The 10 Most Expensive Places To Live In Mississippi For 2023


We used science and data to determine which cities in Mississippi that will put a big dent in your wallet.

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Editor’s Note: We updated this article for 2023. This is our tenth time ranking the most expensive places to live in Mississippi.

Everyone wants a home that mixes affordability with comfort and Mississippi does this very well. Families love the Magnolia State's beaches, midlands, and mountains as tourists before moving here and calling it home.

But before you decide to relocate, you have to do some research into the exact cost of living around the state -- and that's how we're going to help you.

These are the places in Mississippi that cost a pretty penny -- the most expensive cities in the state.

After we saved up for months and could finally afford it, we landed on this list of the ten most expensive cities in Mississippi for 2023.

So where is the most expensive place to live in Mississippi? That would be Starkville.
the 2017-2021 American Community Survey for the 62 places in Mississippi with more than 5,000 people.

Here are the 10 most expensive places to live in Mississippi for 2023:

  1. Starkville
  2. Oxford
  3. Cleveland
  4. Hernando
  5. Canton
  6. Picayune
  7. Hattiesburg
  8. Gulfport
  9. Pass Christian
  10. Waveland

What's the most expensive place to live in Mississippi? Well, HomeSnacks crunched the numbers and discovered that Starkville is the most expensive place to live in Mississippi.

So hopefully Holly Springs (the cheapest place to live in Mississippi) can show these guys how to live on a budget in the coming years. Read on for how these places had costs rise faster than inflation.

And if you already knew these places were expensive, check out some more reading about Mississippi and the most expensive cities in the country:

The 10 Most Expensive Places To Live In Mississippi For 2023

1. Starkville

Starkville, MS

Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 24,578
Rank Last Year: 1 (No Change)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 5.7x (most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 43.2x (8th most expensive)
More on Starkville: Real Estate | Data | Photos

The median income in Starkville comes in at $34,391 and the median home value is $197,600 for 2023.

2. Oxford

Oxford, MS

Overall SnackAbility

7
/10

Population: 25,859
Rank Last Year: 2 (No Change)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 5.6x (2nd most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 50.0x (30th most expensive)
More on Oxford: Real Estate | Data | Photos

The median income in Oxford comes in at $51,096 and the median home value is $288,600 for 2023.

3. Cleveland

Cleveland, MS

Overall SnackAbility

6
/10

Population: 11,285
Rank Last Year: 8 (Up 5)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.8x (4th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 46.2x (16th most expensive)
More on Cleveland: Real Estate | Data | Photos

The median income in Cleveland comes in at $37,757 and the median home value is $142,600 for 2023.

4. Hernando

Hernando, MS

Overall SnackAbility

8
/10

Population: 16,730
Rank Last Year: 16 (Up 12)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.7x (6th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 57.5x (38th most expensive)
More on Hernando: Real Estate | Data | Photos

The median income in Hernando comes in at $64,240 and the median home value is $236,600 for 2023.

5. Canton

Canton, MS

Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 10,955
Rank Last Year: 10 (Up 5)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.5x (12th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 39.1x (most expensive)
More on Canton: Real Estate | Data | Photos

The median income in Canton comes in at $33,634 and the median home value is $117,700 for 2023.

6. Picayune

Picayune, MS

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 11,777
Rank Last Year: 5 (Down 1)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.5x (11th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 39.3x (2nd most expensive)
More on Picayune: Real Estate | Data | Photos

The median income in Picayune comes in at $33,192 and the median home value is $117,000 for 2023.

7. Hattiesburg

Hattiesburg, MS

Overall SnackAbility

3
/10

Population: 47,074
Rank Last Year: 17 (Up 10)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.4x (13th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 44.4x (11th most expensive)
More on Hattiesburg: Real Estate | Data | Photos

The median income in Hattiesburg comes in at $38,293 and the median home value is $131,300 for 2023.

8. Gulfport

Gulfport, MS

Overall SnackAbility

3
/10

Population: 72,468
Rank Last Year: 9 (Up 1)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.4x (16th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 44.5x (12th most expensive)
More on Gulfport: Real Estate | Data | Photos

The median income in Gulfport comes in at $41,250 and the median home value is $138,200 for 2023.

9. Pass Christian

Pass Christian, MS

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 5,655
Rank Last Year: 3 (Down 5)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.7x (5th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 59.6x (43rd most expensive)
More on Pass Christian: Real Estate | Data | Photos

The median income in Pass Christian comes in at $57,011 and the median home value is $212,000 for 2023.

10. Waveland

Waveland, MS

Source: Public domain
Overall SnackAbility

5
/10

Population: 7,063
Rank Last Year: 25 (Up 15)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.6x (8th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 53.7x (34th most expensive)
More on Waveland: Real Estate | Data | Photos

The median income in Waveland comes in at $46,250 and the median home value is $164,200 for 2023.

Methodology: How We Determined The Most Expensive Places To Live In The Magnolia State For 2023

Map Of The Cheapest Places To Live In Mississippi
The two most important things to think about when it comes to being able to afford if you can live comes down to:

  1. How much do money do I make?
  2. How much do I have 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 2017-2021 around incomes and costs. They are:

  • Median Home Price / Median Income (lower is better)
  • Median Income / Median Rent (Higher is better)
  • Median Home Price

We added simply median home price because high home prices generally correlate with higher expenses for all costs related to homes (heating, electricity, etc).

