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Rhode Island is neither a road nor an island; and what the state lacks in size, it makes up for in affordable places to live.
The trick, however, is to know how to navigate this New England state's above average cost of living. This is why HomeSnacks set out to determine the top ten most affordable places in Rhode Island for 2020. How did we determine the most affordable places in Rhode Island? We took a look at the US Census and cost of living data for the state. We were especially interested in home and rental prices in places with more than 1,000 residents.
We discovered that whether it's hip millennial cities like Cranston, family oriented cities like Westerly, or great places to retire to like Woonsocket, Rhode Island has plenty of affordable places to live for every stage of life and every budget. And that's a good thing, because the less you spend on your bills, the more you'll have to spend on the fun things to do and see in the Ocean State. Like, a beach vacation in Newport or scoring tickets to the Rhythm and Blues Festival in Charleston.
So want to know where to find the most affordable place in Rhode Island? Grab a plate of Middletown stuffies, find a sunny spot on Easton's Beach, and read on.
The 10 Cheapest Places To Live In Rhode Island
If you ask any Rhode Islander, they will say, hands down, that their city is the best. But if you're the good people in our most affordable place in Rhode Island for 2020, you know you live in Rhode Island's best of the best.
So, what's the cheapest place to live in Little Rhody where you can live like a Boston Bruin on a Providence Bruin's budget? That would be Pascoag.
So, if you care about home values and affordability, take a look at the list below; and if you don't see your favorite there, head to the bottom.
And if you already knew these places were cheap, check out some more reading about Rhode Island and the cheapest places in the country:
The 10 Cheapest Places To Live In Rhode Island For 2020
/10
Population: 4,824
Rank Last Year: 1 (No Change)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 2.7x (4th most affordable)
Income To Rent Ratio: 85.2x (4th cheapest)
More On Pascoag: Homes For Sale | Data | Photos
The median income in Pascoag comes in at $79,745 and the median home value is $217,300 for 2020.
/10
Population: 11,828
Rank Last Year: 4 (Up 2)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 2.9x (6th most affordable)
Income To Rent Ratio: 90.6x (2nd cheapest)
More On Valley Falls: Homes For Sale | Data | Photos
The median income in Valley Falls comes in at $76,004 and the median home value is $224,000 for 2020.
/10
Population: 1,529
Rank Last Year: 7 (Up 2)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.3x (8th most affordable)
Income To Rent Ratio: 87.2x (3rd cheapest)
More On Chepachet: Homes For Sale | Data | Photos
The median income in Chepachet comes in at $71,359 and the median home value is $232,800 for 2020.
/10
Population: 8,142
Rank Last Year: 6 (No Change)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 2.8x (5th most affordable)
Income To Rent Ratio: 96.2x (1st cheapest)
More On Cumberland Hill: Homes For Sale | Data | Photos
The median income in Cumberland Hill comes in at $88,199 and the median home value is $251,300 for 2020.
/10
Population: 81,079
Rank Last Year: 2 (Down 5)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.0x (7th most affordable)
Income To Rent Ratio: 62.3x (12th cheapest)
More On Warwick: Homes For Sale | Data | Photos
The median income in Warwick comes in at $70,490 and the median home value is $213,300 for 2020.
/10
Population: 1,432
Rank Last Year: 8 (No Change)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.3x (9th most affordable)
Income To Rent Ratio: 69.8x (8th cheapest)
More On Bradford: Homes For Sale | Data
The median income in Bradford comes in at $70,748 and the median home value is $232,000 for 2020.
/10
Population: 1,633
Rank Last Year: 9 (No Change)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 2.7x (3rd most affordable)
Income To Rent Ratio: 63.3x (11th cheapest)
More On Hope Valley: Homes For Sale | Data | Photos
The median income in Hope Valley comes in at $91,250 and the median home value is $248,200 for 2020.
/10
Population: 81,196
Rank Last Year: 10 (No Change)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.4x (11th most affordable)
Income To Rent Ratio: 64.9x (10th cheapest)
More On Cranston: Homes For Sale | Data | Photos
Cranston, once known as Pawtuxet, is a city in the U.S. state of Rhode Island. With a population of 80,529 at the 2010 census, it is the third largest city in the state. The center of population of Rhode Island is located in Cranston. Cranston is a part of the Providence metropolitan area.
The median income in Cranston comes in at $66,283 and the median home value is $228,300 for 2020.
/10
Population: 7,757
Rank Last Year: 13 (Up 2)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.6x (12th most affordable)
Income To Rent Ratio: 74.9x (6th cheapest)
More On Tiverton: Homes For Sale | Data | Photos
Tiverton is a town in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 15,780 at the 2010 census.
The median income in Tiverton comes in at $68,850 and the median home value is $247,200 for 2020.
/10
Population: 47,449
Rank Last Year: 12 (No Change)
Home Price To Income Ratio: 3.7x (14th most affordable)
Income To Rent Ratio: 60.5x (14th cheapest)
More On East Providence: Homes For Sale | Data | Photos
East Providence is a city in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 47,037 at the 2010 census, making it the fifth largest city in the state.
The median income in East Providence comes in at $57,384 and the median home value is $215,100 for 2020.
How We Determined The Most Affordable Places To Live In The Ocean State For 2020
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 2014-2018 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 Rhode Island 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 22 places in Rhode Island that have more than 1,000 people.
The place with the lowest cost of living in Rhode Island according to the data is Pascoag. You can download the data here.
There You Have It Mr. Or Mrs. Rhode Island Cheapskate
If you're looking at the cost of living numbers in Rhode Island, this is an accurate list of the most affordable places to live in Rhode Island for 2020.
Here's a look at the most expensive cities in Rhode Island according to the data:
- Narragansett Pier
- Newport
- Newport East
For more Rhode Island reading, check out:
- Best Places To Buy A House In Rhode Island
- Best Places To Raise A Family In Rhode Island
- Richest Cities In Rhode Island
Where Are The Most Affordable Places To Live In Rhode Island?
| Rank | City | CheapScore |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pascoag | 5.33 |
| 2 | Valley Falls | 5.67 |
| 3 | Chepachet | 7.67 |
| 4 | Cumberland Hill | 7.67 |
| 5 | Warwick | 8.33 |
| 6 | Bradford | 9.33 |
| 7 | Hope Valley | 10.0 |
| 8 | Cranston | 10.33 |
| 9 | Tiverton | 11.0 |
| 10 | East Providence | 11.67 |
