Here's the true value of how far $100,000 goes in 2026, adjusted for cost of living and taxes.

Here's the true value of how far $100,000 goes in 2026, adjusted for cost of living and taxes. And you can see the worst cities to live in are New York, Honolulu, San Francisco and LA, etc. That means your $100,000 gets you around 29.5k worth of purchasing power in Manhattan, and that's calculated based on taxes and then how much things cost. In other words, that's why you see people feeling so stretched thin in places like New York. You need to make around $200,000 per year to get the same purchasing power as somebody who gets by living in, say, Portland, Oregon, who makes $100,000 per year. I actually just looked it up, so in Portland, the average rent is around $1,687 per month, but in Manhattan it's $5,501. Here are the best cities where your money is going further. So in places like Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, after you pay your taxes, your dollar stretches a little bit further because the cost of living is lower. So, if you are working remotely and your company doesn't care where you live, you may want to consider looking at this study before you sign the lease. I will link it down below. And if you're evaluating a job offer in a new city, don't just look at the salary number. A $120,000 offer in San Francisco might actually feel worse than an 85K offer somewhere else after you run the math.