Overall
- Bowling Green
- 90.2
- Gulfport-Biloxi
- 90.0
Diff -0.2 RPP
Bowling Green vs Gulfport-Biloxi
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Gulfport-Biloxi is 0.2% less expensive than Bowling Green.
0.2% less expensive
Gulfport-Biloxi, MS is 0.2% less expensive than Bowling Green, KY on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 90.0 vs 90.2). A $100,000 salary in Bowling Green buys about the same as $99,808 in Gulfport-Biloxi; the largest component gap is rents.
- Overall RPP 90.2 (Bowling Green) vs 90.0 (Gulfport-Biloxi)
- $100k in Bowling Green ≈ $99,808 purchasing power in Gulfport-Biloxi
- Rents drives the gap (+4.5 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair KY:MS 90.2→90.0
PHOTO-FINISH · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-BELOW · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- CROSS-STATE KY × MS
- 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.
Bowling Green
90.2
Cost Index
Gulfport-Biloxi
90.0
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Bowling Green, KY and Gulfport-Biloxi, MS 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: Gulfport-Biloxi is 4.5 points higher. 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 Bowling Green corresponds to $99,808 in Gulfport-Biloxi.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Bowling Green
- 96.2
- Gulfport-Biloxi
- 96.2
Diff -0.0 RPP
Services
- Bowling Green
- 75.2
- Gulfport-Biloxi
- 76.3
Diff +1.1 RPP
Rents
- Bowling Green
- 63.4
- Gulfport-Biloxi
- 67.9
Diff +4.5 RPP
| Category | Bowling Green | Gulfport-Biloxi | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 90.2 | 90.0 | -0.2 |
| Goods | 96.2 | 96.2 | -0.0 |
| Services | 75.2 | 76.3 | +1.1 |
| Rents | 63.4 | 67.9 | +4.5 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Bowling Green 90.2
Gulfport-Biloxi 90.0
Goods
Bowling Green 96.2
Gulfport-Biloxi 96.2
Services
Bowling Green 75.2
Gulfport-Biloxi 76.3
Rents
Bowling Green 63.4
Gulfport-Biloxi 67.9
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Bowling Green would need to be in Gulfport-Biloxi for the same purchasing power:
| In Bowling Green | In Gulfport-Biloxi | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $49,904 | $-96 |
| $75,000 | $74,856 | $-144 |
| $100,000 | $99,808 | $-192 |
| $150,000 | $149,712 | $-288 |
$ in Bowling Green = in Gulfport-Biloxi
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (90.2 → 90.0), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Gulfport-Biloxi more expensive than Bowling Green?
Gulfport-Biloxi is 0.2% less expensive than Bowling Green. The overall cost index is 90.0 vs 90.2 (national average = 100).
What salary in Gulfport-Biloxi equals $100K in Bowling Green?
A $100,000 salary in Bowling Green has the same purchasing power as $99,808 in Gulfport-Biloxi. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Bowling Green and Gulfport-Biloxi?
Rents in Bowling Green are indexed at 63.4 while Gulfport-Biloxi is at 67.9 (national average = 100). Gulfport-Biloxi 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.