Overall
- Lancaster
- 98.3
Diff -0.6 RPP
Atlantic City-Hammonton vs Lancaster
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Lancaster is 0.6% less expensive than Atlantic City-Hammonton.
0.6% less expensive
Lancaster, PA is 0.6% less expensive than Atlantic City-Hammonton, NJ on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 98.3 vs 98.9). A $100,000 salary in Atlantic City-Hammonton buys about the same as $99,393 in Lancaster; the largest component gap is rents.
- Overall RPP 98.9 (Atlantic City-Hammonton) vs 98.3 (Lancaster)
- $100k in Atlantic City-Hammonton ≈ $99,393 purchasing power in Lancaster
- Rents drives the gap (-4.9 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair NJ:PA 98.9→98.3
PHOTO-FINISH · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-BELOW · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- CROSS-STATE NJ × PA
- 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.
Atlantic City-Hammonton
98.9
Cost Index
Lancaster
98.3
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Atlantic City-Hammonton, NJ and Lancaster, PA are a photo finish on overall price level, only 0.6 RPP points apart. A salary conversion is therefore a fine adjustment, not evidence of a fundamentally different cost regime.
Rents creates the largest separation: Lancaster is 4.9 points lower. But 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 housing-sensitive move, validate the rent gap first: HUD Fair Market Rent and the actual unit size can overturn what the blended index implies. On the BEA ratio alone, $100,000 in Atlantic City-Hammonton corresponds to $99,393 in Lancaster.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Lancaster
- 100.7
Diff +0.9 RPP
Services
- Atlantic City-Hammonton
- 109.2
- Lancaster
- 107.3
Diff -1.9 RPP
Rents
- Lancaster
- 93.8
Diff -4.9 RPP
| Category | Atlantic City-Hammonton | Lancaster | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 98.9 | 98.3 | -0.6 |
| Goods | 99.8 | 100.7 | +0.9 |
| Services | 109.2 | 107.3 | -1.9 |
| Rents | 98.7 | 93.8 | -4.9 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Atlantic City-Hammonton 98.9
Lancaster 98.3
Goods
Atlantic City-Hammonton 99.8
Lancaster 100.7
Services
Atlantic City-Hammonton 109.2
Lancaster 107.3
Rents
Atlantic City-Hammonton 98.7
Lancaster 93.8
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Atlantic City-Hammonton would need to be in Lancaster for the same purchasing power:
| In Atlantic City-Hammonton | In Lancaster | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $49,697 | $-303 |
| $75,000 | $74,545 | $-455 |
| $100,000 | $99,393 | $-607 |
| $150,000 | $149,090 | $-910 |
$ in Atlantic City-Hammonton = in Lancaster
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (98.9 → 98.3), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Lancaster more expensive than Atlantic City-Hammonton?
Lancaster is 0.6% less expensive than Atlantic City-Hammonton. The overall cost index is 98.3 vs 98.9 (national average = 100).
What salary in Lancaster equals $100K in Atlantic City-Hammonton?
A $100,000 salary in Atlantic City-Hammonton has the same purchasing power as $99,393 in Lancaster. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Atlantic City-Hammonton and Lancaster?
Rents in Atlantic City-Hammonton are indexed at 98.7 while Lancaster is at 93.8 (national average = 100). Atlantic City-Hammonton 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.