Where is self-care the most affordable? 86 cities ranked best to worst

Audio By Carbonatix

Where is self-care the most affordable? 86 cities ranked best to worst

Intentional self-care involves regularly taking steps to improve or maintain your physical, emotional, mental, spiritual, and social well-being. Self-care looks different for every individual, but creating a general self-care plan for yourself can quickly boost how you feel inside and out.

While some forms are free (hello, meditating), other popular indulgences require a line item in your budget. And those costs can vary a lot depending on where you live.

To find the U.S. cities with the most affordable self-care, Hers looked at 86 of the largest metropolitan areas and ranked them based on the following categories:

• Haircut (man’s barbershop haircut with no styling)
• Beauty salon visit (woman’s shampoo, cut, and blow-dry)
• Dry cleaning (man’s two-piece suit)
• Movie ticket (first-run, evening showing)
• Yoga session (one-hour drop-in class)

Scroll through to find the best and worst cities for self-care affordability, plus extra insights on where it costs the most and least when factoring in salary.

The 10 Most Affordable Cities for Self-Care

1. Charlotte, North Carolina

2. McAllen, Texas

3. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

4. Kansas City, Missouri

5. Tulsa, Oklahoma

6. Augusta, Georgia

7. Indianapolis, Indiana

8. Omaha, Nebraska

9. St. Louis, Missouri

10. Baton Rouge, Louisiana and Birmingham, Alabama (tied)

Key Findings

• Southern and Midwestern cities lead in affordability, with Charlotte, McAllen, and Oklahoma City earning the top three spots.
• Coastal cities, especially Boston, Seattle, and Los Angeles, tend to be more expensive.
• Some large cities are not as expensive as you think. New York, for example, ranks 74th, making it much more affordable than other large cities on the list. 

Self-Care Affordability by City: Trends and Insights

Looking to relieve stress with a specific self-care technique? Here are the cities with the best and worst prices based on each category.

Which Cities Have the Cheapest Haircuts?

Cheapest Haircuts

1. Las Vegas, Nevada: $16.67

2. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma: $18.40

3. Knoxville, Tennessee: $18.60

Most Expensive Haircuts

1. Seattle, Washington: $52.20

2. Boston, Massachusetts: $50.20

3. Chicago, Illinois: $48.33
 

Which Cities Have the Cheapest Beauty Salons?

Cheapest Beauty Salons

1. Augusta, Georgia: $32.50

2. Omaha, Nebraska: $34.17

3. Kansas City, Missouri: $36.50

Most Expensive Beauty Salons

1. Los Angeles, California: $98

2. Miami, Florida: $89.14

3. Seattle, Washington: $88

Which Cities Have the Cheapest Dry Cleaning?

Cheapest Dry Cleaning

1. Memphis, Tennessee: $9.83

2. Baltimore, Maryland: $10.50

3. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: $11.49

Most Expensive Dry Cleaning

1. Sacramento, California: $28.95

2. Bakersfield, California: $28.33

3. Honolulu, Hawaii: $25.98

Which Cities Have the Cheapest Movie Tickets?

Cheapest Movie Tickets

1. Tulsa, Oklahoma: $9.35

2. Winston-Salem, North Carolina: $9.75

3. Des Moines, Iowa: $11.01

Most Expensive Movie Tickets

1. New York City, New York: $21.21

2. Los Angeles, California: $19.74

3. Honolulu, Hawaii: $19.03

Which Cities Have the Cheapest Yoga Classes?

Cheapest Yoga

1. Charlotte, North Carolina: $12

2. Birmingham, Alabama and Buffalo, New York (tied): $14.40

3. Wichita, Kansas: $14.75

Most Expensive Yoga

1. San Jose, California: $35

2. New York City, New York: $31.40

3. Honolulu, Hawaii: $31.21

Most Affordable Cities for Self-Care: Full Ranking

Hers reviewed 86 cities and ranked them from most to least affordable for self-care:

1. Charlotte, North Carolina

2. McAllen, Texas

3. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

4. Kansas City, Missouri

5. Tulsa, Oklahoma

6. Augusta, Georgia

7. Indianapolis, Indiana

8. Omaha, Nebraska

9. St. Louis, Missouri

10. Baton Rouge, Louisiana and Birmingham, Alabama (tied)

12. Des Moines, Iowa, and Wichita, Kansas (tied)

14. Cleveland, Ohio and Toledo, Ohio (tied)

16. Chattanooga, Tennessee

17. El Paso, Texas

18. Winston-Salem, North Carolina

19. Charleston, South Carolina

20. Las Vegas, Nevada

21. Columbia, South Carolina

22. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

23. Columbus, Ohio

24. Jackson, Mississippi

25. Rochester, New York

26. Ogden, Utah

27. Jacksonville, Florida

28. Memphis, Tennessee

29. Dayton, Ohio

30. Deltona, Florida

31. Salt Lake City, Utah

32. Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and Provo, Utah (tied)

