Looking to Upgrade? Here’s How Much It Costs to Rent a High-End Apartment Around the Country

It seems that all the nice neighborhoods are stacked up with high-end apartment buildings on every block. They look expensive, with their shimmering pools, 24-hour fitness and wellness centers, and on-site theatre rooms and cafés. Could you possibly afford to live there? With many amenities included in the price of rent, like the use of the fitness center, sports courts, yoga classes, the pool, movies, dinner parties and even free coffee, you might just decide to reassess your monthly rental budget.

The national average rent in a high-end building is around $1,640 per month, about $490 more than an apartment in a low-end building. However, these broad-based averages do not mean much, as prices can vary by thousands of dollars from one city to another. Here’s how much it costs to rent a high-end apartment in the 30 largest cities, including Dallas, Houston, Austin and San Antonio in Texas; Denver; New York City’s boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn; Nashville and Memphis in Tennessee; Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Jose in California; Charlotte, NC; Washington, D.C.; Chicago; Philadelphia; and Boston.

Average Rent in High-End Apartments in 30 Largest U.S. Cities

Besides location, the apartment size is another important variable. For the same price as a luxury studio in San Francisco, you can rent a luxury 3-bedroom apartment in San Diego. In 12 cities you can rent a luxury studio for under $1,200 per month, and in 11 cities $1,500 gets you a high-end two-bedroom.

Take a look at what it costs to rent a high-end apartment from El Paso, TX, to New York City — or, jump to the city table below to check prices by apartment size:

1. El Paso, TX

• Average rent in a high-end apartment: $976
• Price range: $852 (1-bed) to $1,194 (3-bed)
• Change in high-end rents in the last 3 years: -1.3%
• Price difference compared to a low-end apartment: $291

2. Oklahoma City, OK

• Average rent in a high-end apartment: $1,024
• Price range: $872 (studio) to $1,295 (3-bed)
• Change in high-end rents in the last 3 years: -0.9%
• Price difference compared to a low-end apartment: $368

3. Las Vegas, NV

• Average rent in a high-end apartment: $1,102
• Price range: $838 (studio) to $1,322 (3-bed)
• Change in high-end rents in the last 3 years: +18.4%
• Price difference compared to a low-end apartment: $284

4. Louisville, KY

• Average rent in a high-end apartment: $1,123
• Price range: $832 (studio) to $1,500 (3-bed)
• Change in high-end rents in the last 3 years: +4.9%
• Price difference compared to a low-end apartment: $312

5. Memphis, TN

• Average rent in a high-end apartment: $1,134
• Price range: $988 (studio) to $1,476 (3-bed)
• Change in high-end rents in the last 3 years: +8.8%
• Price difference compared to a low-end apartment: $486

6. Phoenix, AZ

• Average rent in a high-end apartment: $1,154
• Price range: $999 (studio) to $1,378 (3-bed)
• Change in high-end rents in the last 3 years: +16.3%
• Price difference compared to a low-end apartment: $351

7. Jacksonville, FL

• Average rent in a high-end apartment: $1,173
• Price range: $1,010 (studio) to $1,434 (3-bed)
• Change in high-end rents in the last 3 years: +12.9%
• Price difference compared to a low-end apartment: $347

8. San Antonio, TX

• Average rent in a high-end apartment: $1,176
• Price range: $1,029 (studio) to $1,537 (3-bed)
• Change in high-end rents in the last 3 years: +5.4%
• Price difference compared to a low-end apartment: $351

9. Indianapolis, IN

• Average rent in a high-end apartment: $1,191
• Price range: $1,137 (studio) to $1,394 (3-bed)
• Change in high-end rents in the last 3 years: +11.3%
• Price difference compared to a low-end apartment: $453

10. Charlotte, NC

• Average rent in a high-end apartment: $1,247
• Price range: $1,157 (studio) to $1,455 (3-bed)
• Change in high-end rents in the last 3 years: +11.0%
• Price difference compared to a low-end apartment: $347

11. Columbus, OH

• Average rent in a high-end apartment: $1,319
• Price range: $992 (studio) to $2,047 (3-bed)
• Change in high-end rents in the last 3 years: +10.0%
• Price difference compared to a low-end apartment: $528

12. Dallas, TX

• Average rent in a high-end apartment: $1,428
• Price range: $1,165 (studio) to $2,049 (3-bed)
• Change in high-end rents in the last 3 years: +7.4%
• Price difference compared to a low-end apartment: $524

13. Austin, TX

• Average rent in a high-end apartment: $1,432
• Price range: $1,247 (studio) to $1,891 (3-bed)
• Change in high-end rents in the last 3 years: +6.7%
• Price difference compared to a low-end apartment: $371

