Overall
- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin
- 103.6
- Knoxville
- 92.6
Diff -11.0 RPP
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin vs Knoxville
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Knoxville is 10.6% less expensive than Chicago-Naperville-Elgin.
10.6% less expensive
Knoxville, TN is 10.6% less expensive than Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 92.6 vs 103.6). A $100,000 salary in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin buys about the same as $89,357 in Knoxville; the largest component gap is rents.
- Overall RPP 103.6 (Chicago-Naperville-Elgin) vs 92.6 (Knoxville)
- $100k in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin ≈ $89,357 purchasing power in Knoxville
- Rents drives the gap (-29.2 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair IL:TN 103.6→92.6
TIER-GAP · CROSS-STATE · RENT-LED · BENCH-CROSS · PP-SHIFT
- TIER-GAP Clear tier gap
- CROSS-STATE IL × TN
- RENT-LED Rent-led gap
- BENCH-CROSS Benchmark cross
- 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin would need to be in Knoxville for the same purchasing power:
| In Chicago-Naperville-Elgin | In Knoxville | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $44,678 | $-5,322 |
| $75,000 | $67,017 | $-7,983 |
| $100,000 | $89,357 | $-10,643 |
| $150,000 | $134,035 | $-15,965 |
$ in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin = in Knoxville
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (103.6 → 92.6), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN and Knoxville, TN sit in clearly different price tiers, separated by 11.0 RPP points. At this distance, treating the same nominal salary as equivalent would materially change purchasing power.
This route crosses the national benchmark: Chicago-Naperville-Elgin is above 100 while Knoxville is below it. That makes the move a change of price regime, not merely a rank swap.
Rents leads the difference, with Knoxville 29.2 points lower than Chicago-Naperville-Elgin. 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin corresponds to $89,357 in Knoxville.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin
- 107.3
- Knoxville
- 96.2
Diff -11.0 RPP
Services
- Knoxville
- 71.9
Diff -11.7 RPP
Rents
- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin
- 112.0
- Knoxville
- 82.8
Diff -29.2 RPP
| Category | Chicago-Naperville-Elgin | Knoxville | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 103.6 | 92.6 | -11.0 |
| Goods | 107.3 | 96.2 | -11.0 |
| Services | 83.6 | 71.9 | -11.7 |
| Rents | 112.0 | 82.8 | -29.2 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin 103.6
Knoxville 92.6
Goods
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin 107.3
Knoxville 96.2
Services
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin 83.6
Knoxville 71.9
Rents
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin 112.0
Knoxville 82.8
Vertical line = national average (100)
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin
103.6
Cost Index
Knoxville
92.6
Cost Index
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Knoxville more expensive than Chicago-Naperville-Elgin?
Knoxville is 10.6% less expensive than Chicago-Naperville-Elgin. The overall cost index is 92.6 vs 103.6 (national average = 100).
What salary in Knoxville equals $100K in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin?
A $100,000 salary in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin has the same purchasing power as $89,357 in Knoxville. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Chicago-Naperville-Elgin and Knoxville?
Rents in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin are indexed at 112.0 while Knoxville is at 82.8 (national average = 100). Chicago-Naperville-Elgin 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.