Rent affordability
How much rent can you afford in Santa Rosa, CA?
You need an income of about $77,120 a year to rent a typical 1-bedroom in Santa Rosa under the 30% rule. That apartment rents for about $1,637 a month in the Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA metro as of August 2026, plus about $291 for utilities, internet, and renters insurance. At Santa Rosa's median household income of $99,060, the rule leaves about $2,185 a month for rent.
- Metro 1-bedroom
- $1,637 / month
- Income needed
- $77,120 / year
- Housing share
- 23% of gross
- Apartment utilities
- $173 / month
Max rent in Santa Rosa, CA
$2,185/mo
30% of gross income is $2,476 a month. Utilities, internet, and renters insurance take $291, which leaves $2,185 for rent.
A typical 1-bedroom in the Santa Rosa metro rents for about $1,637, $548 under your max.
- Take-home
- $6,064/moAfter estimated federal tax, state tax, and FICA.
- Move-in cash
- $4,370First month and a one-month deposit, at your max rent.
- Landlord screen
- $2,751/moHighest rent if a landlord wants income of 36× the rent.
Monthly budget
Where take-home pay of $6,064 goes at your max rent of $2,185. Each slice is its share of take-home.
- Rent36%$2,185
- Electric, gas, water3%$173
- Internet2%$104
- Renters insurance<1%$14
- Left over59%$3,588
Housing comes to $2,476 a month, 30% of gross income and 41% of take-home. That leaves $3,588 for food, transportation, savings, and everything else.
Search Santa Rosa, CA
Find 1-bedrooms in Santa Rosa, CA under $2,150
Rounded down from your max rent of $2,185.
What renters in Santa Rosa pay and earn
Of the 68,321 households in Santa Rosa, 43% rent. The median renter household earns $74,480 a year. Median gross rent, which is rent plus utilities across every lease including ones signed years ago, is $2,152 a month. 55% of renters spend 30% or more of income on rent and utilities, and 26% spend half or more.
The Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA metro's 1-bedroom asking rent of $1,637 is 5% below the $1,721 median gross rent for a 1-bedroom in Santa Rosa, which includes utilities.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024, for Santa Rosa city, California. See how Santa Rosa compares in the affordability rankings.
Rent in Santa Rosa
Santa Rosa is the main city of the Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA metro. Updated August 2026, +0.6% from a year earlier. The 1-bedroom median moved from $1,627 in August 2025 to $1,637 in August 2026. The 2-bedroom median moved from $2,189 in August 2025 to $2,203 in August 2026. Studio and 3-bedroom figures are estimates scaled from the published 1- and 2-bedroom medians.
This series is the metro median from Apartment List, not a single building. brightplace also stores each community's asking rent from daily listing scrapes. That history stays on the property page, because a building's price is not the city median. brightplace lists 16 apartment communities with units available in Santa Rosa, about 1,015 apartments in all. Browse communities in Santa Rosa.
How median rent changed
Each point is the overall median asking rent for one month. The vertical scale runs from the low to the high in this period, not from zero. Percentages on the right are the change since August 2025, marked by the dashed line.
Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA median rent: $2,140 in August 2025 to $2,153 in August 2026, up 0.6%. Low $2,072, high $2,153. 1-bedroom $1,637 in August 2026. 2-bedroom $2,203 in August 2026.
| Month | Overall | 1-bedroom | 2-bedroom |
|---|---|---|---|
| August 2025 | $2,140 | $1,627 | $2,189 |
| September 2025 | $2,115 | $1,608 | $2,164 |
| October 2025 | $2,094 | $1,593 | $2,143 |
| November 2025 | $2,072 | $1,576 | $2,120 |
| December 2025 | $2,073 | $1,576 | $2,121 |
| January 2026 | $2,075 | $1,578 | $2,123 |
| February 2026 | $2,088 | $1,588 | $2,137 |
| March 2026 | $2,099 | $1,596 | $2,147 |
| April 2026 | $2,111 | $1,606 | $2,160 |
| May 2026 | $2,119 | $1,611 | $2,168 |
| June 2026 | $2,132 | $1,621 | $2,181 |
| July 2026 | $2,142 | $1,629 | $2,192 |
| August 2026 | $2,153 | $1,637 | $2,203 |
True monthly cost
What a typical apartment costs each month at the metro median rent: rent plus an apartment utility estimate, state-average internet, and state-average renters insurance. Studio and 3-bedroom rents are estimates. Utilities and insurance are estimates, not a quote from a building.
| Cost | Studio | 1-bedroom | 2-bedroom | 3-bedroom |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rent | $1,480 | $1,637 | $2,203 | $3,129 |
| Utilities (estimate) | $156 | $173 | $253 | $360 |
| Internet (estimate) | $104 | $104 | $104 | $104 |
| Renters insurance (estimate) | $14 | $14 | $14 | $14 |
| Total | $1,754 | $1,928 | $2,574 | $3,607 |
The household utility median in Santa Rosa is $451 a month. Apartment bills are lower than that all-household figure, so the estimate scales a national apartment baseline instead of using it directly.
