Fifteen U.S. counties with at least 20,000 residents and the lowest median gross rent
Eight of these fifteen counties carry a margin of error wider than the entire $64 range separating the lowest published figure here from the highest, according to the Census Bureau's 2019–2023 American Community Survey. Alabama has three of the fifteen counties — more than any other state.
Four more states — West Virginia, Kentucky, Arkansas, and Missouri — each have two of the remaining twelve counties; the rest are single counties from Tennessee, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Arizona.
Lowest median gross rent
Unranked · A–Z| County ↓ A–Z | State | Median gross rent | Margin of error |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abbeville | SC | $634 | ±$190 (30.0%) |
| Apache | AZ | $647 | ±$42 (6.5%) |
| Barbour | AL | $644 | ±$41 (6.4%) |
| Bell | KY | $617 | ±$82 (13.3%) |
| Brooke | WV | $603 | ±$77 (12.8%) |
| Columbia | AR | $631 | ±$52 (8.2%) |
| Dunklin | MO | $632 | ±$30 (4.7%) |
| Fentress | TN | $614 | ±$91 (14.8%) |
| Knox | KY | $631 | ±$51 (8.1%) |
| Marion | AL | $583 | ±$54 (9.3%) |
| Mingo | WV | $604 | ±$79 (13.1%) |
| Poinsett | AR | $647 | ±$77 (11.9%) |
| Prentiss | MS | $620 | ±$65 (10.5%) |
| Randolph | AL | $646 | ±$58 (9.0%) |
| Texas | MO | $647 | ±$72 (11.1%) |
Median gross rent is the monthly cost of rent plus utilities for renter-occupied homes — this figure is from the U.S. Census Bureau's 2019–2023 American Community Survey.
Why these aren't ranked
These fifteen counties aren't ranked against each other. Median gross rent is a Census survey estimate, and small counties carry wide margins of error — for eight of these fifteen, that margin is wider than the entire $64 range separating the lowest published figure here from the highest. A difference that small can't be meaningfully ordered against uncertainty that large. Every county's own margin of error is shown directly in the table above, not just the widest ones. Listed alphabetically instead.
This ranking is one slice of the full data. The County List with Demographics carries median income, rent, and home value for all 3,221 U.S. counties in one CSV.
- The County List with Demographics page has a free 100-row sample — download it to see the columns first.
- Get the County List with Demographics ($199) for the complete file.
More county affordability rankings
Every figure fact-checked against the Census Bureau's 2019–2023 American Community Survey.
Methodology & sources
Median gross rent (Census Table B25064) is the middle value of total monthly housing cost for renter-occupied units, including rent and utilities, from the U.S. Census Bureau's 2019–2023 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Cite the specific data.census.gov detailed-table page (ACSDT5Y2023), not census.gov's QuickFacts tool — QuickFacts has since rolled forward to the newer 2020–2024 vintage and will show different numbers for the same county. Figures pulled directly from the U.S. Census Bureau's own ACS 2019–2023 5-Year detailed tables (B25064 median gross rent), each carrying its own published margin of error. Faithfully reproduced from the Bureau's release, not independently re-measured.
Prepared from our data team's 2026-08-07 delivery.