Redding cost of living
Prices in the Redding, CA metro area run at 100.7 against a national average of 100, ranking it #77 of 387 metros. Rents there sit at 89.4.
What drives the number
Redding sits at 100.7, which is as close to the national average as this series gets. Places at the average are rarer than people assume, and it means a dollar here goes about as far as a dollar anywhere. Against California as a whole it is 10 points less expensive, which is the unusual direction, and it means the expensive part of the state is somewhere else.
Housing is unusually cheap relative to everything else here. Rents sit at 89.4 against goods at 105.2 and other services at 157.7, so the overall figure of 100.7 understates how affordable the housing itself is. That combination, ordinary prices with cheap rent, is what people are usually looking for and rarely find. Goods at 105.2 are themselves 5.2 points off national, which is a wide gap for a category that is mostly shipped in.
A salary offer here is worth less than the same offer somewhere at 100, and the parity is the arithmetic that says by how much. Divide the offer by 100.7 and multiply by 100 to get the nationally comparable figure.
The vertical line is the national average of 100. Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, SARPP, 2024.
What the biggest local jobs are really worth
The same pay buys different amounts in different places, so a salary quoted in Redding is not comparable to one quoted elsewhere until it is divided by the local parity. These are the occupations that employ the most people here, with the quoted median alongside what that median is worth at national prices.
| Occupation | Employed | Median pay | Worth nationally | U.S. median |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home Health and Personal Care Aides | 5,200 | $33,350 | $33,118 | $34,900 |
| Cashiers | 2,080 | $34,870 | $34,628 | $31,190 |
| Fast Food and Counter Workers | 1,880 | $35,880 | $35,631 | $30,480 |
| Retail Salespersons | 1,720 | $35,440 | $35,194 | $34,580 |
| Registered Nurses | 1,620 | $124,990 | $124,121 | $93,600 |
| Office Clerks, General | 1,320 | $43,830 | $43,525 | $43,630 |
| General and Operations Managers | 1,200 | $98,240 | $97,557 | $102,950 |
| Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand | 1,170 | $36,710 | $36,455 | $38,940 |
Pay from the BLS metro survey, adjusted by dividing by the metro parity of 100.7.
Nearby metro areas
| Metro area | All items | Rents | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont | 115.6 | 194.7 | #1 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim | 113.6 | 170.4 | #3 |
| Napa | 112.6 | 197.4 | #4 |
| San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad | 111.9 | 179.3 | #6 |
| Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura | 110.5 | 171.1 | #9 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara | 110.4 | 211.9 | #10 |
Redding: common questions
Is Redding expensive?
Prices are 0.7% above the national average, a parity of 100.7 where the country is 100. It ranks #77 of the 387 metro areas BEA measures. Against California as a whole it is 10 points less expensive.
What salary do you need in Redding?
The median worker there earns $47,890, which buys what $47,557 buys nationally once local prices are taken into account. Comparing a salary offer between cities without this adjustment is comparing nothing useful.
Is housing the reason?
Usually. Rents here are at 89.4 against goods at 105.2. Goods barely vary between American cities because most are shipped and priced nationally; housing varies enormously, and it dominates any cost of living comparison.