Take-home pay and max rent
Single filer, standard deduction, estimated California income tax and FICA. Max rent is 30% of gross minus about $291 a month for 1-bedroom utilities, internet, and renters insurance. The landlord column is the highest rent when a landlord wants income of 36× the rent.
| Gross income | Take-home / month | Max rent | Landlord screen |
|---|---|---|---|
| $40,000 | $2,778 | $709 | $1,111 |
| $60,000 | $4,011 | $1,209 | $1,666 |
| $80,000 | $5,094 | $1,709 | $2,222 |
| $100,000 | $6,111 | $2,209 | $2,777 |
Rent versus buying in the metro
A monthly ownership cost is not published for Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA. The metro's price-to-income ratio is 7.39. The ratio was down 5.5% from a year earlier. Over five years it was down 5.3%. This is a metro-level comparison from Harvard's Joint Center for Housing Studies, not a payment on a specific house.
Household income in Santa Rosa
The calculator starts from Santa Rosa's median household income of $99,060 (±$3,788), the Census Bureau's 2020–2024 estimate for Santa Rosa city, California. The 5-year series is the one the Census publishes for every city. The 1-year figures below are newer but cover only larger areas. The U.S. Census Bureau's 2024 American Community Survey 1-year estimates put median household income at $100,149 in California (up 1.9% from 2023).
Household utility bills in California
These are typical monthly bills for all household types in California, not an apartment quote. The rent calculator uses a smaller apartment estimate for electricity, gas, water, sewer, and trash, plus the internet row. The all-household core of those housing bills is $453 a month.
| Bill | Monthly |
|---|---|
| Electricity | $160 |
| Natural gas | $58 |
| Water | $114 |
| Sewer | $57 |
| Trash | $64 |
| Internet | $104 |
Nearby and similar cities
In brightplace's rent affordability rankings, the Santa Rosa metro is 64 of 218: a typical 1-bedroom with utilities takes 31% of the median renter household's income in Santa Rosa.
Questions about renting in Santa Rosa
How much rent can I afford in Santa Rosa, CA?
Keep rent, utilities, internet, and renters insurance within 30% of gross income. At Santa Rosa's median household income of $99,060, that leaves about $2,185 a month for rent. A typical 1-bedroom in the Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA metro rents for about $1,637 as of August 2026, and the other costs add about $291, so it calls for about $77,120 a year.
What salary do you need to live in Santa Rosa?
To keep a typical 1-bedroom within 30% of gross income in Santa Rosa, you need about $77,120 a year: $1,637 in rent plus about $291 for utilities, internet, and renters insurance. A 2-bedroom at the metro median of $2,203 needs about $102,960. The median renter household in Santa Rosa earns $74,480 a year, per Census estimates for 2020–2024.
How much rent can I afford on $60,000 a year in Santa Rosa?
On $60,000 a year, the 30% rule allows $1,500 a month for housing. After about $291 for utilities, internet, and renters insurance, that leaves about $1,209 for rent, $428 less than the $1,637 typical 1-bedroom in the Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA metro. A single filer in California takes home about $4,011 a month after estimated federal and California income tax and FICA. This is an estimate, not tax advice.
What income do landlords require in Santa Rosa?
Many landlords in California screen for gross annual income of about 36 times the monthly rent, the same as three times the rent each month. For a $1,637 1-bedroom, that is about $58,932 a year. Requirements vary by building, so check the listing before paying an application fee.
What is the average rent in Santa Rosa?
In the Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA metro, which includes Santa Rosa, CA, estimated median rent as of August 2026 is $2,153 overall, $1,637 for a 1-bedroom, $2,203 for a 2-bedroom. Overall rent is +0.6% from a year earlier. The Census Bureau's 2020–2024 median gross rent in Santa Rosa, which counts utilities and leases signed years ago, is $2,152 a month.
How much are utilities for an apartment in Santa Rosa?
A 1-bedroom apartment in Santa Rosa, CA is estimated at about $173 a month for electricity, gas, and water, before internet. That scales a national apartment baseline by the local household utility median of $451. Actual bills depend on the building, what the lease includes, and how much you use.
Methodology and sources
Updated . Max rent is 30% of gross monthly income minus estimated utilities, internet, renters insurance, and any fees you enter. If you enter other bills, max rent also keeps housing plus those bills within 36% of gross income, a debt-to-income ratio lenders generally consider good. Federal tax uses 2026 brackets and the standard deduction. State tax uses 2025 single-filer brackets on gross income; married thresholds are doubled. FICA includes Social Security up to the 2026 wage base and Additional Medicare Tax. None of this is tax, legal, or housing advice. Read the financial disclosure.
- Apartment List Rent Estimates, August 2026 release
- IRS tax year 2026 brackets and standard deduction, including One Big Beautiful Bill adjustments
- Tax Foundation, 2025 State Individual Income Tax Rates and Brackets
- Insurance Information Institute and NAIC, 2025 homeowners and renters insurance data
- doxoINSIGHTS 2025 U.S. Utilities Market Size and Household Spending Report
- brightplace apartment utility reference (national baselines by unit size)
- HUD cost-burden thresholds and common landlord income screens
- U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 American Community Survey 1-year estimates (ACSBR-025)
- Compiled from public utility cost surveys and bill-pay data, 2025
- Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies, State of the Nation's Housing 2026
- U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2020–2024 (tables B19013, B25003, B25031, B25064, B25070, and B25119)