Overall
- Burlington
- 93.2
Diff -0.3 RPP
Burlington vs Greensboro-High Point
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Greensboro-High Point is 0.4% less expensive than Burlington.
0.4% less expensive
Greensboro-High Point, NC is 0.4% less expensive than Burlington, NC on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 92.9 vs 93.2). A $100,000 salary in Burlington buys about the same as $99,645 in Greensboro-High Point; the largest component gap is rents.
- Overall RPP 93.2 (Burlington) vs 92.9 (Greensboro-High Point)
- $100k in Burlington ≈ $99,645 purchasing power in Greensboro-High Point
- Rents drives the gap (-3.4 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair NC:NC 93.2→92.9
PHOTO-FINISH · SAME-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-BELOW · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- SAME-STATE Same state · NC
- 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.
Burlington
93.2
Cost Index
Greensboro-High Point
92.9
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Burlington, NC and Greensboro-High Point, NC are a photo finish on overall price level, only 0.3 RPP points apart. A salary conversion is therefore a fine adjustment, not evidence of a fundamentally different cost regime.
Rents creates the largest separation: Greensboro-High Point is 3.4 points lower. But goods 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 Burlington corresponds to $99,645 in Greensboro-High Point.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Burlington
- 96.6
Diff 0.0 RPP
Services
- Burlington
- 89.2
Diff -0.2 RPP
Rents
- Burlington
- 77.9
Diff -3.4 RPP
| Category | Burlington | Greensboro-High Point | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 93.2 | 92.9 | -0.3 |
| Goods | 96.6 | 96.6 | 0.0 |
| Services | 89.2 | 89.1 | -0.2 |
| Rents | 77.9 | 74.5 | -3.4 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Burlington 93.2
Greensboro-High Point 92.9
Goods
Burlington 96.6
Greensboro-High Point 96.6
Services
Burlington 89.2
Greensboro-High Point 89.1
Rents
Burlington 77.9
Greensboro-High Point 74.5
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Burlington would need to be in Greensboro-High Point for the same purchasing power:
| In Burlington | In Greensboro-High Point | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $49,822 | $-178 |
| $75,000 | $74,734 | $-266 |
| $100,000 | $99,645 | $-355 |
| $150,000 | $149,467 | $-533 |
$ in Burlington = in Greensboro-High Point
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (93.2 → 92.9), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Greensboro-High Point more expensive than Burlington?
Greensboro-High Point is 0.4% less expensive than Burlington. The overall cost index is 92.9 vs 93.2 (national average = 100).
What salary in Greensboro-High Point equals $100K in Burlington?
A $100,000 salary in Burlington has the same purchasing power as $99,645 in Greensboro-High Point. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Burlington and Greensboro-High Point?
Rents in Burlington are indexed at 77.9 while Greensboro-High Point is at 74.5 (national average = 100). Burlington 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.