Overall
- Boise City
- 98.4
- Winston-Salem
- 92.0
Diff -6.3 RPP
Boise City vs Winston-Salem
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Winston-Salem is 6.5% less expensive than Boise City.
6.5% less expensive
Winston-Salem, NC is 6.5% less expensive than Boise City, ID on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 92.0 vs 98.4). A $100,000 salary in Boise City buys about the same as $93,548 in Winston-Salem; the largest component gap is rents.
- Overall RPP 98.4 (Boise City) vs 92.0 (Winston-Salem)
- $100k in Boise City ≈ $93,548 purchasing power in Winston-Salem
- Rents drives the gap (-34.2 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair ID:NC 98.4→92.0
TIER-NEAR · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-BELOW · PP-SHIFT
- TIER-NEAR Near tier
- CROSS-STATE ID × NC
- SPLIT-BUDGET Split budget
- BOTH-BELOW Both below 100
- PP-SHIFT PP shift
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.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Boise City
- 96.2
- Winston-Salem
- 96.6
Diff +0.4 RPP
Services
- Boise City
- 70.7
- Winston-Salem
- 88.4
Diff +17.7 RPP
Rents
- Boise City
- 105.6
- Winston-Salem
- 71.4
Diff -34.2 RPP
| Category | Boise City | Winston-Salem | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 98.4 | 92.0 | -6.3 |
| Goods | 96.2 | 96.6 | +0.4 |
| Services | 70.7 | 88.4 | +17.7 |
| Rents | 105.6 | 71.4 | -34.2 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Boise City 98.4
Winston-Salem 92.0
Goods
Boise City 96.2
Winston-Salem 96.6
Services
Boise City 70.7
Winston-Salem 88.4
Rents
Boise City 105.6
Winston-Salem 71.4
Vertical line = national average (100)
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Rents creates the largest separation: Winston-Salem is 34.2 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.
Winston-Salem, NC is 6.5% less expensive than Boise City, ID, a meaningful but not extreme shift. The move decision turns on which budget category creates the 6.3-point overall gap.
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.
Comparable population context is incomplete for this pair, so no market-scale explanation is inferred from the price indexes.
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 Boise City corresponds to $93,548 in Winston-Salem.
Boise City
98.4
Cost Index
Winston-Salem
92.0
Cost Index
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Boise City would need to be in Winston-Salem for the same purchasing power:
| In Boise City | In Winston-Salem | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $46,774 | $-3,226 |
| $75,000 | $70,161 | $-4,839 |
| $100,000 | $93,548 | $-6,452 |
| $150,000 | $140,322 | $-9,678 |
$ in Boise City = in Winston-Salem
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (98.4 → 92.0), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Winston-Salem more expensive than Boise City?
Winston-Salem is 6.5% less expensive than Boise City. The overall cost index is 92.0 vs 98.4 (national average = 100).
What salary in Winston-Salem equals $100K in Boise City?
A $100,000 salary in Boise City has the same purchasing power as $93,548 in Winston-Salem. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Boise City and Winston-Salem?
Rents in Boise City are indexed at 105.6 while Winston-Salem is at 71.4 (national average = 100). Boise City 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.