Rent Affordability for A Software Developer in Montana

A typical software developer in Montana earns about $121,537 a year, which supports approximately $3,038 a month in rent under the 30% rule. Below, every tracked Montana city is ranked by how local rent compares against that affordability ceiling.

As of May 2026. 12 of 12 cities tracked stay within the 30% rule; 0 are rent-burdened on this salary.

City↕Median rent↕% of income↑Affordability
Miles City, MT$850/mo8.4%very comfortable
Laurel, MT$1,282/mo12.7%very comfortable
Billings, MT$1,393/mo13.8%very comfortable
Great Falls, MT$1,433/mo14.1%very comfortable
Butte, MT$1,443/mo14.2%very comfortable
Livingston, MT$1,473/mo14.5%very comfortable
Missoula, MT$1,622/mo16%very comfortable
Helena, MT$1,630/mo16.1%very comfortable
Kalispell, MT$1,888/mo18.6%very comfortable
Belgrade, MT$2,134/mo21.1%affordable
Bozeman, MT$2,199/mo21.7%affordable
Whitefish, MT$2,790/mo27.5%affordable
Methodology: Salary is the BLS-derived state estimate for Montana. Rent is the latest ZORI monthly value for each city. Affordability uses the 30% rule (rent ≤ 30% of gross income).