Overall
- Ogden
- 100.3
Diff +0.4 RPP
Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton vs Ogden
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Ogden is 0.4% more expensive than Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton.
0.4% more expensive
Ogden, UT is 0.4% more expensive than Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 100.3 vs 100.0). A $100,000 salary in Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton buys about the same as $100,381 in Ogden; the largest component gap is services.
- Overall RPP 100.0 (Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton) vs 100.3 (Ogden)
- $100k in Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton ≈ $100,381 purchasing power in Ogden
- Services drives the gap (-28.8 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair PA:UT 100.0→100.3
PHOTO-FINISH · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BENCH-CROSS · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- CROSS-STATE PA × UT
- SPLIT-BUDGET Split budget
- BENCH-CROSS Benchmark cross
- PP-PAR PP near-par
Instrument codes from this pair's BEA Regional Price Parities (overall · goods · services · rents · national benchmark 100 · purchasing-power conversion), not a ranking or recommendation.
Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton
100.0
Cost Index
Ogden
100.3
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ and Ogden, UT are a photo finish on overall price level, only 0.4 RPP points apart. A salary conversion is therefore a fine adjustment, not evidence of a fundamentally different cost regime.
Services creates the largest separation: Ogden is 28.8 points lower. But services and goods move against the overall direction, so this is a split budget rather than a clean across-the-board winner.
Comparable population context is incomplete for this pair, so no market-scale explanation is inferred from the price indexes.
This route crosses the national benchmark: Ogden is above 100 while Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton is below it. That makes the move a change of price regime, not merely a rank swap.
For a service-heavy household, test childcare, health, and other locally supplied costs before relying on rent alone. The BEA ratio converts $100,000 in Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton to $100,381 in Ogden, but it is not a personal spending weight.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Ogden
- 96.4
Diff -4.1 RPP
Services
- Ogden
- 78.8
Diff -28.8 RPP
Rents
- Ogden
- 117.9
Diff +12.4 RPP
| Category | Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton | Ogden | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 100.0 | 100.3 | +0.4 |
| Goods | 100.6 | 96.4 | -4.1 |
| Services | 107.6 | 78.8 | -28.8 |
| Rents | 105.5 | 117.9 | +12.4 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton 100.0
Ogden 100.3
Goods
Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton 100.6
Ogden 96.4
Services
Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton 107.6
Ogden 78.8
Rents
Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton 105.5
Ogden 117.9
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton would need to be in Ogden for the same purchasing power:
| In Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton | In Ogden | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $50,191 | +$191 |
| $75,000 | $75,286 | +$286 |
| $100,000 | $100,381 | +$381 |
| $150,000 | $150,572 | +$572 |
$ in Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton = in Ogden
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (100.0 → 100.3), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Ogden more expensive than Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton?
Ogden is 0.4% more expensive than Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton. The overall cost index is 100.3 vs 100.0 (national average = 100).
What salary in Ogden equals $100K in Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton?
A $100,000 salary in Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton has the same purchasing power as $100,381 in Ogden. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton and Ogden?
Rents in Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton are indexed at 105.5 while Ogden is at 117.9 (national average = 100). Ogden has higher rents.
Data sources
- BEA Regional Price Parities (RPP), the cost-of-living indices shown on this page
- U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS), gross-rent observations behind the rents component
- BLS Consumer Price Index (CPI), goods and services price relatives
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), labor-driven services component
- HUD Fair Market Rents (FMR), 40th-percentile rent cross-reference
Every figure on PlainCost is rendered directly from BEA Regional Price Parity source data, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, our changelog, or report a data error. Data current as of 2026-08-11. Rankings measure the published cost-of-living index only; we don't recommend where to live or rate any metro's quality of life.