The cost of living is rising faster than others in several major U.S. cities, including new york city Several West Coast metros are emerging as hotspots for growing affordability pressures, according to a new analysis shared with Newsweek .
The findings come from a study conducted by Plasma, a company that develops stablecoin products and financial infrastructure, that examined how rising fees are reshaping affordability in the country’s largest urban areas.
Plasma analyzed the 30 most populous U.S. cities using a weighted system that combines inflation data with housing costs, average monthly living expenses and local wages. The review includes rental prices, groceries, utilities, transportation, childcare, clothing and leisure costs.
To draw public attention, the study also tracked search trends for the term “cost of living” using data from KeywordTool. Housing, wage and expense data come from Numbeo, a crowdsourced database that tracks day-to-day cost metrics.
According to Newsweek, all data are current as of January 14, 2026.
New York City tops the list
New York City ranks No. 1 among U.S. cities with the most pronounced cost-of-living anxiety. “New York is one of the cities with the highest cost of living anxiety in the United States, with more than 26,100 related searches per month,” the report said.
Although the average monthly salary is $5,250, housing costs remain a major stressor.
A one-bedroom apartment in the city center averages $4,564 per month, while basic living expenses total about $1,646. Inflation across the metro area is 3.4%, exacerbating affordability concerns.
West Coast cities occupy top five
san diego Ranked second. “Although residents of this seaside city earn an average of $5,759 per month, this does not protect them from rising costs,” the report states.
One-bedroom rent averages $3,206, with monthly living expenses exceeding $1,300.
san francisco It ranks third despite having the highest average monthly salary of $7,508. “Costs remain high,” with average rent at $3,458 and living expenses exceeding $1,600, the report said. The city logged more than 6,200 related searches.
Also read: How much does it cost to live “comfortably” in San Francisco?
Los Angeles and Seattle rounded out the top five.
A Plasma spokesperson told Newsweek the surge in search activity caused widespread concern. “Many Americans are worried about the cost of living, and the level of search demand illustrates the level of anxiety about rising costs,” the spokesperson said, noting that economic stress in one city is increasingly affecting financial liquidity nationwide.