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

What you are left with is 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 in order to rank all of the 62 places in Mississippi that have more than 5,000 people.

The place with the highest cost of living in Mississippi according to the data is Starkville. You can download the data here.

Summary: Taking A Chunk Out Of Your Paycheck In Mississippi For 2023

Well there you have it, the places in Mississippi that have the highest cost of living, with Starkville ranking as the most expensive city in the Magnolia State.

Here's a look at the most affordable cities in Mississippi according to the data:

  1. Holly Springs
  2. Ripley
  3. Forest

For more Mississippi reading, check out:

Detailed List Of The Most Expensive Cities In Mississippi

Rank City ExpensiveScore Population Home/Income Ratio Income/Rent Ratio
1 Starkville 6.0 24,578 5.7x 43.2x
2 Oxford 11.0 25,859 5.6x 50.0x
3 Cleveland 14.33 11,285 3.8x 46.2x
4 Hernando 15.67 16,730 3.7x 57.5x
5 Canton 16.0 10,955 3.5x 39.1x
6 Picayune 16.33 11,777 3.5x 39.3x
7 Hattiesburg 17.67 47,074 3.4x 44.4x
8 Gulfport 18.0 72,468 3.4x 44.5x
9 Pass Christian 18.0 5,655 3.7x 59.6x
10 Waveland 20.0 7,063 3.6x 53.7x
11 Columbus 20.5 23,858 3.4x 43.9x
12 Kosciusko 22.67 7,128 3.9x 48.1x
13 D'iberville 23.0 12,736 3.1x 49.6x
14 Biloxi 23.0 49,061 3.3x 54.6x
15 Ridgeland 23.33 24,330 3.1x 57.9x
16 Flowood 23.33 10,019 3.0x 58.1x
17 Columbia 24.0 5,998 3.5x 39.9x
18 Bay St. Louis 26.0 9,568 3.3x 63.2x
19 West Point 26.67 10,148 3.4x 47.4x
20 Corinth 27.0 14,545 3.6x 61.3x
21 Ocean Springs 27.33 18,275 2.9x 58.9x
22 Indianola 27.67 9,679 3.1x 44.6x
23 Natchez 28.0 14,435 3.3x 46.6x
24 Batesville 29.0 7,404 3.2x 64.5x
25 Meridian 29.33 35,625 3.0x 41.7x
26 Vicksburg 31.67 21,748 2.9x 48.7x
27 Mccomb 31.67 12,400 2.9x 42.2x
28 Clinton 32.33 27,830 2.8x 61.9x
29 Gautier 32.67 18,932 2.7x 52.7x
30 Diamondhead 33.0 9,417 2.9x 73.1x
31 Grenada 33.67 12,675 2.9x 49.0x
32 Greenwood 34.0 14,521 3.0x 47.1x
33 New Albany 34.83 7,657 2.8x 51.1x
34 Pearl 35.0 27,017 2.6x 54.7x
35 Southaven 35.67 54,141 2.5x 60.8x
36 Olive Branch 35.67 39,136 2.5x 61.8x
37 Brandon 36.33 24,887 2.6x 86.3x
38 Petal 37.0 11,342 2.6x 59.3x
39 Long Beach 37.33 16,654 2.5x 60.5x
40 Pascagoula 37.33 22,001 2.7x 53.5x
41 Richland 37.67 7,126 2.3x 45.8x
42 Laurel 37.67 17,375 2.7x 46.0x
43 Brookhaven 37.83 11,855 2.7x 48.7x
44 Madison 38.0 27,459 2.4x 73.5x
45 Tupelo 38.0 37,872 2.7x 71.4x
46 Amory 38.67 6,665 2.9x 66.7x
47 Greenville 38.67 30,175 2.5x 42.7x
48 Horn Lake 39.67 26,623 2.2x 48.9x
49 Jackson 39.83 156,803 2.3x 44.2x
50 Senatobia 41.0 8,075 2.6x 77.6x
51 Moss Point 41.67 12,282 2.3x 46.8x
52 Louisville 42.0 6,108 3.0x 69.2x
53 Yazoo City 42.0 10,887 2.2x 40.3x
54 Byram 42.33 12,591 2.1x 60.2x
55 Booneville 42.33 8,702 2.9x 78.6x
56 Philadelphia 43.67 7,107 2.5x 49.6x
57 Leakesville 44.67 5,598 2.5x 54.7x
58 Clarksdale 45.0 15,124 2.4x 47.4x
59 Pontotoc 45.67 5,621 2.5x 72.6x
60 Forest 52.67 5,464 2.4x 74.2x
61 Ripley 55.0 5,412 2.1x 100.1x
62 Holly Springs 57.67 6,743 2.1x 65.4x

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About Chris Kolmar

Chris Kolmar has been in the real estate business for almost ten years now. He originally worked for Movoto Real Estate as the director of marketing before founding HomeSnacks.

He believes the key to finding the right place to live comes down to looking at the data, reading about things to do, and, most importantly, checking it out yourself before you move.

If you've been looking for a place to live in the past several years, you've probably stumbled upon his writing already.

You can find out more about him on LinkedIn or his website.