Hawaii Millennials Spend 39.6% of Their Income on Rent, Down From 53.2% Over 5 Years

It goes without saying that rent takes a chunk of one’s income. For millennials, the generation that many consider the unluckiest, rent can dramatically reduce their spending power. According to the latest LendingTree study, millennials in Hawaii have the least spending power, as rent takes up a massive 39.6% of their annual income.

In addition to going over our findings, stick around for tips on utilizing credit cards to maximize spending power.

Key findings

• Millennials in North Dakota have the most spending power. With an average income of $59,274 as of 2022 and median annual rent costs of $10,356, millennials here put just 17.5% of their earnings toward rent. Millennials in Iowa and West Virginia have the second- and third-highest spending power, with 19.8% and 20.0% of their annual earnings going toward rent, respectively.
• Money is tightest for millennials in Hawaii. While earning an average of $54,933, Hawaii millennials spend a median of $21,756 on rent — a whopping 39.6% of their annual income. Following that, millennials have the next least spending power in Florida, where 33.5% of income goes to rent, and Nevada, where 33.4% of income goes to rent.
• Despite having the tightest budgets, millennials in Hawaii have seen their spending power grow the most. In 2018, rent accounted for 53.2% of a Hawaii millennial’s income. Between 2018 and 2022, their spending power grew by 13.6 percentage points, largely due to income increases outpacing rent increases. Alaska and California saw the second- and third-biggest jumps in spending power.

North Dakota millennials spend just 17.5% of income on rent

Across all millennials (ages 28 to 43 in 2024), those in North Dakota have the most spending power. Here, millennials earn an average of $59,274 as of 2022. Meanwhile, the median annual rent in North Dakota is $10,356 as of 2022. That means rent accounts for just 17.5% of their total income.

Looking back to 2018, North Dakota millennials earned an average of $42,328, while median rent was $9,696. That means rent accounted for 22.9% of North Dakota millennials’ income — 5.4 percentage points more than in 2022.

5 states where millennials have the most spending power

Source: LendingTree analysis of U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey microdata.

Iowa ranks next. Millennials here earn $54,081 on average, while rent costs a median of $10,692 — meaning rent takes up 19.8% of their annual earnings. In 2018, millennials in Iowa earned $35,489 on average, spending $9,324 on rent. Rent accounted for 26.3% of millennials’ income — 6.5 percentage points more than in 2022.

West Virginia rounds out the top three. Millennials here earn an average of $47,644, spending $9,540 on rent — 20.0% of their income. In 2018, they spent a median of $8,820 toward rent. With average salaries of $31,814, that means they spent 27.7% of their income on rent — 7.7 more percentage points than in 2022.

According to Matt Schulz, LendingTree chief credit analyst and author of “Ask Questions, Save Money, Make More: How to Take Control of Your Financial Life,” having greater spending power can make a massive impact on millennials’ lives.

Millennials have least spending power in Hawaii

It’s not always paradise when you live on a tropical island, as millennials in Hawaii have the least spending power. They earn an average of $54,933 while spending a median of $21,756 on rent. That means they dedicate 39.6% of their annual income toward rent.

5 states where millennials have the least spending power

Source: LendingTree analysis of U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey microdata.

Following that, millennials in Florida earn an average of $54,619 and spend a median of $18,300 on rent — or 33.5% of their income. Nevada comes in third, with millennials here earning an average of $52,559 — dedicating a median of $17,532 (or 33.4%) toward rent.

Even though these millennials are rent-burdened, these numbers are still better than they were a few years ago. In 2018, millennials in Florida earned $33,370 and spent $14,184 on rent — or 42.5% of their income. That’s 9.0 percentage points more than in 2022. In 2018, Nevada millennials earned an average of $36,067 and spent a median of $13,296 on rent. At 36.9%, that’s 3.5 percentage points more than in 2022.

Lower spending power can massively impact millennials, Schulz says. “Lower spending power makes life so much more stressful,” he says. “Life is expensive today, and when you don’t have much spending power, there’s less money to put toward your financial goals. Your focus shifts from building for the future to treading water right now.”

Full rankings

States where millennials have the most spending power

Source: LendingTree analysis of U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey microdata.

Millennials in Hawaii have seen spending power grow most

There’s some good news: Although they have the least spending power, millennial spending power has grown the most in Hawaii.

In 2018, millennials in Hawaii saw 53.2% of their income going to rent. (They earned an average of $36,402 and spent a median of $19,356 on rent.) That means between 2018 and 2022, the spending power of millennials in the state grew by 13.6 percentage points.

That’s largely due to a spike in earnings, with annual income rising nearly $19,000 between 2018 and 2022 and monthly rent rising $200 in the same period.

5 states where millennial spending power has grown the most

Source: LendingTree analysis of U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey microdata.

Alaska follows. Rent accounted for 37.4% of a millennial’s income in 2018, which fell 10.6 percentage points to 26.8% in 2022. Again, a boost in income likely plays the biggest role. While millennials earned an average of $37,759 in 2018, that rose to $59,424 in 2022. Meanwhile, median annual rent rose by less than $2,000 in the same period.

California rounds out the top three. While rent accounted for 42.3% of a millennial’s income in 2018, that fell 10.5 percentage points to 31.8% in 2022. In 2018, millennials earned just $43,137 on average, which rose to $70,611 in 2022. Meanwhile, rent rose from $18,240 to $22,440.

Overall, spending power rose in every state by at least 3.5 percentage points. Nevada (discussed above) saw the smallest bump in spending power, followed by Minnesota (5.0 percentage points) and Arizona (5.1).

Full rankings

States where millennial spending power has grown the most

Source: LendingTree analysis of U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey microdata.

Making most of spending power: Top tips for millennials

Regardless of where you live, making the most of your spending power is crucial for your financial health. Schulz offers the following advice:

• Get your high-interest debt under control. “The good news is you have options, especially if you have good credit. Consider a 0% balance transfer credit card. If you don’t have good enough credit to qualify for one of those, a low-interest personal loan can work, too. You can also call your card issuer and ask them for a lower interest rate on your credit card. It works more often than you’d imagine. Or in more extreme cases, working with an accredited nonprofit credit counselor can make a huge difference. They can help you with building a budget, negotiating with creditors and other important things.”
• See if you can bump up your income. “Easier said than done, right?” Schulz says. “Of course. However, if your wages have been stagnant for a long time, consider making the case to your employer for a higher salary. If they shoot you down, that could be a sign it’s time to seek another job elsewhere.”
• Develop a second stream of income. “You could also consider a side hustle or small business that leverages what you do well,” Schulz says. “It could be anything from accounting and web design to pet-sitting and yard work. Finally, selling things of value you’re no longer using can help bring in a few extra dollars. These things may not change your life financially, but every little bit helps.”

Methodology

To rank the states where millennials have the most spending power, LendingTree researchers compared average annual earnings to median annual rent costs. Researchers then determined the percentage of income that would’ve been allocated for median rent costs.

We defined millennials as those born between 1981 and 1996 (ages 28 to 43 in 2024) and only included earnings data for millennials with a reported income. Data comes from 2022, 2021 and 2018 U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey microdata.