One of the most common internet searches that brings people to this site is “how expensive is it to live in Green Bay?” Green Bay is a little bit cheaper than the national average, and especially Green Bay real estate is particularly cheap if you’re coming from a bigger city of over 300,000 or so.
The easy way to determine the cost of living is to go to a professional comparison calculator, which you can find over at Bestplaces.net. You can not only see how expensive (or cheap) the cost of living is in Green Bay versus the national average, you can compare it to the city you’re coming from to see if you’re going to have more or less bang for your buck. According to best places, the cost of living in Green Bay is 12.2% less than the national average.
One of the first things people moving to the area wonder about is how the economy is doing. Green Bay has a relatively strong economy when compared to other cities its size throughout the US. Green Bay is quite blue collar and has been called the “toilet paper capital of the world.” There are lots of factories and industry, but also several large insurance companies. If you’re curious about who employs people in Green Bay, check out the biggest employers in Green Bay list. The unemployment rate in Green Bay is slightly higher than the national average, but when you check for Brown County (the county Green Bay is in), the rate drops to about the national average.
Housing / Real Estate
The median home price in Green Bay as of late 2014 is $106,200, while the national average is almost double that at approximately $209,000. That is for the city proper, but you’ll find homes in neighboring communities of De Pere, Howard/Suamico, Ashwaubenon, and Bellevue to be slightly more as they’re more desirable. The prices of housing does reflect the wages in the area and the amount of land available. One thing people coming to Green Bay from more expensive cities like San Francisco notice is that you can get A LOT of real estate for your dollar here. For $500,000 you can get yourself a 5,000 sq ft house on a nice lot in almost brand new condition. In other cities, you couldn’t touch that. So if you’re coming from an expensive area and can afford a higher mortgage since you’re used to it, you’ll most likely be pleasantly surprised.
If you’re just starting out you can pick up a 2 bedroom apartment for $650 a month, or even purchase a basic 2 bedroom Green Bay condo in some parts of town under $80,000. Green Bay is unique in that the urban downtown prices aren’t really all that much more expensive than the suburbs. In fact, there really wasn’t much housing downtown until recently. Right now they’re constructing about 200 or so housing units downtown (all rentals). Apparently there’s a bunch of demand for downtown living, but about 10 years ago there really wasn’t much of anything for housing in downtown Green Bay.
Food
Food in Green Bay is relatively cheap. You can buy a gallon of milk for $3, bananas for .39 cents a pound (the cheapest are at kwik trip gas stations), and a loaf of bread for a dollar or two. There’s a good amount of fresh produce at local grocery stores, and there are several farmers markets in the area during summer. I believe (don’t quote me on this), that there might be also a winters farmers market in Green Bay, just do a quick search online to see if that’s true. The grocery stores in Green Bay consist of Festival, Copps (owned by Roundys), Wal-Mart Superstores, Aldi’s, and Piggly Wiggly. There aren’t any Whole Foods or Trader Joes, but they’re currently working on creating a food coop. I’m not sure how long it will be before it launches, but it’s called the new leaf market.
Utilities
Wisconsin Public Service is the utility provider in the area, and the water will be controlled by your local municipality. I currently live in a 2 bedroom, 1 bath house with about 800 square feet and utilize about $30 a month in water, and $50 a month heater / electric during the warm months (however I don’t run A/C), and about $120 a month heat / electric during the winters.
Transportation/gasoline
If you really want to get around the Green Bay area, you’re going to need a car. Almost everyone around here has a car and the public transportation can be a bit frustrating, although I know they’re trying to make it better. Except for downtown Green Bay and downtown De Pere, the rest of the city is not very walkable, especially during the winters. The problem is, everything in Green Bay is really spread out and the city relies heavily on it’s highway system. Therefore, plan on spending money on a car if you don’t have one, and paying gas slightly higher than the national average. You can see current gas prices on this site.
Taxes
Wisconsin is known as one of the highest taxed states in the nation when it comes to real estate. If you are planning on buying expect to pay at least $2,000 in taxes per $100,000 in assessed value. Believe it or not, the city of Green Bay has the highest property tax rate, and the surrounding suburbs have slightly lower taxes. The sales tax in the area is currently 5.5% of your transaction, which isn’t too bad when compared to other cities. If you’re interested in more specifics about tax rates in the Green Bay area, check out the Brown County tax records.
Summary
There is no single answer to the question “How expensive is it to live in Green Bay?” because expenses are different for everyone. Overally Green Bay is a relatively cheap place to live if you’re coming from a bigger city. Just be prepared to pay for gas as you’ll be driving a fair amount, and if you’re buying a house in Green Bay, realize that the taxes do add up quickly in this area. If you have any questions about the cost of living in Green Bay, ask away below.
Try Co-Working Space – If you’re a freelancer you could get a desk at the 
