Cost of Living Adjuster
See what your salary is really worth in a different city using federal price parity data.
Based on Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parities. Data reflects metro-area averages for goods, services, and housing. Individual costs may vary based on lifestyle, neighborhood, and personal spending patterns.
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Estimates only. The numbers produced by this tool are for general information and do not constitute financial, legal, tax, or career advice. They may be inaccurate or out-of-date. Consult a qualified professional before making decisions based on these outputs.
Cost of living comparisons — FAQ
What are BEA Regional Price Parities (RPPs)?
RPPs are a U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis index that measures the price level of goods and services in each metropolitan area relative to the national average (which equals 100). A metro with an RPP of 115 has a 15% higher cost of living than the national average; an RPP of 90 means costs are 10% lower. RPPs are released annually with about an 18-month lag and break out separately for goods, rents, and other services.
Why doesn't this tool just use a 'cost of living' index from one of the popular sites?
Crowdsourced cost-of-living indexes (Numbeo, etc.) rely on user submissions and have wide swings between updates and selection bias by city. The BEA RPP is the federal-government-published, methodologically consistent benchmark — same dataset that academic research and federal pay-locality decisions are based on. We use it because it's defensible.
How accurate is this for an eye care professional specifically?
RPPs cover the full consumption basket — housing, food, transportation, services. They don't model profession-specific costs like commercial real estate for an independent practice or state OD licensing fees. For a salaried clinical or sales role considering a relocation, the RPP-adjusted comparison is a strong first approximation. For a practice-ownership decision, layer in business-cost factors separately.