14. Houston, TX

• Average rent in a high-end apartment: $1,448
• Price range: $1,229 (studio) to $1,848 (3-bed)
• Change in high-end rents in the last 3 years: +1.8%
• Price difference compared to a low-end apartment: $608

15. Nashville, TN

• Average rent in a high-end apartment: $1,513
• Price range: $1,410 (studio) to $1,745 (3-bed)
• Change in high-end rents in the last 3 years: +14.1%
• Price difference compared to a low-end apartment: $502

16. Detroit, MI

• Average rent in a high-end apartment: $1,652
• Price range: $1,061 (studio) to $1,878 (3-bed)
• Change in high-end rents in the last 3 years: +21.7%
• Price difference compared to a low-end apartment: $769

17. Portland, OR

• Average rent in a high-end apartment: $1,691
• Price range: $1,378 (studio) to $1,950 (3-bed)
• Change in high-end rents in the last 3 years: +9.0%
• Price difference compared to a low-end apartment: $484

18. Baltimore, MD

• Average rent in a high-end apartment: $1,742
• Price range: $1,384 (studio) to $2,123 (3-bed)
• Change in high-end rents in the last 3 years: +0.4%
• Price difference compared to a low-end apartment: $680

19. Denver, CO

• Average rent in a high-end apartment: $1,756
• Price range: $1,399 (studio) to $2,439 (3-bed)
• Change in high-end rents in the last 3 years: +8.4%
• Price difference compared to a low-end apartment: $499

20. Philadelphia, PA

• Average rent in a high-end apartment: $2,197
• Price range: $1,623 (studio) to $3,677 (3-bed)
• Change in high-end rents in the last 3 years: +8.2%
• Price difference compared to a low-end apartment: $925

21. Seattle, WA

• Average rent in a high-end apartment: $2,261
• Price range: $1,723 (studio) to $3,595 (3-bed)
• Change in high-end rents in the last 3 years: +13.2%
• Price difference compared to a low-end apartment: $644

22. San Diego, CA

• Average rent in a high-end apartment: $2,376
• Price range: $1,847 (studio) to $3,105 (3-bed)
• Change in high-end rents in the last 3 years: +14.8%
• Price difference compared to a low-end apartment: $704

23. Chicago, IL

• Average rent in a high-end apartment: $2,465
• Price range: $1,747 (studio) to $4,905 (3-bed)
• Change in high-end rents in the last 3 years: +4.8%
• Price difference compared to a low-end apartment: $1,078

24. Washington, DC

• Average rent in a high-end apartment: $2,591
• Price range: $1,952 (studio) to $4,670 (3-bed)
• Change in high-end rents in the last 3 years: +1.8%
• Price difference compared to a low-end apartment: $841

25. San Jose, CA

• Average rent in a high-end apartment: $2,849
• Price range: $2,262 (studio) to $3,716 (3-bed)
• Change in high-end rents in the last 3 years: +8.7%
• Price difference compared to a low-end apartment: $637

26. Los Angeles, CA

• Average rent in a high-end apartment: $3,028
• Price range: $2,181 (studio) to $5,201 (3-bed)
• Change in high-end rents in the last 3 years: +9.7%
• Price difference compared to a low-end apartment: $1,093

27. Brooklyn, NY

• Average rent in a high-end apartment: $3,285
• Price range: $2,630 (studio) to $5,728 (3-bed)
• Change in high-end rents in the last 3 years: N/A
• Price difference compared to a low-end apartment: $1,352

28. Boston, MA

• Average rent in a high-end apartment: $3,526
• Price range: $2,579 (studio) to $5,630 (3-bed)
• Change in high-end rents in the last 3 years: +5.3%
• Price difference compared to a low-end apartment: $1,048

29. San Francisco, CA

• Average rent in a high-end apartment: $4,132
• Price range: $3,157 (studio) to $6,812 (3-bed)
• Change in high-end rents in the last 3 years: +4.2%
• Price difference compared to a low-end apartment: $1,125

30. Manhattan, NY

• Average rent in a high-end apartment: $4,416
• Price range: $3,179 (studio) to $8,163 (3-bed)
• Change in high-end rents in the last 3 years: N/A
• Price difference compared to a low-end apartment: $1,035

Check the average rent in high-end apts by size in 30 cities

Use the drop-down boxes to select the number of bedrooms and the city you want to see. Add and delete bedrooms and cities to compare multiple selections at once.

