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CityLedger

Billings vs Niles

Metro-area medians — Billings, MT Metro Area vs Niles, MI Metro Area — not the cities proper.

Billings comes out ahead, winning 7 of the 9 clearly-decided measures.

Billings and Niles cost about the same to live in, but Billings households earn about 13% more. Adjusted for local prices, a typical paycheck stretches further in Billings.

Their widest everyday difference: Billings has the tighter job market — 3.3% unemployment versus 3.8%.

For your salary & household

Enter your pay and household size to see what it's really worth here — the numbers update live and the link stays shareable.

Billings, MT
$58,071
take-home / yr · 23% to tax
$62,091
real value after local prices
Niles, MI
$58,126
take-home / yr · 22% to tax
$62,927
real value after local prices

On $75,000 for just you, Niles leaves you about $837/yr better off after tax and local prices.

Take-home estimates a single filer taking the standard deduction (2025 federal brackets, FICA, and state income tax) and isn't tax advice. “Real value” rebases take-home to average U.S. prices using the BEA cost-of-living index; the per-person figure uses the OECD square-root equivalence scale.

Measure
Billings
Niles
Livability (CityLedger)
60/100
47/100
Cost of living (price level, US = 100)
93.5
92.4
Cost-adjusted income (pay's real value)
$83,153
$74,682
Median household income
$77,770
$68,984
Median rent
$1,170/mo
$910/mo
Median home value
$383,900
$244,300
Unemployment
3.3%
3.8%
Bachelor's degree or higher
32.8%
31.1%
Average commute
20.8 min
21.6 min
Air quality (median AQI)
39
41
Avg temperature
48°F
49°F

Choose Billings for

  • + Livability (CityLedger)
  • + Cost-adjusted income (pay's real value)
  • + Median household income
  • + Unemployment
  • + Bachelor's degree or higher
  • + Average commute
  • + Air quality (median AQI)
Full Billings profile →

Choose Niles for

  • + Median rent
  • + Median home value
Full Niles profile →

More comparisons

Metros closest to Billings and Niles on cost, income, size, and education.

Billings vs Eau Claire→Billings vs Appleton→Billings vs Oshkosh→Niles vs Oshkosh→Niles vs Jackson→Niles vs Binghamton→

Billings vs Niles — frequently asked

Is Billings cheaper than Niles?
They are about even — the overall cost of living in the Billings and Niles metros is within 3% of each other (BEA Regional Price Parities), so neither is meaningfully cheaper.
Which has higher household income, Billings or Niles?
Billings has the higher median household income — $77,770 versus $68,984 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS), about 13% more.
Does a paycheck go further in Billings or Niles?
A paycheck stretches further in Billings. Adjusted for local prices, the median income is worth $83,153 there versus $74,682 in Niles.
Which has cheaper rent, Billings or Niles?
Niles has cheaper rent — a median of $910/mo versus $1,170/mo (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS).