Cost of Living: Las Vegas vs Phoenix (2026)

United States vs United States — relocation comparison

Your passport:

Livability Score

Las Vegas

Phoenix

$1,587/mo

Rent

1BR centre

$1,787/mo

$99k/yr

Take-home savings

At each city's local median pay

$93k/yr

10 yr

PR path

10 yr

Freelance setup

Self-employed / Sole Proprietor

No VAT exemption
15.3% social
€1000/yr accountant

WiseStripe

Self-employed / Sole Proprietor

No VAT exemption
15.3% social
€1000/yr accountant

WiseStripe

Sourced from Numbeo · Updated April 2026

TL;DRLas Vegas is 11% cheaper on rent ($1,587/mo vs $1,787/mo). Both cities treat summer as an endurance sport.

Las Vegas and Phoenix are almost suspiciously well-matched. Flip a coin.

Verdict delivered. Your move.

Heads

🇺🇸 Las Vegas

Full profile, in case the coin says so.

Tails

🇺🇸 Phoenix

Full profile, in case it says otherwise.

Plot twist

Miami vs Las Vegas

Someone else's dilemma, equally unsolvable.

Household

Las Vegas

Metric

Phoenix

✓$747/mo

🛒

Living costs (no rent)

lower is better

$941/mo

✓$6076

🧳

Cost to land

lower is better

$6697

48 / 100

🛡️

Settler safety

higher is better

49 / 100

8.7 / 100k

🔒

Homicides

lower is better

8.4 / 100k

14.2 / 100k

🚗

Road deaths

lower is better

14.2 / 100k

45 / 100

🚨

Safety Index

higher is better

47 / 100

102°F

☀️

Summer high

personal taste

104°F

41°F

❄️

Winter low

personal taste

48°F

✓7.6 μg/m³

🌬️

Air quality (PM2.5)

lower is better

12.8 μg/m³

77 / 100

🏥

Healthcare

higher is better

80 / 100

7.8 / 10

🗳️

Democracy

higher is better

7.8 / 10

67 / 100

🏳️‍🌈

Rainbow Index

higher is better

67 / 100

100/100

🗣️

Street English

higher is better

100/100

$86k

💼

GDP per capita

higher is better

$86k

2.9% · Boringly steady

📈

Inflation

lower is better

2.9% · Boringly steady

80/100

🗽

Freedom House

higher is better

80/100

A median Software Engineer in Las Vegas takes home $11,851/mo under Standard employee. In Phoenix: $11,851/mo under Standard employee.

Each city pays its own median — Software Engineer gross via Levels.fyi / Eurostat. Moving changes your salary too; that's the point.

$191k

💰

Gross income

$191k

−$35k

🏛️

Income tax

Standard employee

−$35k

−$14k

🛡️

Social contributions

−$14k

$142k/yr

$12k/mo

💵

Take-home pay

$142k/yr

$12k/mo

−$44k

🏠

Cost of living

−$49k

✓$99k/yr

🐖

Annual savings

$93k/yr

Swap the local medians for your actual number

Sources: Numbeo · UNODC · Ookla · WHO · EIU · World Bank · Freedom House · Updated April 2026

💰

Cost of Living

Las Vegas

$200/mo cheaper on rent alone

Sun

How much sky you actually get

74% clear

Win

Spr

Sum

Fall

Sky clear

avg daytime

73% clear

Win

Spr

Sum

Fall

9.7h

Shortest day

Dec

9.9h

14.6h

Longest day

Jun

14.4h

Sun clocks out before 5pm in both cities come December. Plan accordingly.

Source: WeatherSpark (clear-sky share of daytime hours)

Settler Essentials

stable →

Democracy trend

stable →

improving ↑

Inflation trend

improving ↑

Easy

🇺🇸 Your visa

Easy

Moderate

EU visa

Moderate

Suspended

RU visa

Suspended

Moderate

UA visa

Moderate

Not recognized

Partner pathway

Not recognized

Visa stamps:Easy <90 daysModerate 3–6 moComplex 6+ mo

Sources: EIU · Freedom House · Startup Genome · official immigration portals

Reproductive Rights

Because your body shouldn't need a visa too

On request

Abortion access

On request

24 wk

Gestational limit

24 wk

Protected by statute, reaffirmed by a 2024 ballot measure.

Prop 139 (Nov 2024) enshrined a right to abortion pre-viability; the prior 15-week ban was struck down Mar 2025.

Source: Center for Reproductive Rights

LGBTQ+ Rights

Can you hold hands without doing a risk assessment first

Legal

Marriage

Legal

Joint adoption

Adoption

Joint adoption

Yes

Job protection

Yes

Hate crime law

Yes

Las Vegas vs Phoenix — Common Questions

Is Las Vegas cheaper than Phoenix?▾

Las Vegas is cheaper. A 1-bedroom apartment in city centre costs around $1587/month there vs $1787/month in the other city (Numbeo data).

Which is safer, Las Vegas or Phoenix?▾

Phoenix is statistically safer based on UNODC homicide data. Las Vegas has a rate of 8.70 per 100,000 and Phoenix has 8.40 per 100,000.

Should I move to Las Vegas or Phoenix?▾

Las Vegas and Phoenix are almost suspiciously well-matched. Flip a coin. See the full comparison above for rent, safety, internet speed, climate, and democracy scores to decide which city fits your priorities.

What's the cost of rent in Las Vegas vs Phoenix?▾

A 1-bedroom in the centre: $1587/month in Las Vegas, $1787/month in Phoenix (Numbeo). That's 11% cheaper rent in Las Vegas.

Plot twist: other matchups exist

Maybe the real city was the comparisons we made along the way.

Compare Las Vegas

Miami vs Las Vegas

Compare Las Vegas

Las Vegas vs Montreal

Compare Phoenix

Phoenix vs Montreal

Let the algorithm judge you

2 min quiz — surprisingly accurate

Quiz →

🇺🇸 Las Vegas

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🇺🇸 Phoenix

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