What consumers spend to buy everyday items has risen 2 percent in the past year. With incomes not keeping pace, Americans need to be more careful than ever choosing where they live. And here’s some good news for Washingtonians: Your state is one of the easiest on the pocketbook.

TheSeniorList.org, an online source of consumer information for boomers and older adults in the U.S. and Canada, has released the results of a national study on the most and least affordable states. The study used the latest data from the federal Bureau of Economic Analysis and Bureau of Labor Statistics on income and expenses like housing, utilities, groceries, healthcare, clothing, and gas for vehicles. Here is some of what came out of it:

• The 10 most affordable states, in order, are District of Columbia, Arizona, Georgia, North Carolina, Alabama, Washington, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas and Mississippi. Based on the percentage of average income that residents spend, Washington is sixth at 74.7 percent. D.C.’s leading percentage is 69.8 percent, followed closely by Arizona’s 70.5 percent.
• The least affordable state is South Dakota, where the average resident spends more (100.9 percent) per year than they take in
• The South is the most affordable region, with an average of 77 percent of income eaten by expenses, while the Northeast is the most expensive with 85 percent.

And how do the states compare to each other when it comes to how much consumers spend vs. how much workers earn? Which states are most affordable, and where do people spend the most on things like housing, groceries, clothing and healthcare? In other words, in which state will the average paycheck go the farthest?