2-bedroom market rent and year-over-year change for 50 cities
| City | State | Avg 2BR Rent | 1 Year Ago | YoY Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Francisco | CA | $3,450 | $3,121 | 4.2% |
| New York City | NY | $3,280 | $2,980 | 3.8% |
| San Jose | CA | $2,990 | $2,710 | 5.0% |
| Boston | MA | $2,870 | $2,620 | 4.7% |
| Los Angeles | CA | $2,640 | $2,430 | 4.2% |
| Seattle | WA | $2,430 | $2,240 | 5.1% |
| Washington DC | DC | $2,380 | $2,190 | 4.5% |
| San Diego | CA | $2,350 | $2,140 | 4.9% |
| Denver | CO | $1,980 | $1,820 | 5.3% |
| Miami | FL | $2,160 | $1,950 | 5.2% |
| Austin | TX | $1,790 | $1,640 | 4.8% |
| Portland | OR | $1,750 | $1,610 | 4.4% |
| Chicago | IL | $1,720 | $1,580 | 3.9% |
| Atlanta | GA | $1,680 | $1,540 | 5.6% |
| Nashville | TN | $1,650 | $1,490 | 5.8% |
| Phoenix | AZ | $1,620 | $1,490 | 4.2% |
| Charlotte | NC | $1,560 | $1,420 | 6.1% |
| Minneapolis | MN | $1,490 | $1,380 | 4.1% |
| Tampa | FL | $1,760 | $1,580 | 6.4% |
| Orlando | FL | $1,740 | $1,560 | 5.9% |
| Raleigh | NC | $1,520 | $1,380 | 6.5% |
| Salt Lake City | UT | $1,480 | $1,350 | 5.4% |
| Las Vegas | NV | $1,420 | $1,310 | 4.7% |
| Dallas | TX | $1,460 | $1,340 | 4.5% |
| Houston | TX | $1,380 | $1,270 | 4.3% |
| Philadelphia | PA | $1,560 | $1,440 | 3.8% |
| San Antonio | TX | $1,240 | $1,150 | 4.1% |
| Richmond | VA | $1,380 | $1,260 | 5.2% |
| Jacksonville | FL | $1,420 | $1,300 | 5.1% |
| Columbus | OH | $1,280 | $1,180 | 4.2% |
| Indianapolis | IN | $1,190 | $1,100 | 3.8% |
| Kansas City | MO | $1,160 | $1,080 | 3.7% |
| Louisville | KY | $1,110 | $1,030 | 3.8% |
| Memphis | TN | $1,080 | $1,010 | 3.6% |
| Oklahoma City | OK | $1,040 | $970 | 3.4% |
| Albuquerque | NM | $1,150 | $1,060 | 4.1% |
| Tucson | AZ | $1,090 | $1,010 | 3.8% |
| El Paso | TX | $970 | $910 | 3.2% |
| Omaha | NE | $1,100 | $1,020 | 3.9% |
| Wichita | KS | $920 | $860 | 3.1% |
| Birmingham | AL | $1,020 | $950 | 3.5% |
| New Orleans | LA | $1,380 | $1,270 | 4.2% |
| Richmond | VA | $1,390 | $1,270 | 5.2% |
| Boise | ID | $1,490 | $1,360 | 5.8% |
| Colorado Springs | CO | $1,540 | $1,420 | 5.2% |
| Sacramento | CA | $1,890 | $1,730 | 4.8% |
| Riverside | CA | $2,010 | $1,850 | 4.6% |
| Honolulu | HI | $2,480 | $2,240 | 4.0% |
| Anchorage | AK | $1,420 | $1,310 | 3.8% |
| Portland | ME | $1,980 | $1,800 | 5.2% |
Supply constraints are the primary driver of high rents in coastal markets. San Francisco, New York, and Boston have restrictive zoning, high construction costs, and geographic limitations that prevent housing supply from keeping pace with demand.
Job market concentration drives demand. Tech-heavy markets (San Francisco, San Jose, Seattle) and financial centers (New York) attract high-income renters who can pay premium rents, pushing market-wide rent levels up.
Migration patterns explain Sun Belt rent growth. As remote work normalized, significant migration from high-cost coastal markets to Sun Belt cities (Austin, Nashville, Charlotte, Tampa) drove rapid rent increases in those markets from 2020–2023.
The average 2-bedroom rent across major U.S. cities in 2026 is approximately $1,650/month. This varies significantly by market — from under $1,000 in smaller metros to over $3,000 in San Francisco and New York.
Rents are generally still increasing, but at a more moderate pace than 2021–2022. Most major markets are seeing 3–6% year-over-year growth. Sun Belt markets are growing faster; some high-supply markets saw flat or slightly negative growth in 2024 but have stabilized.
City-level averages mask significant neighborhood variation. RentSolve AI's Rent Intelligence tool shows market rent estimates for your specific address and bedroom count using Rentcast's zip-code-level comparable data.
RentSolve AI shows address-level market rent estimates alongside HUD FMR and vacancy data.
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