The 10 most (and least) affordable cities for retail workers looking to rent

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Retail workers make up roughly 10% of the U.S. workforce, yet retail remains one of the lowest-paying industries in the country. As rents have climbed over the past decade, it’s become increasingly difficult for people in these jobs to afford a place to live on their own. Add in economic uncertainty, industry-wide layoffs, and declining seasonal work, and retail workers are getting squeezed from all sides.

This strain shows up clearly in the numbers. Nationwide, the typical retail worker in America earns $34,436 per year—52% less than they would need to afford the typical apartment. To close that gap using wages alone, a retail worker would need to work more than 80 hours per week, which is unrealistic for most people.

In fact, there isn’t a single major metro in the U.S. where the typical retail worker can afford a market-rate rental. The gap is smallest in Cleveland, where workers earn about a third less than they’d need, and largest in New York, where the gap widens to more than 70%. For this analysis, rentals are considered “affordable” if a renter spends no more than 30% of their income on rent.

So, to pinpoint where renting is easiest (and hardest) for retail workers, Redfin Real Estate ranked U.S. cities by how retail wages compare to the income needed to afford the typical apartment.

The 10 most affordable cities for retail workers looking to rent

Redfin Real Estate

Cleveland ranks as the most affordable metro in the country for retail workers, though even there, workers need to earn 33% more to meet the standard affordability benchmark. These are all places with some of the lowest rents in the nation.

“As the cost of living has increased, so have the sacrifices renters must make to afford a place to live,” said Redfin Chief Economist Daryl Fairweather. “Since most retail workers don’t earn enough to afford the typical apartment, many are opting to share rent with a family member or friend, move far away from their job, or live in a very small space.”

It’s worth noting that many retail workers never actually seek out the typical apartment because it’s already out of their price range. Even the top 25% of earners still fall 44% short of the income needed to afford a standard rental.

The 10 least affordable cities for retail workers looking to rent

Redfin Real Estate

New York is the least affordable city for retail workers, with the wage gap reaching 71%. In general, the least affordable cities for retail workers have the highest rents in the nation, and closely align with the most expensive cities in the nation for homebuying and selling.

While rental affordability for retail workers remains strained, it has improved slightly in recent years, as wages have risen faster than rents. The typical retail worker now earns 51.6% less than they would need to afford the typical apartment. That’s an improvement from the 52% shortfall in October 2024, 54% in October 2023 and 57% in October 2022.

Retail worker wages have been growing at a pace of around 3% year over year, while rents have risen closer to 2%. That’s a reversal from the pandemic moving frenzy, when rents were climbing much faster than wages. Rent growth has since eased as a surge in new construction has helped vacancies climb, giving landlords less room to raise prices.

Methodology

This is based on a Redfin Real Estate analysis of 2024 wage estimates from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program, and October 2025 multifamily rent data from the Zillow Observed Rent Index. Wage data covers workers in the following categories: cashiers, retail salespersons, first-line retail supervisors. All data covers 40 of the largest U.S. metropolitan areas.

This story was produced by Redfin Real Estate and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.