US states by cost of living

Name: US states by cost of living, 2015
Creator: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis
License: Public domain (US federal government work, citation requested)

District of Columbia had the highest cost of living of 51 states in 2015, at 113.3 index. South Dakota had the lowest, at 87.8 index. The median was 96.9 index and the figure for the United States was 100 index. Source: the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.

Highest113.3District of Columbia

Lowest87.8South Dakota

Median96.951 states

United States100History

All states, 2015

CSV Chart (SVG)

index. Source: BEA. Retrieved 2026-10-09.

Full ranking

Rank	States	2015 index	Change on 2014
1	District of Columbia	113.3	-0.9
2	Hawaii	111.5	+0.9
3	California	110.7	+0.8
4	New York	109.6	+0.7
5	New Jersey	109	-0.1
6	Maryland	107.9	0
7	Connecticut	107.5	+0.5
8	Massachusetts	105.1	+0.6
9	Washington	104.4	+0.5
10	New Hampshire	104	+1.9
11	Virginia	103.6	+0.1
12	Alaska	103.3	+0.9
13	Colorado	103	-0
14	Rhode Island	102	+1.8
15	Florida	101.3	+0.4
16	Oregon	101.1	+1.4
17	Vermont	100	+2.1
18	Illinois	98.9	-0.8
19	Nevada	98.6	-0.6
20	Texas	98.3	-0.1
21	Pennsylvania	98.1	+0.9
22	Delaware	97.9	-1.8
23	Arizona	97.9	-0.1
24	Minnesota	97.7	-0.6
25	Utah	97.6	-0.3
26	Wyoming	96.9	-0.5
27	Maine	95.9	+3.4
28	New Mexico	95.4	-0.1
29	Montana	95	-0.2
30	Georgia	94.7	-0.2
31	Idaho	94.3	+0.6
32	Michigan	93.7	-1.8
33	North Carolina	93.6	-0.2
34	South Carolina	93.3	+0.1
35	Wisconsin	93.3	-0.5
36	Louisiana	92.8	-0.6
37	Kansas	92.8	-0.3
38	Tennessee	92.8	0
39	Missouri	92.3	-1.1
40	Ohio	92.2	-0.8
41	Indiana	91.4	-1.2
42	Oklahoma	91.4	-0.5
43	Nebraska	91.2	-0.6
44	North Dakota	91.1	-1.4
45	Kentucky	90.7	-0.3
46	West Virginia	90.6	+0.7
47	Alabama	89.7	-0.4
48	Iowa	89.5	-1.4
49	Arkansas	89	-0.4
50	Mississippi	88.3	-0.7
51	South Dakota	87.8	-1.6

Other periods

About this ranking

Regional price parity for all items: the average price level of goods and services in a state, including housing rents, as a percentage of the national price level (United States = 100). A value of 110 means prices are 10% above the US average.

Compares price levels across places in the same year; it is not inflation. Each year is benchmarked to that year's national average, so a change over time shows a state moving relative to the US, not prices rising.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the states are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. SARPP: regional price parities by state, all items (United States = 100). https://apps.bea.gov/regional/zip/SARPP.zip. Retrieved 2026-10-09.

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Questions

Which state has the highest cost of living?

District of Columbia, with 113.3 index in 2015, according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis.

Which state has the lowest cost of living?

South Dakota, with 87.8 index in 2015.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, SARPP: regional price parities by state, all items (United States = 100). Retrieved 2026-10-09.