Overall
- Champaign-Urbana
- 92.7
- Lancaster
- 98.3
Diff +5.6 RPP
Champaign-Urbana vs Lancaster
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Lancaster is 6% more expensive than Champaign-Urbana.
6% more expensive
Lancaster, PA is 6% more expensive than Champaign-Urbana, IL on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 98.3 vs 92.7). A $100,000 salary in Champaign-Urbana buys about the same as $105,990 in Lancaster; the largest component gap is rents.
- Overall RPP 92.7 (Champaign-Urbana) vs 98.3 (Lancaster)
- $100k in Champaign-Urbana ≈ $105,990 purchasing power in Lancaster
- Rents drives the gap (+22.2 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair IL:PA 92.7→98.3
TIER-NEAR · CROSS-STATE · RENT-LED · BOTH-BELOW · PP-SHIFT
- TIER-NEAR Near tier
- CROSS-STATE IL × PA
- RENT-LED Rent-led gap
- 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.
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Champaign-Urbana would need to be in Lancaster for the same purchasing power:
| In Champaign-Urbana | In Lancaster | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $52,995 | +$2,995 |
| $75,000 | $79,493 | +$4,493 |
| $100,000 | $105,990 | +$5,990 |
| $150,000 | $158,985 | +$8,985 |
$ in Champaign-Urbana = in Lancaster
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (92.7 → 98.3), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
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.
Lancaster, PA is 6% more expensive than Champaign-Urbana, IL, a meaningful but not extreme shift. The move decision turns on which budget category creates the 5.6-point overall gap.
Rents leads the difference, with Lancaster 22.2 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.
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 $105,990 in Lancaster.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Champaign-Urbana
- 93.6
- Lancaster
- 100.7
Diff +7.0 RPP
Services
- Champaign-Urbana
- 90.5
- Lancaster
- 107.3
Diff +16.8 RPP
Rents
- Champaign-Urbana
- 71.6
- Lancaster
- 93.8
Diff +22.2 RPP
| Category | Champaign-Urbana | Lancaster | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 92.7 | 98.3 | +5.6 |
| Goods | 93.6 | 100.7 | +7.0 |
| Services | 90.5 | 107.3 | +16.8 |
| Rents | 71.6 | 93.8 | +22.2 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Champaign-Urbana 92.7
Lancaster 98.3
Goods
Champaign-Urbana 93.6
Lancaster 100.7
Services
Champaign-Urbana 90.5
Lancaster 107.3
Rents
Champaign-Urbana 71.6
Lancaster 93.8
Vertical line = national average (100)
Champaign-Urbana
92.7
Cost Index
Lancaster
98.3
Cost Index
How the Price Gap Changed
Champaign-Urbana and Lancaster share 17 published annual releases from 2008 through 2024. Their overall gap widened, moving from 4.0 to 5.6 RPP points. Lancaster remained the higher-index metro in the latest release.
Rents changed the most within this pair: its gap moved 18.7 points between the first and latest shared releases (3.5 to 22.2 points). This describes a relative price-index history, not a forecast or a household budget.
| Release Year | Champaign-Urbana RPP | Lancaster RPP | Relative Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 96.2 | 100.2 | 4.0 points Lancaster higher |
| 2012 | 94.2 | 97.8 | 3.6 points Lancaster higher |
| 2016 | 93.7 | 99.4 | 5.7 points Lancaster higher |
| 2020 | 91.9 | 97.9 | 6.0 points Lancaster higher |
| 2024 | 92.7 | 98.3 | 5.6 points Lancaster higher |
Annual BEA Regional Price Parity releases; a higher index means a higher price level relative to the national average of 100. Selected years shown from the full shared series.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Lancaster more expensive than Champaign-Urbana?
Lancaster is 6% more expensive than Champaign-Urbana. The overall cost index is 98.3 vs 92.7 (national average = 100).
What salary in Lancaster equals $100K in Champaign-Urbana?
A $100,000 salary in Champaign-Urbana has the same purchasing power as $105,990 in Lancaster. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Champaign-Urbana and Lancaster?
Rents in Champaign-Urbana are indexed at 71.6 while Lancaster is at 93.8 (national average = 100). Lancaster 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.