What does rent actually cost
in your county?
Official HUD Fair Market Rents for 3,153 counties and 400 metro areas. Studio through 4‑bedroom · year‑over‑year change · ranked. Free, no signup.
- Counties
- 3,153
- Metro areas
- 400
- States + DC
- 51
- Fiscal year
- 2026
Research
Original analysis from our editorial team, every statistic derived from our own database. See all research.
Where Two-Bedroom Fair Market Rent Grew Fastest, 2020-2026
Original research using HUD Fair Market Rent county files: national 2-bedroom FMR rose 41.7% in six years. The hottest counties, states, and regional patterns.
ResearchThe Rent Spike Broke: FMR Growth Fell from 11.2% to 4.2%
HUD Fair Market Rent data across 3,136 counties shows year-over-year growth collapsing from 11.2% in 2024 to 4.2% in 2026. A county-level deceleration map.
Research2-Bedroom FMR Growth, 2020–2026
Six-year trend in HUD 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent across U.S. counties — where rents accelerated, where they stalled, and which metros set the pace.
National Average Fair Market Rents (2026)
Most Affordable Counties
Lowest 1-bedroom FMR in the US
Most Expensive Counties
Highest 1-bedroom FMR in the US
Browse by State
Learn & Explore
Go beyond the numbers with our in-depth guides on renting, housing affordability, and how government rent data works.
How Fair Market Rent Works
Learn how HUD calculates FMRs and what the 40th percentile benchmark means for renters.
Cheapest States to Rent in the US
Which states have the lowest fair market rents? A data-driven look at housing affordability across the country.
Section 8 Housing Voucher Guide
How Housing Choice Vouchers work, what FMRs have to do with it, and how to find eligible rentals.
What Are Fair Market Rents?
Fair Market Rents (FMRs) are set annually by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). They represent the 40th percentile of gross rents for standard quality units in a given area — meaning 40% of the area's rentals cost less than the FMR.
FMRs are used to determine payment standards for the Housing Choice Voucher program (Section 8), rent ceilings for HOME and Emergency Solutions Grants, and maximum rents for Continuum of Care programs.
Data source: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, FY 2026 Fair Market Rents.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where does PlainRent get its rent data?
All rent data comes from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Fair Market Rent estimates, which are used to set Section 8 voucher payment standards. This is the federal government's official measure of local rental costs.
How many counties does PlainRent cover?
PlainRent includes Fair Market Rent data for 3,153 counties across all 50 states and Washington, D.C., broken down by bedroom count (studio through 4-bedroom).
Is PlainRent free?
Yes, PlainRent is completely free. You can look up rents, find school quality ratings, and compare counties without any account or subscription.
What are the rent-to-school quality pages?
These cross-database pages combine HUD rent data with NCES school performance data from PlainSchools and crime data from PlainCrime, helping families evaluate whether an area offers good schools relative to its rental costs.
US fair-market rent growth (HUD FMR, 2BR, 2020-2026)
Source: federal data — see /methodology/ for the full computation pipeline and data vintage.