Cost of living in Salem, Oregon
Simple answer
Typical rent is $1,400 a month.
Salem is a city in Oregon. That rent number includes utilities. A typical household earns $75,487 a year.
- People
- 178,865
- Census average, 2020–2024
- Typical rent
- $1,400
- Median gross rent, includes utilities
- Typical pay
- $75,487
- Median household income, yearly
- Typical home
- $416,900
- Median home value
- 2-bedroom fair rent
- $1,692
- Salem, OR MSA
Salem, Oregon has about 178,865 people. That count is a 2020–2024 Census average, not a headcount from one day.
A typical home is worth about $416,900.
HUD's fair-market rent for a 2-bedroom in Marion County is $1,692 a month. That is the county number, not an apartment listing in Salem. It runs from October 2026 through September 2027.
In the Salem, OR metro area, prices sit at 103.6 when the U.S. average is 100. That is a 2024 BEA index.
Oregon taxes wages. A typical combined sales tax is 0.0% as of January 1, 2026. That mix is statewide, not Salem's exact store tax.
Some places in Oregon add a local wage tax. In 2023 the state average was about 0.18% of income. That is not a Salem bill.
In July 2026, a typical Oregon home paid 15.97¢ per kilowatt-hour. That is a state average from EIA, not Salem's bill.
EIA did not publish a 2025 all-grades gas price for Oregon in the table we use.
Among 208 places we list in Oregon with a rent figure, 88 have higher typical rent than Salem.
Nearby places
- Four Corners
Typical rent $1,416
Compare with Salem - Hayesville
Typical rent $1,435
Compare with Salem - Keizer
Typical rent $1,424
Compare with Salem - Turner
Typical rent $1,380
Compare with Salem - Aumsville
Typical rent $1,786
Compare with Salem - Independence
Typical rent $1,665
Compare with Salem - Monmouth
Typical rent $1,114
Compare with Salem - Sublimity
Typical rent $1,628
Compare with Salem
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 Oregon
Bigger places in Oregon
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.