A wise sage once said:
“She works hard for the money…”
And these places in Louisiana definitely treat her right.
You see, these are the cities and places in Louisiana where the cost of living is the lowest; where your salary goes the furthest. And when if you have the luxury of choosing where to live in the Pelican State, then the cost of living should play a role in the decision.
So we did the hard for you and crunched the numbers to find the cities that have lower food, energy, and housing costs. After the dust settled on our analysis of the 63 largest places in Louisiana, we were left with this set of the best value for your money.
So where is the cheapest place to live in Louisiana? That would be Franklin.
So listen up New Orleans (the most expensive place in Louisiana) as we explain how we created this ranking. You could learn some things from the rest of the state.
And if you already knew these places were cheap, check out some more reading about Louisiana and the cheapest places in the country:
The 10 Cheapest Places To Live In Louisiana For 2019
/10
Population: 7,244
Rank Last Year: 3 (Up 2)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 2.0x (1st most affordable)
Income To Rent Ratio: 56.8x (22nd cheapest)
More On Franklin: Homes For Sale | Data | Photos
Franklin is a small city in and the parish seat of St. Mary Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 7,660 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Morgan City Micropolitan Statistical Area.
The median income in Franklin comes in at $37,850 and the median home value is $77,000 for 2019.
I also used to live in Franklin and I loved it! I now live in Baton Rouge and the crime rate is much higher here then in Franklin
/10
Population: 7,669
Rank Last Year: 1 (Down 1)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 2.3x (5th most affordable)
Income To Rent Ratio: 56.3x (25th cheapest)
More On Oakdale: Homes For Sale | Data | Photos
The median income in Oakdale comes in at $25,893 and the median home value is $59,000 for 2019.
/10
Population: 7,013
Rank Last Year: 6 (Up 3)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 2.1x (3rd most affordable)
Income To Rent Ratio: 52.8x (31st cheapest)
More On Tallulah: Homes For Sale | Data | Photos
Tallulah is a small city in and the parish seat of Madison Parish in northeastern Louisiana, United States. The 2010 population was 7,335, a decrease of 1,854, or 20.2 percent, from the 9,189 tabulation at the 2000 census. The city is nearly 77 percent African American. Tallulah is the principal city of the Tallulah Micropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of Madison Parish. The Madison Parish Sheriff’s office operates the Steve Hoyle Rehabilitation Center in Tallulah.
The median income in Tallulah comes in at $27,592 and the median home value is $58,900 for 2019.
/10
Population: 20,237
Rank Last Year: 5 (Up 1)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 2.3x (6th most affordable)
Income To Rent Ratio: 66.5x (9th cheapest)
More On Sulphur: Homes For Sale | Data
Sulphur is a city in Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 20,410 at the 2010 census. Sulphur is part of the Lake Charles Metropolitan Statistical Area.
The median income in Sulphur comes in at $53,058 and the median home value is $124,500 for 2019.
/10
Population: 5,054
Rank Last Year: 9 (Up 4)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 2.4x (7th most affordable)
Income To Rent Ratio: 50.5x (34th cheapest)
More On Springhill: Homes For Sale | Data | Photos
Springhill is a city in northernmost Webster Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 5,279 at the 2010 census, a decrease of 160 since 2000. Springhill is part of the Minden Micropolitan Statistical Area though it is thirty miles north of Minden, the seat of government of Webster Parish. The Springhill population is 34 percent African American, compared to 25 percent minority in 2000.
The median income in Springhill comes in at $27,857 and the median home value is $67,000 for 2019.
/10
Population: 8,079
Rank Last Year: 2 (Down 4)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.0x (22nd most affordable)
Income To Rent Ratio: 63.4x (11th cheapest)
More On Rayne: Homes For Sale | Data | Photos
The median income in Rayne comes in at $31,653 and the median home value is $94,200 for 2019.
My dad, uncles, aunts, cousins lived in Rayne all their lives and love it. I never had any problems in Rayne. I don’t believe this article is accurate. Rayne, La is a lovely city with great festivals and entertainment. Great food and people live and work here. Thank you….
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Population: 12,350
Rank Last Year: 15 (Up 9)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 2.5x (9th most affordable)
Income To Rent Ratio: 52.8x (30th cheapest)
More On Abbeville: Homes For Sale | Data | Photos
Abbeville is a city in and the parish seat of Vermilion Parish, Louisiana, United States, 150 miles west of New Orleans and 60 miles southwest of Baton Rouge. The population was 12,257 at the 2010 census.
The median income in Abbeville comes in at $34,137 and the median home value is $85,100 for 2019.
/10
Population: 6,067
Rank Last Year: 12 (Up 4)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 2.2x (4th most affordable)
Income To Rent Ratio: 56.3x (24th cheapest)
More On Patterson: Homes For Sale | Data
Patterson is a small city in St. Mary Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 6,112 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Morgan City Micropolitan Statistical Area.
The median income in Patterson comes in at $45,676 and the median home value is $100,500 for 2019.
/10
Population: 7,975
Rank Last Year: 8 (Down 1)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.2x (30th most affordable)
Income To Rent Ratio: 73.2x (4th cheapest)
More On Donaldsonville: Homes For Sale | Data | Photos
Donaldsonville is a small city in and the parish seat of Ascension Parish in south Louisiana, United States, located along the River Road of the west bank of the Mississippi River. The population was 7,436 at the 2010 census, a decrease of more than 150 from the 7,605 tabulation in 2000. Donaldsonville is part of the Baton Rouge Metropolitan Statistical Area.
The median income in Donaldsonville comes in at $34,197 and the median home value is $108,700 for 2019.
/10
Population: 5,465
Rank Last Year: 7 (Down 3)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 2.5x (8th most affordable)
Income To Rent Ratio: 47.6x (44th cheapest)
More On Jeanerette: Homes For Sale | Data | Photos
Jeanerette is a small city in Iberia Parish, Louisiana, United States. Known as “Sugar City”, it had a population of 5,530 at the 2010 census, a decrease of 467 from the 2000 tabulation of 5,997. It is two thirds African American, many of them Creoles of color.
The median income in Jeanerette comes in at $29,533 and the median home value is $73,100 for 2019.
How We Determined The Most Affordable Places To Live In The Pelican State For 2019
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 2013-2017 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 Louisiana to figure out which is the least 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 63 places in Louisiana that have more than 5,000 people.
The place with the lowest cost of living in Louisiana according to the data is Franklin.
There You Have It Mr. Or Mrs. Louisiana Cheapskate
If you’re looking at the cost of living numbers in Louisiana, this is an accurate list of the most affordable places to live in louisiana for 2019.
Here’s a look at the most expensive cities in Louisiana according to the data:
- New Orleans
- Ruston
- Natchitoches
For more Louisiana reading, check out:
- These Are The 10 Richest Cities In Louisiana
- 10 Best Places To Raise A Family In Louisiana
- 10 Safest Places In Louisiana
Where Are The Most Affordable Places To Live In Louisiana?
| Rank | City | CheapScore |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Franklin | 10.33 |
| 2 | Oakdale | 11.0 |
| 3 | Tallulah | 12.0 |
| 4 | Sulphur | 13.67 |
| 5 | Springhill | 15.0 |
| 6 | Rayne | 16.0 |
| 7 | Abbeville | 16.0 |
| 8 | Patterson | 16.33 |
| 9 | Donaldsonville | 19.0 |
| 10 | Jeanerette | 19.67 |
