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Everyone wants a home that mixes affordability with comfort and Vermont does this very well. Families love the Green Mountain 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 Vermont 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 Vermont for 2023.
So where is the most expensive place to live in Vermont? That would be Burlington.
the 2017-2021 American Community Survey for the 18 places in Vermont with more than 1,000 people.
Here are the 10 most expensive places to live in Vermont for 2023:
What's the most expensive place to live in Vermont? Well, HomeSnacks crunched the numbers and discovered that Burlington is the most expensive place to live in Vermont.
So hopefully Poultney (the cheapest place to live in Vermont) 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 Vermont and the most expensive cities in the country:
The 10 Most Expensive Places To Live In Vermont For 2023
1. Burlington
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Population: 44,703
Rank Last Year: 1 (No Change)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 5.7x (most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 43.0x (2nd most expensive)
More on Burlington: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Burlington comes in at $59,331 and the median home value is $338,100 for 2023.
2. North Bennington
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Population: 1,539
Rank Last Year: 8 (Up 6)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 4.7x (3rd most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 42.7x (most expensive)
More on North Bennington: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in North Bennington comes in at $46,513 and the median home value is $219,800 for 2023.
3. Winooski
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Population: 8,015
Rank Last Year: 3 (No Change)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 4.3x (4th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 44.5x (3rd most expensive)
More on Winooski: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Winooski comes in at $61,033 and the median home value is $262,100 for 2023.
4. South Burlington
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Population: 20,042
Rank Last Year: 3 (Down 2)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.9x (7th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 52.6x (9th most expensive)
More on South Burlington: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in South Burlington comes in at $83,750 and the median home value is $327,900 for 2023.
5. Essex Junction
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Population: 10,473
Rank Last Year: 6 (No Change)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.9x (6th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 56.4x (10th most expensive)
More on Essex Junction: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Essex Junction comes in at $79,677 and the median home value is $312,500 for 2023.
6. Woodstock
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Population: 1,111
Rank Last Year: 5 (Down 2)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 5.0x (2nd most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 87.1x (20th most expensive)
More on Woodstock: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Woodstock comes in at $96,161 and the median home value is $480,400 for 2023.
7. St. Albans
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Population: 6,866
Rank Last Year: 9 (Up 1)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.8x (9th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 45.4x (4th most expensive)
More on St. Albans: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in St. Albans comes in at $49,063 and the median home value is $187,200 for 2023.
8. Lyndonville
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Population: 1,317
Rank Last Year: 7 (Down 2)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 4.1x (5th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 48.5x (6th most expensive)
More on Lyndonville: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Lyndonville comes in at $38,966 and the median home value is $159,900 for 2023.
9. Montpelier
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Population: 7,966
Rank Last Year: 10 (No Change)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.9x (8th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 64.3x (14th most expensive)
More on Montpelier: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Montpelier comes in at $71,163 and the median home value is $276,100 for 2023.
10. Morrisville
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Population: 2,326
Rank Last Year: 14 (Up 2)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.8x (10th most expensive)
Income To Rent Ratio: 59.3x (12th most expensive)
More on Morrisville: Real Estate | Data | Photos
The median income in Morrisville comes in at $58,203 and the median home value is $219,700 for 2023.
Methodology: How We Determined The Most Expensive Places To Live In The Green Mountain State For 2023
The two most important things to think about when it comes to being able to afford if you can live comes down to:
- How much do money do I make?
- 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 Vermont 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 18 places in Vermont that have more than 1,000 people.
The place with the highest cost of living in Vermont according to the data is Burlington. You can download the data here.
Summary: Taking A Chunk Out Of Your Paycheck In Vermont For 2023
Well there you have it, the places in Vermont that have the highest cost of living, with Burlington ranking as the most expensive city in the Green Mountain State.
Here's a look at the most affordable cities in Vermont according to the data:
- Poultney
- Newport
- Swanton
For more Vermont reading, check out:
- Best Places To Live In Vermont
- Cheapest Places To Live In Vermont
- Most Dangerous Cities In Vermont
- Best Places To Raise A Family In Vermont
- Safest Places In Vermont
- Worst Places To Live In Vermont
Detailed List Of The Most Expensive Cities In Vermont
| Rank | City | ExpensiveScore |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Burlington | 1.67 |
| 2 | North Bennington | 4.33 |
| 3 | Winooski | 4.67 |
| 4 | South Burlington | 6.33 |
| 5 | Essex Junction | 6.67 |
| 6 | Woodstock | 7.67 |
| 7 | St. Albans | 8.0 |
| 8 | Lyndonville | 8.33 |
| 9 | Montpelier | 9.33 |
| 10 | Morrisville | 10.67 |
| 11 | Barre | 11.33 |
| 12 | Enosburg Falls | 12.0 |
| 13 | Vergennes | 12.33 |
| 14 | Bellows Falls | 12.67 |
| 15 | Rutland | 15.0 |
| 16 | Swanton | 16.0 |
| 17 | Newport | 16.67 |
| 18 | Poultney | 19.0 |