HUD FY2026 Fair Market Rents · National coverage - official, updated 2025

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.

Or jump to 🗺️ 50 states + D.C. 📊 Most/least expensive 📉 Top counties 📖 Renter guides
Counties
3,153
Metro areas
400
States + DC
51
Fiscal year
2026

The national picture

According to HUD, across 3,153 counties and 400 metro areas, the FY2026 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent averages $1,175 - but ranges from $924 in Mississippi to $2,433 in Hawaii, a 2.6× spread.

Across 3,153 US counties and 400 metro areas, HUD's FY2026 Fair Market Rent for a 2-bedroom averages $1,175 per month, ranging from $924 in Mississippi to $2,433 in Hawaii. A household needs about $47,000 in annual income to afford the national average without exceeding HUD's 30% affordability threshold.

$1,175
US average 2-bedroom FMR
2.6×
priciest state vs cheapest (HI vs MS)
$47,000
income to afford the US average (30% rule)
3,153
counties + 400 metros tracked
National map

Average 2-bedroom rent across America

Each tile is a state, shaded by its average county-level HUD 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent (FY2026). Tap any state for its full breakdown.

State average 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent, FY2026. Source: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
AK ME
VT NH
WA ID MT ND MN IL WI MI NY MA
OR UT WY SD IA IN OH PA NJ CT RI
CA NV CO NE MO KY WV VA MD DE
AZ NM KS AR TN NC SC DC
OK LA MS AL GA
HI TX FL
Scale: $924–$1.2K $1.2K–$1.5K $1.5K–$1.8K $1.8K–$2.1K $2.1K–$2.4K
Distribution

How rent is distributed across the states

Most states cluster near the national average; a handful in the expensive tail pull it upward. 25 states sit above the $1,175 US 2-bedroom average.

State average 2-bedroom FMR vs. the US average

Each bar is a band of states; the marker is the national average, HUD FY2026

$1,175 higher than 51% of 51 states

$900–$1,000: 11 states (22%). Below this entry. $1,000–$1,100: 7 states (14%). Below this entry. $1,100–$1,200: 8 states (16%). This entry sits in this band. $1,200–$1,300: 2 states (4%). Above this entry. $1,300–$1,400: 3 states (6%). Above this entry. $1,400–$1,500: 8 states (16%). Above this entry. $1,500–$1,600: 3 states (6%). Above this entry. $1,600–$1,700: 1 states (2%). Above this entry. $1,700–$1,800: 1 states (2%). Above this entry. $1,800–$1,900: 1 states (2%). Above this entry. $1,900–$2,000: 1 states (2%). Above this entry. $2,000–$2,100: 1 states (2%). Above this entry. $2,100–$2,200: 1 states (2%). Above this entry. $2,200–$2,300: 2 states (4%). Above this entry. $2,300–$2,400: 0 states (0%). Above this entry. $2,400–$2,500: 1 states (2%). Above this entry. US average $900 $2,500 every US state, bucketed by value

Each bar is a $0.1K-wide band; taller bars hold more states. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Fair Market Rents · FY2026

The affordability lens

Rent vs. income: where affordability lives

Every dot is a US county, plotted by median household income (left to right) against 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent (bottom to top).

Sample of the cheapest and most expensive US counties by rent

Sample of the cheapest and most expensive US counties by rent 2×2 strategic matrix plotting 20 entities by Median household income (X) and 2-bedroom FMR (Y), with a crosshair dividing the plot into four quadrants. PremiumRent-burdened riskBest valueBudget $0$50,000$100,000$150,000$200,000 $0$1,000$2,000$3,000$4,000$5,000 Median household income 2-bedroom FMR

Research

Original analysis from our editorial team, every statistic derived from our own database. See all research.

Research

Top 10 Most Expensive US Counties by 2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent 2026

PlainRent ranks all 3,000+ US counties by HUD 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent for fiscal year 2026, updated automatically when the source is refreshed.

 Research

Top 10 Most Expensive US Metros by 2-Bedroom Fair Market Rent 2026

PlainRent ranks all 380+ US metropolitan statistical areas by HUD 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent, updated automatically when the source is refreshed.

