Overall
- Baton Rouge
- 90.8
- Bismarck
- 91.0
Diff +0.2 RPP
Baton Rouge vs Bismarck
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Bismarck is 0.3% more expensive than Baton Rouge.
0.3% more expensive
Bismarck, ND is 0.3% more expensive than Baton Rouge, LA on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 91.0 vs 90.8). A $100,000 salary in Baton Rouge buys about the same as $100,269 in Bismarck; the largest component gap is rents.
- Overall RPP 90.8 (Baton Rouge) vs 91.0 (Bismarck)
- $100k in Baton Rouge ≈ $100,269 purchasing power in Bismarck
- Rents drives the gap (+9.8 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair LA:ND 90.8→91.0
PHOTO-FINISH · CROSS-STATE · RENT-LED · BOTH-BELOW · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- CROSS-STATE LA × ND
- RENT-LED Rent-led gap
- 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.
Baton Rouge
90.8
Cost Index
Bismarck
91.0
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Baton Rouge, LA and Bismarck, ND 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 leads the difference, with Bismarck 9.8 points higher than Baton Rouge. Goods, services, and rents all point in the same broad direction, making the headline comparison more transferable across household types.
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 Baton Rouge corresponds to $100,269 in Bismarck.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Baton Rouge
- 93.7
- Bismarck
- 95.7
Diff +2.0 RPP
Services
- Baton Rouge
- 71.2
- Bismarck
- 75.0
Diff +3.8 RPP
Rents
- Baton Rouge
- 74.2
- Bismarck
- 84.0
Diff +9.8 RPP
| Category | Baton Rouge | Bismarck | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 90.8 | 91.0 | +0.2 |
| Goods | 93.7 | 95.7 | +2.0 |
| Services | 71.2 | 75.0 | +3.8 |
| Rents | 74.2 | 84.0 | +9.8 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Baton Rouge 90.8
Bismarck 91.0
Goods
Baton Rouge 93.7
Bismarck 95.7
Services
Baton Rouge 71.2
Bismarck 75.0
Rents
Baton Rouge 74.2
Bismarck 84.0
Vertical line = national average (100)
How the Price Gap Changed
Baton Rouge and Bismarck share 17 published annual releases from 2008 through 2024. Their overall gap narrowed, moving from 3.1 to 0.2 RPP points. Bismarck remained the higher-index metro in the latest release.
Rents changed the most within this pair: its gap moved 31.1 points between the first and latest shared releases (21.2 to 9.8 points). This describes a relative price-index history, not a forecast or a household budget.
| Release Year | Baton Rouge RPP | Bismarck RPP | Relative Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 93.1 | 90.0 | 3.1 points Baton Rouge higher |
| 2012 | 94.2 | 95.2 | 1.0 points Bismarck higher |
| 2016 | 95.6 | 96.0 | 0.3 points Bismarck higher |
| 2020 | 93.1 | 92.6 | 0.5 points Baton Rouge higher |
| 2024 | 90.8 | 91.0 | 0.2 points Bismarck higher |
Annual BEA Regional Price Parity releases; a higher index means a higher price level relative to the national average of 100. Selected years shown from the full shared series.
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Baton Rouge would need to be in Bismarck for the same purchasing power:
| In Baton Rouge | In Bismarck | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $50,134 | +$134 |
| $75,000 | $75,202 | +$202 |
| $100,000 | $100,269 | +$269 |
| $150,000 | $150,403 | +$403 |
$ in Baton Rouge = in Bismarck
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (90.8 → 91.0), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Bismarck more expensive than Baton Rouge?
Bismarck is 0.3% more expensive than Baton Rouge. The overall cost index is 91.0 vs 90.8 (national average = 100).
What salary in Bismarck equals $100K in Baton Rouge?
A $100,000 salary in Baton Rouge has the same purchasing power as $100,269 in Bismarck. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Baton Rouge and Bismarck?
Rents in Baton Rouge are indexed at 74.2 while Bismarck is at 84.0 (national average = 100). Bismarck 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.