Cost of Living in Surprise
Surprise runs a moderate cost profile for the Phoenix metro, with median household income comfortably above both Arizona and national medians, though rent estimates carry a real, if modest, spread across sources.
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Learn moreIncome runs comfortably above state and national medians
Surprise's median household income is cited at $96,711 (World Population Review, retrieved 2026-08-24) -- notably above the Arizona statewide figures cited elsewhere in this dataset, giving most working households real cushion against the area's costs.
Rent clusters in a real $1,700-$1,750 band
RentCafe cites an average apartment rent of $1,703-$1,716 depending on snapshot (down 2.05% YoY), while Apartment List's March 2026 report cites an overall median rent of $1,707, with 1BR units around $1,567+ and 2BR units around $1,747+ (both retrieved 2026-08-24). These sources cluster more tightly than in some other markets in this dataset rather than diverging by hundreds of dollars -- roughly 62% of Surprise apartments fall in the $1,501-$2,000 range per RentCafe's own distribution data.
Arizona's real flat 2.5% income tax and Surprise's own sales tax
Arizona levies a real, flat 2.5% individual income tax statewide (azdor.gov, retrieved 2026-08-24) -- this is NOT a no-income-tax state, unlike several other recently-built states in this project. Surprise's own combined sales tax rate is 9.1% (5.6% Arizona state + 0.7% Maricopa County + 2.8% City of Surprise), consistently cited across multiple 2026 sales-tax aggregators -- see taxes-insurance for the full breakdown.
Key takeaways
- Median household income ($96,711) sits comfortably above state and national medians, per World Population Review.
- Rent estimates cluster in a real, relatively tight $1,700-$1,750/month band across RentCafe and Apartment List, roughly 62% of units falling in the $1,501-$2,000 range.
- Arizona's real flat 2.5% state income tax applies here -- NOT a no-income-tax framing.
- Surprise's combined sales tax rate is 9.1% (5.6% state + 0.7% county + 2.8% city).
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