Billings vs Phoenix
The short version
- Billings is cheaper overall: prices in its metro run 9% lower than in the Phoenix area (BEA 2024).
- The median home costs $343,400 in Billings and $420,700 in Phoenix.
- Households earn more in Phoenix ($81,332 vs $73,712 median).
- Phoenix has the warmer winter: January highs of 68°F vs 36°F.
- Billings gets far more snow: 57 inches a year vs 0.
- Phoenix has more scorching days: 173 a year at 90°F or hotter vs 32.
- Commutes are shorter in Billings (17 vs 26 minutes each way).
Side by side
| Billings, MT | Phoenix, AZ | |
|---|---|---|
| People | ||
| Population (2025) | 121,239 | 1,665,481 |
| Growth since 2020 | +3.5% | +3.6% |
| People per square mile | 2,632 | 3,213 |
| Median age | 38.8 | 34.9 |
| Bachelor's degree or higher | 37% | 34% |
| Money and housing | ||
| Median household income | $73,712 | $81,332 |
| Median home value | $343,400 | $420,700 |
| Home value to income | 4.7× | 5.2× |
| Median rent (with utilities) | $1,138 | $1,582 |
| Metro price level (US = 100) | 93.5 | 103.3 |
| Housing price level (US = 100) | 77.4 | 121.2 |
| $75,000 elsewhere equals | $70,100 | $77,500 |
| Homeowners | 65% | 57% |
| Top state income tax | 5.65% | 2.5% |
| Combined sales tax | 0% | 8.54% |
| Work and commute | ||
| Average commute (minutes) | 16.5 | 25.6 |
| Work from home | 9% | 19% |
| Take public transit | 1% | 2% |
| Unemployment (2020-24 avg) | 3.5% | 5% |
| Poverty rate | 9.8% | 13.7% |
| Weather | ||
| January high / low | 36° / 18° | 68° / 46° |
| July high / low | 87° / 59° | 107° / 85° |
| Precipitation per year | 14 in | 7 in |
| Snowfall per year | 57 in | 0 in |
| Days 90°F or hotter | 32 | 173 |
| Nights below freezing | 142 | 1 |
| Comfortable months | 4 | 6 |
| Risks, air and home prices | ||
| Natural hazard risk (FEMA, county) | Relatively Moderate | Very High |
| FEMA risk score (lower is safer) | 83.6 | 99.9 |
| Good air days, 2025 | 86% | 7% |
| Home prices, past year | +4.4% | +0.8% |
| Home prices, past 5 years | +40.9% | +35.8% |
Highlighted cells are the better value where "better" is clear (lower prices, higher income, shorter commutes). Sources: Census Bureau 2025 estimates and ACS 2020-2024, BEA 2024, NOAA 1991-2020, Tax Foundation 2026.
Weather, month by month
Most comfortable months: Billings: May to June and August to September. Phoenix: November to April.
Full monthly tables: Billings weather by month and Phoenix weather by month.
What $75,000 is worth
A $75,000 salary in an average-priced US city buys about the same as $70,100 in Billings and $77,500 in Phoenix. Moving from Billings to Phoenix, you would need about $82,900 to match a $75,000 salary.
Moving between Billings and Phoenix
IRS county-to-county migration, 2022 to 2023 tax years, for the counties that contain each city. See where else people move from Billings and Phoenix.
Which would you pick?
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