Cost Of Living in Saranac Lake, NY

C+

Overall NAT. AVG.

Goods & Services NAT. AVG.

15%

Housing NAT. AVG.

Date & Last Updated: This data reflects 2023 and was released from C2ER in January, 2024; this is the most current data available.

The cost of living index is based on a national average of 100. For example, if the cost of living is 90, then it is 10% lower than average. If the cost of living is 110, then it is 10% higher than average. The breakdown for each index is as follows: goods & services (33%), groceries (13%), health care (5%), housing (30%), transportation (9%) and utilities (10%). If the cost of living data was unavailable for this city, estimates based upon nearby cities were used.
Index	Saranac Lake	New York	National
Cost of living	101	117	100
Goods & Services	108	108	100
Groceries	105	102	100
Health care	106	103	100
Housing	85	145	100
Transportation	107	105	100
Utilities	121	100	100

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Cost Of Living Quick Facts

The cost of living in Saranac Lake is 13% lower than the New York average
The cost of living in Saranac Lake is 1% higher than the national average
Saranac Lake housing is 15% lower than the national average
New York general sales tax is 22% lower than the national average
New York state income tax is 54% higher than the national average

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Price difference in compared to

Cost of living index
Goods & Services index
Groceries index
Health care index
Housing index
Transportation index
Utilities index

Median Income & Debt-To-Income Ratio

Median Income	Per Year	Per Month	Max Budget (28% DTI)	Max Budget (36% DTI)
Owners	$76,667	$6,389	$1,789	$2,300
Renters	$25,270	$2,106	$590	$758

The percentage of monthly income spent on housing related expenses can help predict the affordability of housing in Saranac Lake, NY, as well as what the overall cost of living might be. Generally, a good rule to follow is that the debt-to-income (DTI) level you want to maintain is 28 percent or less of your income on your rent or mortgage payments and not more than 36 percent of income on all expenses and debts. In Saranac Lake, homeowners have a median income of $76,667. Using that number, a maximum of $1,789 per month should be allocated to housing expenses. For those who are renting instead of owning, the median income is $25,270, which means there is a maximum of $590 to be spent on the costs of renting a home or apartment.

New York Sales Tax

State	General Sales Tax	With Max Surtax
New York	4%	8.875%

New York Income Tax

State	Income Tax (Low)	Income Tax (High)
New York	4%	10.9%

Goods & Services

Item	Saranac Lake	National avg.	Difference
Haircut	$26.98	$24.26	11.2%
Beauty Salon	$46.44	$45.56	1.9%
Toothpaste	$3.73	$3.70	0.8%
Shampoo	$1.23	$1.28	3.9%
Movie	$11.94	$12.13	1.6%
Bowling	$15.67	$18.00	13.0%

Groceries

Item	Saranac Lake	National avg.	Difference
Ground Beef	$5.76	$5.84	1.4%
Fried Chicken	$1.72	$1.57	9.6%
Milk	$4.82	$4.67	3.1%
Potatoes	$4.97	$4.93	0.7%
Pizza	$12.05	$12.09	0.3%
Beer	$10.01	$10.41	3.9%

Health Care

Item	Saranac Lake	National avg.	Difference
Optometrist	$141.67	$125.68	12.7%
Doctor	$152.78	$135.78	12.5%
Dentist	$130.83	$113.29	15.5%
Ibuprofen	$10.78	$10.65	1.2%
Lipitor	$371.02	$468.60	20.8%

Housing

Item	Saranac Lake	National avg.	Difference
Home Price	$162,600.00	$184,700.00	12.0%
Avg. Mortgage Payment	$3,072.44	$2,346.69	30.9%
Apartment Rent	$726.00	$949.00	23.5%

Transportation

Item	Saranac Lake	National avg.	Difference
Gasoline	$3.59	$3.46	3.8%
Tire Balancing	$68.60	$59.92	14.5%

Utilities

Item	Saranac Lake	National avg.	Difference
All Electricity	$262.67	$193.99	35.4%
Phone	$186.03	$192.25	3.2%

Although the cost of living data is updated regularly, this cost of living information is to be used as estimates only as prices can change on an ongoing basis.

Nearby cities with low cost of living

City	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Paul Smiths, NY	614	109	8.7%
Lake Placid, NY	2,229	117	16.9%
Saranac Lake, NY	5,548	101	1.5%

Cities with similar population

City	Population	Cost of Living Index	National Avg.
Twin Lakes, CA	5,546	208	108.2%
Dayton, KY	5,550	92	8.2%
Salida, CO	5,543	123	23.2%
Stonewall, MB	5,542	n/a
Mecca, CA	5,541	104	4.0%
Saranac Lake, NY	5,548	101	1.5%