Bedrooms	City	Average Rent	3-yr Price Change	Rent Diff High-End vs Low-End
0	Austin, TX	$1,247	4.4%	$379
1	Austin, TX	$1,242	8.4%	$309
2	Austin, TX	$1,585	6.6%	$403
3	Austin, TX	$1,891	7.8%	$251
ALL	Austin, TX	$1,432	6.7%	$371
0	Baltimore, MD	$1,384	-5.6%	$513
1	Baltimore, MD	$1,616	-1.9%	$661
2	Baltimore, MD	$1,870	0.5%	$776
3	Baltimore, MD	$2,123	9.9%	$825
ALL	Baltimore, MD	$1,742	0.4%	$680
0	Boston, MA	$2,579	5.0%	$634
1	Boston, MA	$3,245	5.4%	$936
2	Boston, MA	$4,197	7.0%	$1,589
3	Boston, MA	$5,630	13.5%	$1,817
ALL	Boston, MA	$3,526	5.3%	$1,048
0	Brooklyn, NYC	$2,630	-	$1,110
1	Brooklyn, NYC	$3,165	-	$1,322
2	Brooklyn, NYC	$3,868	-	$1,500
3	Brooklyn, NYC	$5,728	-	$2,196
ALL	Brooklyn, NYC	$3,285	-	$1,352
0	Charlotte, NC	$1,157	8.6%	$401
1	Charlotte, NC	$1,116	12.8%	$338
2	Charlotte, NC	$1,305	12.4%	$380
3	Charlotte, NC	$1,455	10.4%	$389
ALL	Charlotte, NC	$1,247	11.0%	$347
0	Chicago, IL	$1,747	4.9%	$657
1	Chicago, IL	$2,259	4.2%	$895
2	Chicago, IL	$3,170	5.6%	$1,432
3	Chicago, IL	$4,905	12.2%	$2,932
ALL	Chicago, IL	$2,465	4.8%	$1,078
0	Columbus, OH	$992	2.5%	$423
1	Columbus, OH	$1,147	10.5%	$459
2	Columbus, OH	$1,412	5.9%	$585
3	Columbus, OH	$2,047	9.5%	$1,043
ALL	Columbus, OH	$1,319	10.0%	$528
0	Dallas, TX	$1,165	6.5%	$423
1	Dallas, TX	$1,265	9.3%	$442
2	Dallas, TX	$1,695	7.5%	$682
3	Dallas, TX	$2,049	5.6%	$932
ALL	Dallas, TX	$1,428	7.4%	$524
0	Denver, CO	$1,399	6.0%	$368
1	Denver, CO	$1,599	10.3%	$478
2	Denver, CO	$2,024	10.0%	$626
3	Denver, CO	$2,439	14.2%	$794
ALL	Denver, CO	$1,756	8.4%	$499
0	Detroit, MI	$1,061	17.1%	$330
1	Detroit, MI	$1,454	28.6%	$660
2	Detroit, MI	$1,950	17.2%	$943
3	Detroit, MI	$1,878	41.6%	$360
ALL	Detroit, MI	$1,652	21.7%	$769
1	El Paso, TX	$852	2.2%	$227
2	El Paso, TX	$1,021	-2.6%	$299
3	El Paso, TX	$1,194	-3.8%	$321
ALL	El Paso, TX	$976	-1.3%	$291
0	Houston, TX	$1,229	-6.0%	$593
1	Houston, TX	$1,278	1.3%	$536
2	Houston, TX	$1,647	2.6%	$708
3	Houston, TX	$1,848	4.3%	$698
ALL	Houston, TX	$1,448	1.8%	$608
0	Indianapolis, IN	$1,137	13.2%	$565
1	Indianapolis, IN	$1,056	9.8%	$397
2	Indianapolis, IN	$1,233	11.3%	$458
3	Indianapolis, IN	$1,394	8.1%	$476
ALL	Indianapolis, IN	$1,191	11.3%	$453
0	Jacksonville, FL	$1,010	9.9%	$430
1	Jacksonville, FL	$1,029	14.8%	$301
2	Jacksonville, FL	$1,230	12.2%	$366
3	Jacksonville, FL	$1,434	12.5%	$414
ALL	Jacksonville, FL	$1,173	12.9%	$347
0	Las Vegas, NV	$838	19.9%	$218
1	Las Vegas, NV	$970	19.9%	$216
2	Las Vegas, NV	$1,145	18.8%	$260
3	Las Vegas, NV	$1,322	18.2%	$315
ALL	Las Vegas, NV	$1,102	18.4%	$284
0	Los Angeles, CA	$2,181	7.4%	$700
1	Los Angeles, CA	$2,602	8.4%	$761
2	Los Angeles, CA	$3,773	15.0%	$1,307
3	Los Angeles, CA	$5,201	7.3%	$1,932
ALL	Los Angeles, CA	$3,028	9.7%	$1,093
0	Louisville, KY	$832	2.1%	$188
1	Louisville, KY	$947	9.6%	$223
2	Louisville, KY	$1,127	4.1%	$308
3	Louisville, KY	$1,500	4.0%	$398
ALL	Louisville, KY	$1,123	4.9%	$312
0	Manhattan, NYC	$3,179	-	$595
1	Manhattan, NYC	$4,000	-	$732
2	Manhattan, NYC	$5,911	-	$1,429
3	Manhattan, NYC	$8,163	-	$2,077
ALL	Manhattan, NYC	$4,416	-	$1,035
0	Memphis, TN	$988	-	$409
1	Memphis, TN	$977	9.3%	$377
2	Memphis, TN	$1,202	11.8%	$548
3	Memphis, TN	$1,476	6.6%	$718
ALL	Memphis, TN	$1,134	8.8%	$486
