Overall
- Charleston
- 88.7
Diff +0.4 RPP
Charleston vs Davenport-Moline-Rock Island
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Davenport-Moline-Rock Island is 0.4% more expensive than Charleston.
0.4% more expensive
Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL is 0.4% more expensive than Charleston, WV on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 89.1 vs 88.7). A $100,000 salary in Charleston buys about the same as $100,408 in Davenport-Moline-Rock Island; the largest component gap is rents.
- Overall RPP 88.7 (Charleston) vs 89.1 (Davenport-Moline-Rock Island)
- $100k in Charleston ≈ $100,408 purchasing power in Davenport-Moline-Rock Island
- Rents drives the gap (+17.0 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair WV:IA 88.7→89.1
PHOTO-FINISH · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-BELOW · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- CROSS-STATE WV × IA
- 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.
Charleston
88.7
Cost Index
Davenport-Moline-Rock Island
89.1
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Charleston, WV and Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL are a photo finish on overall price level, only 0.4 RPP points apart. A salary conversion is therefore a fine adjustment, not evidence of a fundamentally different cost regime.
Rents creates the largest separation: Davenport-Moline-Rock Island is 17.0 points higher. But goods 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 Charleston corresponds to $100,408 in Davenport-Moline-Rock Island.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Charleston
- 96.3
Diff -2.1 RPP
Services
- Charleston
- 91.7
Diff -1.8 RPP
Rents
- Charleston
- 51.4
Diff +17.0 RPP
| Category | Charleston | Davenport-Moline-Rock Island | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 88.7 | 89.1 | +0.4 |
| Goods | 96.3 | 94.2 | -2.1 |
| Services | 91.7 | 89.9 | -1.8 |
| Rents | 51.4 | 68.3 | +17.0 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Charleston 88.7
Davenport-Moline-Rock Island 89.1
Goods
Charleston 96.3
Davenport-Moline-Rock Island 94.2
Services
Charleston 91.7
Davenport-Moline-Rock Island 89.9
Rents
Charleston 51.4
Davenport-Moline-Rock Island 68.3
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Charleston would need to be in Davenport-Moline-Rock Island for the same purchasing power:
| In Charleston | In Davenport-Moline-Rock Island | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $50,204 | +$204 |
| $75,000 | $75,306 | +$306 |
| $100,000 | $100,408 | +$408 |
| $150,000 | $150,612 | +$612 |
$ in Charleston = in Davenport-Moline-Rock Island
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (88.7 → 89.1), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Davenport-Moline-Rock Island more expensive than Charleston?
Davenport-Moline-Rock Island is 0.4% more expensive than Charleston. The overall cost index is 89.1 vs 88.7 (national average = 100).
What salary in Davenport-Moline-Rock Island equals $100K in Charleston?
A $100,000 salary in Charleston has the same purchasing power as $100,408 in Davenport-Moline-Rock Island. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Charleston and Davenport-Moline-Rock Island?
Rents in Charleston are indexed at 51.4 while Davenport-Moline-Rock Island is at 68.3 (national average = 100). Davenport-Moline-Rock Island 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.