The average Phoenix resident pays $1,569 every month for various necessities like rent, utilities, and food.1 And while this puts Phoenix in the cheaper half of our living cost rankings, it also makes it the most expensive city in Arizona. For comparison, living costs in Mesa average $1,565, and Tucson residents only pay $1,330 on average.1 In fact, Tucson is one of the cheapest cities in the country. Unfortunately, Tucson is almost two hours from Phoenix, so you probably couldn’t work in the big city while enjoying Tucson’s relative affordability.