Is Fayetteville cheaper than Huntsville?

They are about even — the overall cost of living in the Fayetteville and Huntsville metros is within 3% of each other (BEA Regional Price Parities), so neither is meaningfully cheaper.

Which has higher household income, Fayetteville or Huntsville?

Huntsville has the higher median household income — $87,049 versus $81,208 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS), about 7% more.

Does a paycheck go further in Fayetteville or Huntsville?

A paycheck stretches further in Huntsville. Adjusted for local prices, the median income is worth $93,529 there versus $88,895 in Fayetteville.

Which has cheaper rent, Fayetteville or Huntsville?

Fayetteville has cheaper rent — a median of $1,222/mo versus $1,283/mo (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS).

Fayetteville vs Huntsville

Metro-area medians — Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR Metro Area vs Huntsville, AL Metro Area — not the cities proper.

Huntsville comes out ahead, winning 5 of the 9 clearly-decided measures.

Fayetteville and Huntsville cost about the same to live in, but Huntsville households earn about 7% more. Adjusted for local prices, a typical paycheck stretches further in Huntsville.

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.

Annual salary (gross)

Household size

Fayetteville, AR

$58,568

take-home / yr · 22% to tax

$64,112

real value after local prices

Huntsville, AL

$57,754

take-home / yr · 23% to tax

$62,052

real value after local prices

On $75,000 for just you, Fayetteville leaves you about $2,059/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

Fayetteville

Huntsville

Livability (CityLedger)

70/100

74/100

Cost of living (price level, US = 100)

91.4

93.1

Cost-adjusted income (pay's real value)

$88,895

$93,529

Median household income

$81,208

$87,049

Median rent

$1,222/mo

$1,283/mo

Median home value

$362,500

$331,800

Unemployment

2.2%

3.1%

Bachelor's degree or higher

38.2%

43.8%

Average commute

22.3 min

23.3 min

Air quality (median AQI)

Avg temperature

57°F

63°F

Choose Fayetteville for

+ Median rent
+ Unemployment
+ Average commute
+ Air quality (median AQI)

Full Fayetteville profile →

Choose Huntsville for

+ Livability (CityLedger)
+ Cost-adjusted income (pay's real value)
+ Median household income
+ Median home value
+ Bachelor's degree or higher

Full Huntsville profile →

Fayetteville vs Huntsville — frequently asked

Is Fayetteville cheaper than Huntsville?: They are about even — the overall cost of living in the Fayetteville and Huntsville metros is within 3% of each other (BEA Regional Price Parities), so neither is meaningfully cheaper.
Which has higher household income, Fayetteville or Huntsville?: Huntsville has the higher median household income — $87,049 versus $81,208 (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS), about 7% more.
Does a paycheck go further in Fayetteville or Huntsville?: A paycheck stretches further in Huntsville. Adjusted for local prices, the median income is worth $93,529 there versus $88,895 in Fayetteville.
Which has cheaper rent, Fayetteville or Huntsville?: Fayetteville has cheaper rent — a median of $1,222/mo versus $1,283/mo (U.S. Census Bureau, ACS).