How Much Does It Cost to Move to the USA - Expenses, Salaries, and Budget

How much it costs to move to the USA depends on three things - which visa you use, which city you move to, and how many months you can cover before your first paycheck. A family of three needs roughly $35,000 to $45,000 or more for the first six months without income - less in a cheaper city, more in New York - and that is before flights and furniture. Below are the costs in order - visa fees, rent and deposit, monthly living costs, insurance, average salary, and taxes. At the end there is a six-month budget, and every figure has a source.

What the moving budget is made of

Money for the move splits into three parts.

1. Before the move - government visa fees, the medical exam, translations and certificates, the flight.
2. The first month in the US - deposit and first month's rent, furniture, a phone, transportation.
3. The cushion - living costs until you have steady income. Without a job waiting for you in the US, plan for at least 3 months, ideally 6.

The main mistake is counting only flights and the first month's rent. Finding work in your field rarely happens within a month. A newcomer has no US credit history and has to build one from zero - a secured credit card, for example - so the first few months cost more than they will a year in.

Visa fees for the main immigration paths

Government fees are the most predictable part of the budget. Per-person amounts from the USCIS fee table and the State Department fee schedule, as of September 2026:

The table shows the minimum if you file online where that is possible. Premium processing, translations, and lawyers are not included. The E-2 investor visa is only open to citizens of countries that have an investment treaty with the US - check the reciprocity list before you count on this path. Fees for every visa type, from tourist to work visas, are broken down in how much a US visa costs.

The B1/B2 visitor visa costs $185, but it is a short-stay visa - it is not meant for a move. For citizens of a few countries a consul can also set a bond of $5,000, $10,000, or $15,000 on top of it.

Which path actually fits your case is covered in our guide to legal ways to move to the US, and the full breakdown for a spouse visa is in the article on CR-1 and IR-1 visas.

Medical exam, flight, and first purchases

Everyone moving on an immigrant visa, the lottery, or a K-1 visa needs a medical exam, at any age, and only with a panel physician approved by the embassy or consulate handling the case. The clinic sets its own price - it is not a fixed government fee, and it varies by post.

Price flights at current rates for your actual dates - there is no official "average" airfare. Add translations and apostilles for your documents, a police certificate, and travel to the interview.

Apartments in the US are often rented unfurnished. A bed, a table, and dishes, even secondhand, add up fast in the first month. Your own furniture, art, and household items that you have owned and used abroad for at least a year can be brought in duty-free. A Social Security number (SSN) is free to apply for.

Renting in the US - prices by city and the deposit

Rent is the largest line item. A reliable benchmark is the HUD Fair Market Rent for fiscal year 2027, in effect from October 1, 2026. It prices a modest, standard-quality apartment with utilities included - not a downtown unit, not new construction.

Source: HUD Fair Market Rents. Median gross rent, with utilities, across the US is $1,487 a month, per the Census Bureau (2024). By the BLS price index, rent rose 2.7% in the year through August 2026.

You pay first month's rent plus a deposit when you sign a lease. States cap the deposit by law. In New York it is capped at one month's rent; California caps it the same way, except for small landlords; other states set their own rules. Without US credit history or a US job, a landlord may ask for a guarantor or payment upfront.

Monthly cost of living - food, transportation, phone

Per the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the average US household spent $78,535 in 2024, about $6,500 a month.

These are national averages for a whole household - one person spends less. Prices rose 3.4% year over year as of August 2026, and groceries rose 2.2%.

Transportation costs depend heavily on the city. A subway ride is $3 in New York; a 30-day pass is $75 in Chicago; a ride is $1.75 with an $18 weekly cap in Los Angeles. In Texas, Florida, and most of the country you need a car. A foreign license works under state rules, sometimes together with an International Driving Permit - and that permit has to be issued before you arrive, since the US does not issue them to foreigners.

Health insurance - what it costs and who gets subsidies

The best option is employer coverage, where the company pays most of the premium. Until you have a job, you buy a plan on the HealthCare.gov marketplace. Moving to the US from abroad qualifies you for a Special Enrollment Period outside the regular window.

What it costs, per CMS data:

• $619 a month - the average marketplace premium in 2026 before subsidies, $178 after;
• $497 a month - the benchmark plan for a 40-year-old in 2025.

Marketplace premiums depend only on where you live, your age (up to 3 times more for older enrollees), whether you smoke, the plan tier, and how many people are covered. Health status and pre-existing conditions do not affect the price.

Subsidies are harder to get in 2026 than before. The expanded subsidies expired at the end of 2025, so help is again limited to people with income between 100% and 400% of the federal poverty line. Starting in 2027, the tax credit for marketplace coverage will mostly go to green card holders - people who arrived on a K-1 visa or on parole will lose it before they get a green card. Don't count on free public healthcare in your first years after the move.

Average and minimum salary in the US

Per BLS data for May 2025, the average salary in the US is $69,770 a year, about $5,800 a month before taxes. The median is lower - $50,980 - meaning half of workers earn less than that. For full-time workers, median earnings in Q2 2026 were $1,251 a week, about $5,400 a month (BLS wage statistics).

Salaries vary a lot by state. The average is $83,330 in Washington, $82,460 in New York, $80,690 in California, $65,750 in Texas, and $64,670 in Florida. Expensive states pay more, but rent eats into the difference.

The federal minimum wage is $7.25 an hour. States set their own, and in many it is more than double - $18.40 in DC, $17.13 in Washington state, $17 in New York and its suburbs, $16.90 in California. A full state-by-state table is on the Department of Labor page.

An average number says little about your own first paycheck. A new immigrant without US experience or a recognized degree often earns less in the first year than they did back home, even in dollars.

Taxes on your paycheck - what you take home

Your paycheck is reduced by federal income tax, Social Security and Medicare contributions (7.65%), and, in many states, a state income tax. The standard deduction for 2026 is $16,100 for a single filer and $32,200 for a married couple filing jointly; federal tax brackets start at 10% and 12% (IRS data for 2026).

Example. A single person with the median salary of $50,980 pays about $3,940 in federal tax and about $3,900 in FICA contributions - together roughly 15% of income. State and local tax comes on top, and some states have none at all.

How much money you need - a six-month budget

Take a family of three moving on the Green Card lottery, living six months with no income. Every line uses the figures above.

This does not include flights, the medical exam, furniture, a car, or legal help. For one person in Houston, rent with deposit plus insurance for six months alone runs about $12,500, on top of food, transportation, and first purchases.

These figures are a benchmark, not a quote. Before deciding, check rent in your actual neighborhood and an insurance quote for your age.

The visa itself depends on money too. For family-based green cards, the sponsor proves income with Form I-864 - the minimum for a household of two is $27,050 a year. And as of September 18, 2026, a new public charge rule lets the officer weigh more broadly whether an immigrant might become dependent on public benefits. Your own savings and insurance work in your favor there.