike Creek Valley $389,500 -3%

9 Edgemoor $332,385 -18%

10 New Castle $280,916 -30%

Delaware statewide median: $402,891

City Median income vs DE

1 Hockessin $171,204 +102%

2 North Star $150,733 +77%

3 Pike Creek $139,635 +64%

4 Glasgow $113,982 +34%

5 Newark $76,912 -9%

6 Millsboro $78,707 -7%

7 Bear $91,687 +8%

8 Pike Creek Valley $102,434 +21%

9 Edgemoor $59,424 -30%

10 New Castle $89,205 +5%

Delaware statewide median: $84,954

City Home price to income vs DE

1 Hockessin 3.509224310726018 —

2 North Star 4.432272859661428 —

3 Pike Creek 3.463199914547934 —

4 Glasgow 3.7546056574153996 —

5 Newark 4.733926815924383 —

6 Millsboro 5.039569765327896 —

7 Bear 4.522625663084592 —

8 Pike Creek Valley 3.802445124696985 —

9 Edgemoor 5.593451389262697 —

10 New Castle 3.149110479255234 —

City Population vs DE

1 Hockessin 13,439 —

2 North Star 7,834 —

3 Pike Creek 7,129 —

4 Glasgow 15,546 —

5 Newark 30,330 —

6 Millsboro 7,424 —

7 Bear 22,370 —

8 Pike Creek Valley 12,431 —

9 Edgemoor 6,349 —

10 New Castle 5,579 —

The fine print The median Delaware home is 38 years old Furnaces, water heaters, and roofs don’t care what you paid at closing. See what a warranty would cover before something expensive breaks. Compare home warranties →

On the map

Mapping the most expensive places in Delaware

1 Hockessin
2 North Star
3 Pike Creek
4 Glasgow
5 Newark
6 Millsboro
7 Bear
8 Pike Creek Valley
9 Edgemoor
10 New Castle

Saturday Night Science

Methodology: How We Determined The Most Expensive Places To Live In The First State For 2026

The two most important things to think about when it comes to being able to afford a city in Delaware are how much money you make and how much you have to spend to live there.

You need to understand your costs in the context of how much money you make.

For example, if the median household earns $100,000 and spends $40,000 on housing, it’s actually cheaper to live there than a place with a median income of $50,000 and housing costs of $21,000. You might spend more on housing, but you have more money overall to play with.

With that example in mind, we derived several statistics from the latest Census American Community Survey 2020-2024 around incomes and costs. They are:

Overall Cost Of Living Index
Median Home Price / Median Income (lower is better)
Median Income / Median Rent (Higher is better)
Median Home Price

You can then compare these metrics in each of the places in Delaware to figure out which is the most expensive.

You are left with a “Cost of Living Index” by taking the average rank of each of these metrics for each city.

So we used that cost of living index to rank all of the 19 places in Delaware that have more than 5,000 people.

The place with the highest cost of living in Delaware according to the data is Hockessin. We updated this article for 2026. This article is our eleventh time ranking the most expensive places to live in Delaware. The median Delaware home is 38 years old — old enough that it pays to compare home warranty plans before something expensive breaks.

The full plate

Most Expensive Cities In Delaware

Click any column to sort. Search by city name.

Rank	City	Cost Of Living	Population	Median Income	Average Home Price	Home/Income Ratio
1	Hockessin	143	13,439	$171,204	$600,793	3.5x
2	North Star	136	7,834	$150,733	$668,090	4.4x
3	Pike Creek	127	7,129	$139,635	$483,584	3.5x
4	Glasgow	116	15,546	$113,982	$427,957	3.8x
5	Newark	114	30,330	$76,912	$364,096	4.7x
6	Millsboro	112	7,424	$78,707	$396,649	5.0x
7	Bear	110	22,370	$91,687	$414,666	4.5x
8	Pike Creek Valley	110	12,431	$102,434	$389,500	3.8x
9	Edgemoor	109	6,349	$59,424	$332,385	5.6x
10	New Castle	108	5,579	$89,205	$280,916	3.1x
11	Brookside	106	15,115	$78,328	$320,138	4.1x
12	Smyrna	105	13,165	$67,048	$400,874	6.0x
13	Seaford	104	8,485	$54,016	$310,072	5.7x
14	Milford	103	12,803	$59,464	$343,315	5.8x
15	Claymont	103	8,786	$74,712	$320,060	4.3x
16	Wilmington Manor	101	8,214	$78,078	$275,385	3.5x
17	Elsmere	101	6,203	$67,944	$239,941	3.5x
18	Dover	99	39,837	$60,199	$339,650	5.6x
19	Wilmington	98	71,727	$58,671	$325,758	5.6x

Source: U.S. Census ACS 2020-2024, Zillow research. 19 places with more than 5,000 residents.

Summary

Summary: Taking A Chunk Out Of Your Paycheck In Delaware For 2026

Well, there you have it, the places in Delaware that have the highest cost of living, with Hockessin ranking as the most expensive city in the First State.

The most expensive cities in Delaware are Hockessin, North Star, Pike Creek, Glasgow, Newark, Millsboro, Bear, Pike Creek Valley, Edgemoor, and New Castle. Not sold on Delaware? Take the two-minute Find Your Place quiz and see which state actually fits you.

Questions and answers

Most Expensive Places In Delaware FAQs

What is the most expensive place to live in Delaware?

Hockessin is the most expensive place to live in Delaware for 2026. The median home there runs $600,793, and it posts the highest cost of living of the 19 places we scored.

What are the 10 most expensive cities in Delaware?

The ten most expensive cities in Delaware are Hockessin, North Star, Pike Creek, Glasgow, Newark, Millsboro, Bear, Pike Creek Valley, Edgemoor, and New Castle. We ranked all 19 places with more than 5,000 residents on home prices, incomes, and an overall cost of living index.

How expensive are homes in Hockessin?

The median home value in Hockessin is $600,793, versus $402,891 across Delaware as a whole. Across the ten most expensive cities, the median home runs $405,658.

What salary do you need to live in the most expensive parts of Delaware?

The median household income in the ten most expensive Delaware cities starts at $59,424, and in Hockessin it is $171,204. If your paycheck is closer to the statewide median of $84,954, these places will squeeze your budget.

What is the cheapest place to live in Delaware?

Wilmington is the cheapest of the 19 Delaware places we ranked on cost of living. It sits at the very bottom of the same index that put Hockessin on top.

Keep reading

The 10 Most Expensive Places To Live In Delaware For 2026

Hockessin, DE

North Star, DE

Pike Creek, DE

Glasgow, DE

Newark, DE

Millsboro, DE

Bear, DE

Pike Creek Valley, DE

Edgemoor, DE

New Castle, DE

Compare the top ten

Mapping the most expensive places in Delaware

Methodology: How We Determined The Most Expensive Places To Live In The First State For 2026

Most Expensive Cities In Delaware

Summary: Taking A Chunk Out Of Your Paycheck In Delaware For 2026

Most Expensive Places In Delaware FAQs

What is the most expensive place to live in Delaware?

What are the 10 most expensive cities in Delaware?

How expensive are homes in Hockessin?

What salary do you need to live in the most expensive parts of Delaware?

What is the cheapest place to live in Delaware?

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