Hawaii has highest American Dream cost, new report finds
A September 2026 report from BC Game names Hawaii the hardest state to achieve the American Dream, with California next in line. Forty percent of U.S. residents now view the dream as less attainable than it was twenty years ago, which prompted the platform to calculate the actual price tag attached to that lifestyle.
The November 2026 methodology tallied expenses for a family of two adults and one child. Mortgage payments, childcare, college tuition, food, healthcare, and utilities were summed and projected from age eighteen to seventy-nine, after which states received rankings based on the resulting lifetime totals.
The ten states where the American Dream costs the most appear below. State American Dream Yearly Cost ($) American Dream Cost (lifetime) ($) Household Median Net Worth ($) Hawaii 191.38K 7.28M 502.56K California 195.21K 7.12M 295.84K Massachusetts 209.30K 7.10M 327.95K Washington 182.68K 6.77M 398.88K Colorado 176.45K 6.65M 301.69K Alaska 157.48K 6.55M 328.00K Connecticut 189.84K 6.40M 206.73K Oregon 176.51K 6.38M 256.28K New Jersey 169.40K 6.30M 284.67K New Hampshire 171.48K 6.23M 202.26K
Hawaii records a lifetime cost of 7.28 million dollars and an annual cost of 191.38 thousand dollars. Median home price reaches 833.88 thousand dollars. Seventy-nine percent of households hold net worth above 100 thousand dollars. Childcare exceeds 15 thousand dollars yearly and food adds 12 thousand dollars.
California follows with lifetime costs above 7.1 million dollars and yearly costs of 195.21 thousand dollars. Median home price approaches 774 thousand dollars. Private university tuition stands at 33 thousand dollars. Median income is 119 thousand dollars, yet only 22 percent of households exceed 100 thousand dollars in net worth.
Massachusetts lists yearly costs of 209.30 thousand dollars. Mortgage plus childcare alone consume 64 thousand dollars before groceries or fuel. Childcare approaches 18 thousand dollars, college tuition nearly 47 thousand dollars, and median home price around 669 thousand dollars.
Washington places fourth. Mortgage exceeds 41 thousand dollars, college 32 thousand dollars, transport over 13 thousand dollars, and medical costs over 10 thousand dollars, all against income of 118 thousand dollars. Colorado ranks fifth. Childcare runs 16 thousand dollars, college 27.6 thousand dollars, taxes 16.8 thousand dollars, and combined transport and food exceed 20 thousand dollars, with homes at 539 thousand dollars.
The CEO of BC Game remarked on the findings: "The feeling that the American Dream is slipping away is actually a reality, and you can see it just by looking at housing. Home prices have jumped from $169K to $417K since 2000, while paychecks haven't come close to keeping up. Add in college tuition, which has more than doubled after inflation since the mid-90s, and it's easy to see why so many people feel stuck before they even start a career. Housing and childcare alone now eat up half of what the average family brings in, and that's exactly why only 1 in 4 young adults own a home today."
The remaining states in the top ten carry these lifetime and yearly costs along with median net worth: Alaska 6.55 million dollars lifetime, Connecticut 6.40 million dollars, Oregon 6.38 million dollars, New Jersey 6.30 million dollars, and New Hampshire 6.23 million dollars.
The announcement carried the subject line "Re: The American Dream Costs $7 Million in These States." The full spreadsheet with every state's findings is available at the supplied link.
