Overall
Diff +0.2 RPP
Altoona vs Lima
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Lima is 0.2% more expensive than Altoona.
0.2% more expensive
Lima, OH is 0.2% more expensive than Altoona, PA on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 89.7 vs 89.5). A $100,000 salary in Altoona buys about the same as $100,181 in Lima; the largest component gap is services.
- Overall RPP 89.5 (Altoona) vs 89.7 (Lima)
- $100k in Altoona ≈ $100,181 purchasing power in Lima
- Services drives the gap (-11.9 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair PA:OH 89.5→89.7
PHOTO-FINISH · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-BELOW · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- CROSS-STATE PA × OH
- SPLIT-BUDGET Split budget
- BOTH-BELOW Both below 100
- 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.
Altoona
89.5
Cost Index
Lima
89.7
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Altoona, PA and Lima, OH are a photo finish on overall price level, only 0.2 RPP points apart. A salary conversion is therefore a fine adjustment, not evidence of a fundamentally different cost regime.
Services creates the largest separation: Lima is 11.9 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.
Both metros remain below the U.S. benchmark of 100. This comparison chooses between two below-average price levels; “more expensive” here does not mean nationally expensive.
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 Altoona to $100,181 in Lima, but it is not a personal spending weight.
Category Breakdown
Goods
Diff -7.1 RPP
Services
Diff -11.9 RPP
Rents
Diff +2.3 RPP
| Category | Altoona | Lima | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 89.5 | 89.7 | +0.2 |
| Goods | 100.7 | 93.6 | -7.1 |
| Services | 107.7 | 95.8 | -11.9 |
| Rents | 55.0 | 57.3 | +2.3 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Altoona 89.5
Lima 89.7
Goods
Altoona 100.7
Lima 93.6
Services
Altoona 107.7
Lima 95.8
Rents
Altoona 55.0
Lima 57.3
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Altoona would need to be in Lima for the same purchasing power:
| In Altoona | In Lima | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $50,090 | +$90 |
| $75,000 | $75,136 | +$136 |
| $100,000 | $100,181 | +$181 |
| $150,000 | $150,271 | +$271 |
$ in Altoona = in Lima
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (89.5 → 89.7), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Lima more expensive than Altoona?
Lima is 0.2% more expensive than Altoona. The overall cost index is 89.7 vs 89.5 (national average = 100).
What salary in Lima equals $100K in Altoona?
A $100,000 salary in Altoona has the same purchasing power as $100,181 in Lima. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Altoona and Lima?
Rents in Altoona are indexed at 55.0 while Lima is at 57.3 (national average = 100). Lima 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.