0	Nashville, TN	$1,410	13.3%	$630
1	Nashville, TN	$1,390	13.4%	$488
2	Nashville, TN	$1,678	17.5%	$614
3	Nashville, TN	$1,745	17.9%	$468
ALL	Nashville, TN	$1,513	14.1%	$502
0	Oklahoma City, OK	$872	-	$321
1	Oklahoma City, OK	$926	1.6%	$334
2	Oklahoma City, OK	$1,102	-2.7%	$395
3	Oklahoma City, OK	$1,295	-1.1%	$450
ALL	Oklahoma City, OK	$1,024	-0.9%	$368
0	Philadelphia, PA	$1,623	16.8%	$587
1	Philadelphia, PA	$1,956	7.3%	$835
2	Philadelphia, PA	$2,582	11.1%	$1,213
3	Philadelphia, PA	$3,677	10.5%	$1,448
ALL	Philadelphia, PA	$2,197	8.2%	$925
0	Phoenix, AZ	$999	21.2%	$347
1	Phoenix, AZ	$1,053	18.6%	$294
2	Phoenix, AZ	$1,212	17.1%	$328
3	Phoenix, AZ	$1,378	16.7%	$268
ALL	Phoenix, AZ	$1,154	16.3%	$351
0	Portland, OR	$1,378	2.2%	$381
1	Portland, OR	$1,583	8.0%	$445
2	Portland, OR	$1,921	16.5%	$632
3	Portland, OR	$1,950	18.5%	$494
ALL	Portland, OR	$1,691	9.0%	$484
0	San Antonio, TX	$1,029	11.2%	$410
1	San Antonio, TX	$1,007	7.0%	$289
2	San Antonio, TX	$1,275	5.8%	$351
3	San Antonio, TX	$1,537	2.1%	$410
ALL	San Antonio, TX	$1,176	5.4%	$351
0	San Diego, CA	$1,847	13.0%	$534
1	San Diego, CA	$2,081	15.8%	$566
2	San Diego, CA	$2,500	14.7%	$647
3	San Diego, CA	$3,105	20.3%	$964
ALL	San Diego, CA	$2,376	14.8%	$704
0	San Francisco, CA	$3,157	5.2%	$908
1	San Francisco, CA	$3,709	4.1%	$767
2	San Francisco, CA	$4,899	5.0%	$1,069
3	San Francisco, CA	$6,812	-2.9%	$2,639
ALL	San Francisco, CA	$4,132	4.2%	$1,125
0	San Jose, CA	$2,262	9.8%	$567
1	San Jose, CA	$2,536	8.5%	$511
2	San Jose, CA	$3,090	11.1%	$660
3	San Jose, CA	$3,716	8.4%	$830
ALL	San Jose, CA	$2,849	8.7%	$637
0	Seattle, WA	$1,723	12.4%	$440
1	Seattle, WA	$2,146	14.3%	$516
2	Seattle, WA	$2,884	15.0%	$937
3	Seattle, WA	$3,595	21.6%	$1,211
ALL	Seattle, WA	$2,261	13.2%	$644
0	Washington, DC	$1,952	1.7%	$393
1	Washington, DC	$2,337	1.1%	$629
2	Washington, DC	$3,307	3.0%	$1,294
3	Washington, DC	$4,670	9.8%	$2,736
ALL	Washington, DC	$2,591	1.8%	$841

Methodology:

This report was prepared by RentCafe, a nationwide apartment search website that enables renters to easily find apartments and houses for rent throughout the United States. By working with the top property management companies in the country, RentCafe’s search tool delivers a comprehensive list of available rental properties and detailed information on prices, amenities, and availability.

The rent data used in this report was provided by Yardi Matrix, a business development and asset management tool for brokers, sponsors, banks and equity sources underwriting investments in the multifamily, office, industrial and self-storage sectors. Rental rate coverage is for Market Rate large-scale multi-family properties of 50 units or more. Fully-Affordable properties are not included in the Yardi Matrix rental surveys and are not reported in rental rate averages. Rent rates are current as of March 2018. 

Property ratings are based on Yardi Matrix’s definition and classification of the apartment market by rental household segments. High-end or luxury rental properties are those that fall into the discretionary (Class A+/A) and high mid-range (Class A-/B+) class categories. Low-end properties are those properties rated Class B and below.