Living in or near a big city comes with perks, like great entertainment options, shopping centers, and career opportunities.
But just how much will you have to fork over in living expenses to call one of these areas home?
Depending on where you live, the median rent for a one-bedroom apartment in the country's top metro areas can be less than $720 a month or higher than $2,500 a month.
Read more: Here's how much space $1,000 in rent will get you in 11 major US cities
Business Insider teamed up with Zillow's rental site, HotPads, to find the median rent for a one-bedroom apartment in each of the 49 US metro areas with the largest populations (as determined by Zillow). We also used Data USA to find the median household income in each of these areas.
The data was compiled using HotPad's Repeat Rent Index. Each of the one-bedroom apartments analyzed in the study has been listed for rent on HotPads for longer than a month.
Keep reading for the full rundown, from the metro areas with the cheapest one-bedrooms to the areas with the priciest.
The median household income in the Oklahoma City metro area is $56,260.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Birmingham metro area is $53,107.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the San Antonio metro area is $56,774.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Kansas City metro area is $63,404.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the St. Louis metro area is $61,571.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Indianapolis metro area is $59,566.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Pittsburgh metro area is $58,521.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Cincinnati metro area is $61,653.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Houston metro area is $63,802.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Cleveland metro area is $52,489.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Raleigh metro area is $72,576.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Columbus metro area is $63,764.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Buffalo metro area is $55,448.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Orlando metro area is $55,089.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Louisville-Jefferson County metro area is $57,279.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Jacksonville metro area is $58,709.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Las Vegas metro area is $57,189.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Dallas-Fort Worth metro area is $67,382.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Richmond metro area is $67,633.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Virginia Beach metro area is $64,255.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Detroit metro area is $58,411.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Hartford metro area is $71,414.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Tampa metro area is $52,212.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Charlotte metro area is $61,156.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Phoenix metro area is $61,506.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Milwaukee metro area is $59,448.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in in the Salt Lake City metro area is $71,510.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Nashville metro area is $63,939.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Minneapolis-St Paul metro area is $76,856.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Riverside metro area is $61,994.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Austin metro area is $73,800.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Atlanta metro area is $65,381.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Philadelphia metro area is $68,572.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Providence metro area is $65,226.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Baltimore metro area is $77,394.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in is $76,643.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Miami-Fort Lauderdale metro area is $54,284.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Sacramento metro area is $67,902.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the New Orleans metro area is $50,528.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Chicago metro area is $68,403.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Portland metro area is $71,931.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Seattle metro area is $82,133.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Washington, DC metro area is $99,669.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the San Diego metro area is $76,207.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Boston metro area is $85,691.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the New York metro area is $75,368.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim metro area is $69,992.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the San Francisco metro area is $101,714.
Source: HotPads
The median household income in the San Jose metro area is $117,474.
Source: HotPads
