Hotel prices in the U.S. vary a lot from one city to the next. In May 2026, the U.S. hotel industry recorded an average daily rate of $162.72. Plenty of cities sit well under that line, though.
For the city figures below, I used Engine’s dataset. It puts the average across 50 major U.S. markets at $148 a night, drawn from more than 128 million prices business travelers saw between May 2024 and April 2026. Every city here comes in under both that figure and the industry rate.
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Oklahoma City is the cheapest market in the dataset at $97 a night. That’s roughly fifty dollars under the $148 median of the 50 city averages. It also sits far below the national industry rate for 2026.
The spread across the list is striking. New York is the priciest at $336, roughly 3.5 times Oklahoma City. Oklahoma City also turned up in Expedia’s 2026 list of U.S. cities averaging under $150 a night, which backs up the picture from a second source. Oklahoma City and Tulsa have both invested heavily in downtown districts.
San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio averages $114 a night in Engine’s data, the second cheapest of the 50 markets. That’s about thirty dollars below the $148 median. Compared with the 2026 industry rate of just over $162, the gap is wider still.
Luxury travelers get a break here too. In the Hotels.com 2026 Hotel Price Index, San Antonio’s average five star rate was $351, under the U.S. five star average of about $370. So the savings show up at both ends of the market.
Omaha, Nebraska
Omaha comes in at $115 a night, just a dollar above San Antonio. That puts it about a third of the way down from the $148 median, in dollar terms about thirty three dollars less. For a mid sized Midwestern city, it’s a consistently modest price point.
These numbers reflect par rates observed in business travel searches, meaning the cheapest publicly available nightly rate. Leisure rates and special event weekends can run higher. Still, the long data window of nearly two years smooths out most one off spikes.
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis follows Omaha at $116 a night. That’s about thirty two dollars below the $148 median across the 50 markets. It’s also well under the roughly $171 nightly figure one 2026 travel budget guide uses as a national baseline.
That baseline comes from a secondary source, so treat it as a rough yardstick. The Engine comparison is the cleaner one, since every city is measured the same way over the same period. On that footing, Memphis ranks fourth cheapest of the 50.
Jacksonville, Florida
Jacksonville averages $122 a night, the fifth cheapest market in the dataset. Florida is often assumed to be expensive, and it does contain pricier markets. Miami averages $191 and Tampa $173, so Jacksonville stands out within its own state.
The gap from the $148 median is about twenty six dollars a night. Over a four night stay, that adds up to roughly a hundred dollars before taxes and fees. It’s a modest saving, though a real one.
Albuquerque, New Mexico
Albuquerque averages $130 a night in Engine’s figures. That’s about eighteen dollars under the $148 median. Compared with the 2026 industry rate above $162, the difference grows to more than thirty dollars.
It sits in the middle of the cheap group rather than at the bottom. Its edge is that it’s below the benchmark without being an outlier. Travelers comparing southwestern destinations may find it a steadier option than pricier resort markets like Palm Springs, which averages $229.
Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte averages $131 a night, just a dollar above Albuquerque. That’s about seventeen dollars below the $148 median of the 50 markets. It’s also well under the 2026 industry average of just over $162.
Charlotte is a large business hub, which makes its low average notable. Engine’s data comes from business travelers’ searches, so it reflects the market that corporate demand actually creates. Even there, prices stay comfortably below the national benchmarks.
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