Overall
- Provo-Orem-Lehi
- 98.2
Diff +0.2 RPP
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos vs Provo-Orem-Lehi
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Provo-Orem-Lehi is 0.2% more expensive than Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos.
0.2% more expensive
Provo-Orem-Lehi, UT is 0.2% more expensive than Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 98.2 vs 98.1). A $100,000 salary in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos buys about the same as $100,169 in Provo-Orem-Lehi; the largest component gap is rents.
- Overall RPP 98.1 (Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos) vs 98.2 (Provo-Orem-Lehi)
- $100k in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos ≈ $100,169 purchasing power in Provo-Orem-Lehi
- Rents drives the gap (-16.3 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair TX:UT 98.1→98.2
PHOTO-FINISH · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-BELOW · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- CROSS-STATE TX × UT
- 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.
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos
98.1
Cost Index
Provo-Orem-Lehi
98.2
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX and Provo-Orem-Lehi, UT 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.
Rents creates the largest separation: Provo-Orem-Lehi is 16.3 points lower. But rents and services 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 Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos corresponds to $100,169 in Provo-Orem-Lehi.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Provo-Orem-Lehi
- 96.4
Diff +2.7 RPP
Services
- Provo-Orem-Lehi
- 78.6
Diff -3.4 RPP
Rents
- Provo-Orem-Lehi
- 104.1
Diff -16.3 RPP
| Category | Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos | Provo-Orem-Lehi | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 98.1 | 98.2 | +0.2 |
| Goods | 93.8 | 96.4 | +2.7 |
| Services | 82.0 | 78.6 | -3.4 |
| Rents | 120.4 | 104.1 | -16.3 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos 98.1
Provo-Orem-Lehi 98.2
Goods
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos 93.8
Provo-Orem-Lehi 96.4
Services
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos 82.0
Provo-Orem-Lehi 78.6
Rents
Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos 120.4
Provo-Orem-Lehi 104.1
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos would need to be in Provo-Orem-Lehi for the same purchasing power:
| In Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos | In Provo-Orem-Lehi | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $50,085 | +$85 |
| $75,000 | $75,127 | +$127 |
| $100,000 | $100,169 | +$169 |
| $150,000 | $150,254 | +$254 |
$ in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos = in Provo-Orem-Lehi
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (98.1 → 98.2), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Provo-Orem-Lehi more expensive than Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos?
Provo-Orem-Lehi is 0.2% more expensive than Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos. The overall cost index is 98.2 vs 98.1 (national average = 100).
What salary in Provo-Orem-Lehi equals $100K in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos?
A $100,000 salary in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos has the same purchasing power as $100,169 in Provo-Orem-Lehi. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos and Provo-Orem-Lehi?
Rents in Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos are indexed at 120.4 while Provo-Orem-Lehi is at 104.1 (national average = 100). Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos 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.