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I was strategizing with a friend recently about how they could get a fresh start somewhere new. They're broke, have been unemployed for years and are dealing with fairly severe mental health issues. They have some skills, but will likely need a flexible, unskilled job in the beginning. So I started scouting out cheap cities and noticed an interesting trend. The rent for a 1-bedroom in a decent part of a city in Kansas is about the same as an equivalent in South Dakota, arounds $700/mo. The difference? The lowest you can get paid in SD is 33% higher than in KS. $7.25 (the national min wage) versus $10.80.

It would take a lot more work for a thorough analysis, but my quick assessment found SD and neighboring Nebraska ($10.50) to be top states to live off of minimum wage in large town/small city.

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I'm surprised it's not somewhere like Spokane or Bakersfield. Smaller cities in states with high minimum wages (plus stronger social safety nets).

I was very focused on finding nice-ish apartments in core downtown areas, which changes the equation a bit. Bakersfield has 1-bedrooms for under $800/mo, but nowhere near their downtown. In Spokane I'm seeing virtually nothing for under $800/mo, let alone downtown.

Spokane and Bakersfield? Maybe 50 years ago…

But what percentage of employees, even in unskilled jobs, are being paid minimum wage in each of those locations? The floor may be misleading.

A number of states have minimum wages substantially higher than $10.80, and also have large towns/small cities. I might look at one of the smaller cities in California (minimum: $15.50), Illinois ($13), NY ($14.20), or Maine ($13.80). Note that I am specifically not talking about the "flagship" cities in the big states here, where costs are much higher than the rest of the state.

One can rent a 1BR in the $700 range in all of these states. And while some aspects of cost of living may be higher, the $4.70/hr difference between SD and CA translates to an additional $752/mo of income.

I mentioned in another comment, but I was looking only for nice 1-bedrooms in core downtown areas, which is a big limitation. But I will expand the search. Maine sounds especially interesting.

There's cheaper still.

I'm still in contact with someone who lives in the west slope of Colorado. Lives in a small city of ~20,000, and splits a 2BR with a friend. His share of the rent and utilities is under $350/mo. I think the actual rent is $550/mo. He's in walking distance (5 - 15 minutes) of everywhere he needs to go, including no fewer than two supermarkets and a Wal-Mart.

The Dakotas do tend to be very cheap, but also parts of the Rocky Mountain rain shadow, parts of Appalachia, and a few other pockets around the country.

Low-skilled job availability is an important factor to consider as well. Places that have a higher minimum wage tend to have less of them.

Do employers in KS actually pay only minimum wage? Minimum wage in Utah is a joke if you actually want to find anyone to work for you anywhere near Salt Lake City.

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