Overall
Diff +3.3 RPP
Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard vs Washington-Arlington-Alexandria
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Washington-Arlington-Alexandria is 3.1% more expensive than Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard.
3.1% more expensive
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV is 3.1% more expensive than Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard, WA on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 108.9 vs 105.6). A $100,000 salary in Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard buys about the same as $103,103 in Washington-Arlington-Alexandria; the largest component gap is rents.
- Overall RPP 105.6 (Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard) vs 108.9 (Washington-Arlington-Alexandria)
- $100k in Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard ≈ $103,103 purchasing power in Washington-Arlington-Alexandria
- Rents drives the gap (+21.5 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair WA:DC 105.6→108.9
TIER-NEAR · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-ABOVE · PP-SHIFT
- TIER-NEAR Near tier
- CROSS-STATE WA × DC
- SPLIT-BUDGET Split budget
- BOTH-ABOVE Both above 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
Diff -0.2 RPP
Services
Diff +14.7 RPP
Rents
Diff +21.5 RPP
| Category | Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard | Washington-Arlington-Alexandria | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 105.6 | 108.9 | +3.3 |
| Goods | 105.0 | 104.8 | -0.2 |
| Services | 92.0 | 106.7 | +14.7 |
| Rents | 129.6 | 151.1 | +21.5 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard 105.6
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria 108.9
Goods
Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard 105.0
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria 104.8
Services
Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard 92.0
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria 106.7
Rents
Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard 129.6
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria 151.1
Vertical line = national average (100)
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Rents creates the largest separation: Washington-Arlington-Alexandria is 21.5 points higher. But goods move against the overall direction, so this is a split budget rather than a clean across-the-board winner.
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV is 3.1% more expensive than Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard, WA, a meaningful but not extreme shift. The move decision turns on which budget category creates the 3.3-point overall gap.
Both metros exceed the U.S. benchmark of 100. The choice is between two national premiums, so local wages need to clear the higher baseline in either market.
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 Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard corresponds to $103,103 in Washington-Arlington-Alexandria.
Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard
105.6
Cost Index
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria
108.9
Cost Index
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard would need to be in Washington-Arlington-Alexandria for the same purchasing power:
| In Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard | In Washington-Arlington-Alexandria | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $51,552 | +$1,552 |
| $75,000 | $77,327 | +$2,327 |
| $100,000 | $103,103 | +$3,103 |
| $150,000 | $154,655 | +$4,655 |
$ in Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard = in Washington-Arlington-Alexandria
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (105.6 → 108.9), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Washington-Arlington-Alexandria more expensive than Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard?
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria is 3.1% more expensive than Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard. The overall cost index is 108.9 vs 105.6 (national average = 100).
What salary in Washington-Arlington-Alexandria equals $100K in Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard?
A $100,000 salary in Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard has the same purchasing power as $103,103 in Washington-Arlington-Alexandria. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard and Washington-Arlington-Alexandria?
Rents in Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard are indexed at 129.6 while Washington-Arlington-Alexandria is at 151.1 (national average = 100). Washington-Arlington-Alexandria 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.