34. Knoxville, Tennessee

35. Louisville, Kentucky

36. Allentown, Pennsylvania

37. Buffalo, New York and Minneapolis, Minnesota (tied)

39. Cincinnati, Ohio

40. Detroit, Michigan, and Greenville, South Carolina (tied)

42. Tampa, Florida

43. Little Rock, Arkansas

44. San Antonio, Texas

45. Colorado Springs, Colorado, and New Orleans, Louisiana (tied)

47. Orlando, Florida

48. Syracuse, New York

49. Houston, Texas

50. Albuquerque, New Mexico

51. Boise City, Idaho

52. Fayetteville, Arkansas

53. Bakersfield, California, and Richmond, Virginia (tied)

55. Austin, Texas

56. Nashville, Tennessee

57. Atlanta, Georgia

58. Albany, New York

59. Phoenix, Arizona

60. Baltimore, Maryland

61. Denver, Colorado

62. Spokane, Washington

63. Raleigh, North Carolina

64. Harrisburg, Pennsylvania

65. Cape Coral, Florida

66. Chapel Hill, North Carolina

67. New Haven, Connecticut

68. Hartford, Connecticut

69. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

70. San Francisco, California

71. Portland, Oregon

72. Chicago, Illinois

73. San Jose, California

74. New York City, New York

75. Miami, Florida

76. Honolulu, Hawaii

77. Sacramento, California

78. Dallas, Texas

79. Madison, Wisconsin, and Providence, Rhode Island (tied)

81. Washington, D.C.

82. San Diego, California

83. Bridgeport, Connecticut

84. Los Angeles, California

85. Seattle, Washington

86. Boston, Massachusetts

Get the data.

Self-Care Affordability as a Portion of Income

Beyond raw pricing, Hers also wanted to see how much self-care costs compare to the mean income in each city. They looked at how much it would cost to do each item monthly for a year, then ranked the cities based on the percentage of income that would take up. Here’s what they found:

10 Best Cities for Self-Care as a Portion of Income

1. Charlotte, North Carolina

2. San Jose, California

3. Kansas City, Missouri

4. Omaha, Nebraska

5. Augusta, Georgia

6. Denver, Colorado

7. San Francisco, California

8. Minneapolis, Minnesota

9. Cleveland, Ohio

10. Indianapolis, Indiana
 

10 Worst Cities for Self-Care as a Portion of Income

1. Miami, Florida

2. Los Angeles, California

3. Dallas, Texas

4. Madison, Wisconsin

5. San Antonio, Texas

6. Cape Coral, Florida

7. Little Rock, Arkansas

8. Harrisburg, Pennsylvania

9. Chicago, Illinois

10. Honolulu, Hawaii

Data and Methodology: How We Scored the Cities

Hers first found the 100 most populous metropolitan areas in the United States based on 2024 data from the U.S. Census Bureau. Each were ranked based on the average price of goods and services using cost-of-living data from the Council for Community and Economic Research (C2ER) for the first quarter of 2025. Fourteen cities did not have C2ER data available, bringing our total list to 86 cities.

The following categories were considered:

• Haircut
• Beauty salon visit
• Dry cleaning
• Movie ticket
• Yoga session

To determine self-care spending as part of the city’s income, Hers first found each city’s mean salary from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Then all the spending categories were added together and multiplied by 12 to estimate annual spending. Finally, self-care spending was divided by yearly income and multiplied by 100 to determine the percentage of income spent on self-care for each city.

Making the Most of Your Self-Care Routine

Some cities may be more self-care savvy than others, but you can develop a sound practice to improve your overall well-being regardless of your location and budget. Follow these three tips to make your self-care practice both affordable and impactful.

1. Access your holistic needs. No one practice makes a self-care routine. To feel your best, try to incorporate emotional, physical, spiritual, and financial well-being into your daily routines.

2. Choose activities within your budget. While a trip to the salon is relaxing for many people, you can find other ways to relax without spending money. Get creative with activities like journaling, a long bath, or even a social media break.

3. Build consistency in your routine. Determine what stresses you out and identify solutions based on your preferences. There’s no point in going to a yoga class if you don’t enjoy downward-facing dog. But you could go for a walk on your lunch break or make a from-scratch meal at home once a week.

This story was produced by Hers and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.