Cost of living in Lake Charles, Louisiana
Simple answer
Typical rent is $1,109 a month.
Lake Charles is a city in Louisiana. That rent number includes utilities. A typical household earns $59,235 a year.
- People
- 81,143
- Census average, 2020–2024
- Typical rent
- $1,109
- Median gross rent, includes utilities
- Typical pay
- $59,235
- Median household income, yearly
- Typical home
- $214,300
- Median home value
- 2-bedroom fair rent
- $1,231
- Lake Charles, LA HUD Metro FMR Area
Lake Charles, Louisiana has about 81,143 people. That count is a 2020–2024 Census average, not a headcount from one day.
A typical home is worth about $214,300.
HUD's fair-market rent for a 2-bedroom in Calcasieu Parish is $1,231 a month. That is the county number, not an apartment listing in Lake Charles. It runs from October 2026 through September 2027.
In the Lake Charles, LA metro area, prices sit at 85.9 when the U.S. average is 100. That is a 2024 BEA index.
Louisiana taxes wages. A typical combined sales tax is 10.1% as of January 1, 2026. That mix is statewide, not Lake Charles's exact store tax.
In July 2026, a typical Louisiana home paid 12.72¢ per kilowatt-hour. That is a state average from EIA, not Lake Charles's bill.
EIA did not publish a 2025 all-grades gas price for Louisiana in the table we use.
Among 240 places we list in Louisiana with a rent figure, 66 have higher typical rent than Lake Charles.
Nearby places
- Prien
Typical rent $1,292
Compare with Lake Charles - Westlake
Typical rent $1,049
Compare with Lake Charles - Moss Bluff
Typical rent $1,324
Compare with Lake Charles - Sulphur
Typical rent $994
Compare with Lake Charles - Carlyss
Typical rent $1,358
Compare with Lake Charles - Iowa
Typical rent $1,098
Compare with Lake Charles - Vinton
Typical rent $947
Compare with Lake Charles - DeQuincy
Typical rent $760
Compare with Lake Charles
EBT nearby
USDA has a live map of stores that take SNAP. We did not copy that store list here. The downloadable file is a history file for 2005 through 2025, so the live map is the one to use.
Locator page updated 2026-09-11. Last checked 2026-10-16.
Food stamps (SNAP) tools in Louisiana
Bigger places in Louisiana
Census 2020-2024. HUD rents for October 2026–September 2027. BEA prices for 2024. Taxes as of January 1, 2026. Checked 2026-10-16. 15,000 places are in this guide.