Overall
- Champaign-Urbana
- 92.7
- Eau Claire
- 92.8
Diff +0.1 RPP
Champaign-Urbana vs Eau Claire
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Eau Claire is 0.1% more expensive than Champaign-Urbana.
0.1% more expensive
Eau Claire, WI is 0.1% more expensive than Champaign-Urbana, IL on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 92.8 vs 92.7). A $100,000 salary in Champaign-Urbana buys about the same as $100,099 in Eau Claire; the largest component gap is rents.
- Overall RPP 92.7 (Champaign-Urbana) vs 92.8 (Eau Claire)
- $100k in Champaign-Urbana ≈ $100,099 purchasing power in Eau Claire
- Rents drives the gap (+1.2 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair IL:WI 92.7→92.8
PHOTO-FINISH · CROSS-STATE · RENT-LED · BOTH-BELOW · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- CROSS-STATE IL × WI
- 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.
Champaign-Urbana
92.7
Cost Index
Eau Claire
92.8
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Champaign-Urbana, IL and Eau Claire, WI are a photo finish on overall price level, only 0.1 RPP points apart. A salary conversion is therefore a fine adjustment, not evidence of a fundamentally different cost regime.
Rents leads the difference, with Eau Claire 1.2 points higher than Champaign-Urbana. 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 Champaign-Urbana corresponds to $100,099 in Eau Claire.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Champaign-Urbana
- 93.6
- Eau Claire
- 93.8
Diff +0.1 RPP
Services
- Champaign-Urbana
- 90.5
- Eau Claire
- 90.9
Diff +0.5 RPP
Rents
- Champaign-Urbana
- 71.6
- Eau Claire
- 72.8
Diff +1.2 RPP
| Category | Champaign-Urbana | Eau Claire | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 92.7 | 92.8 | +0.1 |
| Goods | 93.6 | 93.8 | +0.1 |
| Services | 90.5 | 90.9 | +0.5 |
| Rents | 71.6 | 72.8 | +1.2 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Champaign-Urbana 92.7
Eau Claire 92.8
Goods
Champaign-Urbana 93.6
Eau Claire 93.8
Services
Champaign-Urbana 90.5
Eau Claire 90.9
Rents
Champaign-Urbana 71.6
Eau Claire 72.8
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Champaign-Urbana would need to be in Eau Claire for the same purchasing power:
| In Champaign-Urbana | In Eau Claire | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $50,050 | +$50 |
| $75,000 | $75,074 | +$74 |
| $100,000 | $100,099 | +$99 |
| $150,000 | $150,149 | +$149 |
$ in Champaign-Urbana = in Eau Claire
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (92.7 → 92.8), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Eau Claire more expensive than Champaign-Urbana?
Eau Claire is 0.1% more expensive than Champaign-Urbana. The overall cost index is 92.8 vs 92.7 (national average = 100).
What salary in Eau Claire equals $100K in Champaign-Urbana?
A $100,000 salary in Champaign-Urbana has the same purchasing power as $100,099 in Eau Claire. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Champaign-Urbana and Eau Claire?
Rents in Champaign-Urbana are indexed at 71.6 while Eau Claire is at 72.8 (national average = 100). Eau Claire 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.