 Research

US State Fair Market Rent Distribution and Homeownership 2026

PlainRent ranks all 50 US states by population-weighted county FMRs and contextualizes the ranking against state-level homeownership and median income.
HUD FY2026

National Average Fair Market Rents (2026)

Studio
$893
1 Bedroom
$959
2 Bedroom
$1,175
3 Bedroom
$1,525
4 Bedroom
$1,756

Most Affordable Counties

Lowest 1-bedroom FMR in the US

1. Clay County
$591/mo
2. Covington County
$591/mo
3. Crenshaw County
$591/mo
4. DeKalb County
$591/mo
5. Marion County
$591/mo
6. Marshall County
$591/mo
7. Pickens County
$591/mo
8. Clarke County
$603/mo
9. Conecuh County
$615/mo
10. Coosa County
$615/mo
View full rankings →

Most Expensive Counties

Highest 1-bedroom FMR in the US

1. Santa Cruz County
$3,298/mo
2. Santa Clara County
$2,982/mo
3. Marin County
$2,977/mo
4. San Francisco County
$2,977/mo
5. San Mateo County
$2,977/mo
6. Orange County
$2,746/mo
7. Santa Barbara County
$2,746/mo
8. Bronx County
$2,655/mo
9. Kings County
$2,655/mo
10. New York County
$2,655/mo
View full rankings →
All 50 states + DC

Browse by State

Each bar is the state's average 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent, a quick read on where rent runs high or low.

Alabama $936 Alaska $1,467 Arizona $1,419 Arkansas $944 California $2,053 Colorado $1,429 Connecticut $1,955 Delaware $1,560 District of Columbia $2,246 Florida $1,526 Georgia $1,203 Hawaii $2,433 Idaho $1,173 Illinois $1,063 Indiana $1,096 Iowa $989 Kansas $947 Kentucky $984 Louisiana $1,007 Maine $1,448 Maryland $1,657 Massachusetts $2,261 Michigan $1,113 Minnesota $1,125 Mississippi $924 Missouri $972 Montana $1,336 Nebraska $1,001 Nevada $1,428 New Hampshire $1,894 New Jersey $2,132 New Mexico $1,129 New York $1,579 North Carolina $1,161 North Dakota $965 Ohio $1,092 Oklahoma $995 Oregon $1,425 Pennsylvania $1,225 Rhode Island $1,729 South Carolina $1,155 South Dakota $990 Tennessee $1,118 Texas $1,149 Utah $1,313 Vermont $1,487 Virginia $1,369 Washington $1,472 West Virginia $945 Wisconsin $1,097 Wyoming $1,044
View all states →

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.

About this data

How PlainRent works, and why you can trust these numbers

What this site is

PlainRent covers Fair Market Rent data for 3,153 counties and 400 metropolitan areas across all 50 states, using the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's official FY2026 Fair Market Rent estimates -- the same federal benchmark used to set Section 8 housing voucher payment standards.

Editorial process

  1. Source. Pull county- and metro-level Fair Market Rent estimates directly from HUD's public FY2026 dataset release.
  2. Verify. Each record keeps its original FIPS/CBSA identifiers, so every figure traces back to HUD's own published schedule.
  3. Publish. Compile rankings, comparisons, and affordability context, always linking back to the official HUD source so readers can verify our numbers against it.

Editorial independence & corrections

PlainRent is an independent publisher and is not affiliated with HUD, the Census Bureau, or any government agency. We do not accept payment, sponsorship, or promoted placement. Found a figure that looks wrong? Use the contact page with the page URL and the value that looks off, we compare it against the published source and correct our pipeline (not just the single page) if the error is on our side. See our editorial & corrections policy and methodology for the full process and source attribution.

Frequently asked

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 Fair Market Rents, compare counties, metros, and states, and use the affordability calculator without any account or subscription.

How is rent burden calculated?

Rent burden compares the local Fair Market Rent against household income using the federal 30% rule: a household is "rent burdened" when rent exceeds 30% of gross income, and "severely burdened" above 50%. Our rent-burden rankings apply this to every county using HUD FMRs and Census median-income data.

US fair-market rent growth (HUD FMR, 2BR, 2020-2026)

$800$900$1,000$1,100$1,200 FY2020FY2021FY2022FY2023FY2024FY2025FY2026 $1,175
National average 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent, FY2020-FY2026 (+41.7% overall)

Source: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Fair Market Rents. See /methodology for the full computation pipeline and data vintage.

Where to start

Fair Market Rent varies a lot even within one state, so the national averages above are a starting point, not your number.

  • Look up your specific county or metro for the actual FMR that applies there, not the national or state average. Find your county
  • Run your income through the calculator to see the maximum rent that keeps you under the 30% guideline. Affordability calculator
  • Comparing two places to live? See both FMRs side by side before deciding. Compare metros

Fair Market Rent is HUD's 40th-percentile policy benchmark, not a market listing price. This site is informational and not financial or relocation advice.