roomiematch.com’s Memphis roommate rundown:

Memphis offers serious Southern culture at a steep discount. By that we mean compared to living in all the other cities on this list, which would be more or less all similar size and larger as well.

No state income tax. Overall low cost of living.

Memphis is vibing Deep South, and a lot of neighborhoods have a lot of artists contributing highly to their art, but within their own lowest cost of living frameworks. This is a city where it’s a lot easier to make that work than one where the average roommate rent is a few to several times what it is in Memphis.

Memphians regularly experience its many historic highs and lows, because some of them are more or less . . . ongoing?

Obviously sky high, properly considered by most as the Home of the Blues. Also home of Graceland, the Birthplace of Rock’n’roll, and American Soul!

Oh and: Buck, crunk, gospel, Memphis blues, Memphis rap, Memphis soul, rock n’ roll, rockabilly, and sharecropper country style!

Fantastic local food, plus their “local” barbeque cooked in a pit, low and slow, with either a dry rub or brushed with sauce (wet).

Also there’s a lot of golfing.

Any of that related to why Memphis can offer you the lowest cost of living for any city on our list . . . but also gets its own NBA team?

Memphis also has Tennessee’s largest African-American population, after playing a major role in the civil rights movement. Memphis now hosts the National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Motel, where Dr. King was assassinated. The hotel where he was shot is now also a showcase for his work.

They’ve also the largest Pentecostal denomination in the US, while hosting many theological seminaries.

However, many and various city indexes have ranked Memphis #1 on stuff you’d rather not, like: most dangerous, violent crime, overall crime including property, and homicide.

Memphis has also ranked the poorest city in the country in a previous Census, with 1 of 5 people reportedly living in poverty.

It’s important to point out that the worst neighborhoods in terms of all types of crime feature both a lot of poverty and a lot of gang-related activity, almost without fail. The neighborhoods of Memphis are no exception to this overall rule.

Very conservatively, and until you’re in the know: stay in touristy areas and/or well-populated areas and/or near the University and downtown, keep your valuables out of sight to avoid minor theft, and be aware of pickpocketing.

Not to disrespect your fashion choices, but we wouldn’t recommend carrying an obviously expensive purse all over Memphis. If you follow the rules above, it’s unlikely you’ll suffer from homicide, but otherwise, somebody might try for the purse?

Some roommates might enjoy just driving around, taking in the sights, and think they’d like to “go for a longer drive” someplace new. Understandable, but locals recommend not after dark all by yourself, as you could accidentally go from one of Memphis’ nicer neighborhoods to one of its worst super fast. Not last but least because . . . there’s not much traffic.

Bottom line: You should be able to experience Memphis safely, but that relies on attention paid to where you are. After dark don’t travel with visible valuables, especially left behind in your car, and stay in better populated areas with which you’re already familiar after dark.

Everyone should warn new roommates from cooler climates about Memphis’ hot and steamy summers, with a double punch of heat plus humidity many find overwhelming.

Driving is preferred to walking almost anywhere that doesn’t attract a lot of tourists, and the weather can feel less walkable too, unless you’d like to arrive sweaty. And except for right around downtown possibly during an event, parking is usually free.

Which is helpful, because possibly downtown during an event is the only time you might not need a car, at least for a few hours. Otherwise, you will. There’s a bus sometimes, but it might just stop running seemingly at random. It could be a low stress way for you and your roommates to tour the city one day, especially if you’d like to drink but not drive (good for you!) but do confirm your times and routes same day. Locals say otherwise you might get a little stranded.

But along with the no state income tax and overall low cost of living that sound like good news to most incoming roommates, their wages are very low too (particularly minimum wage).

Some say the dream situation might be working remotely, getting paid the higher wages that tend to be typical in most cities Memphis’ size or larger . . . then not have to spend as much living right here.