Is Utah a Great Place to Live?

What it costs to live here, and how good a place it is to live, in plain numbers.

Best place to live rank

#3

3rd out of 50 states overall.

Among the best in the country for overall quality of life.

How we rank states ›

Cost to live here

#33

33rd cheapest state, about 1% above average.

To live the way $75,000 affords in an average state, you would need about $76,100 here.

How we measure cost ›

Utah ranks 3rd of 50 states for overall quality of life and 33rd for affordability. It does best on economy, green space, and dog friendly, and struggles most with walkability, cost, and air quality. A typical household earns about $88,600 a year, and the cost of living runs about 1% above average.

Why Utah ranks #3 for living

Our Best Life Rank scores every state on the things that shape daily life, from cost and climate to schools and safety. Here is how Utah scores on each, best to worst.

Economy
#1 of 50
Green space
#5 of 50
Dog friendly
#7 of 50
Healthcare
#8 of 50
Safety
#9 of 50
Education
#12 of 50
Climate
#15 of 50
Walkability
#25 of 50
Cost of living
#33 of 50
Air quality
#43 of 50

Each factor is ranked 1 (best) to 50 (worst) across all states. Green is strong, yellow is middling, red is weak.

Utah at a glance

Typical household income

$88,600

12th highest

Typical home price

$547,000

6th highest

Overall cost of living

1% above average

33rd cheapest

Total taxes on a typical household

About 8%

28th highest income tax

Typical commute

About 22 min

one way

Taxes in Utah

See your real Utah take-home pay

Enter your salary and get your actual paycheck after Utah taxes.

Calculate my take-home pay ›
Sources: Cost and income from the U.S. Census and Bureau of Labor Statistics. Tax rates from the Tax Foundation. Best Life Rank factors from the Commonwealth Fund, NAEP, FBI, EPA, and NOAA. Cost measured by the BLISS Score, v1.3 method. Updated 2026.