Overall
- Cincinnati
- 95.4
- Syracuse
- 95.7
Diff +0.4 RPP
Cincinnati vs Syracuse
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Syracuse is 0.4% more expensive than Cincinnati.
0.4% more expensive
Syracuse, NY is 0.4% more expensive than Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 95.7 vs 95.4). A $100,000 salary in Cincinnati buys about the same as $100,390 in Syracuse; the largest component gap is services.
- Overall RPP 95.4 (Cincinnati) vs 95.7 (Syracuse)
- $100k in Cincinnati ≈ $100,390 purchasing power in Syracuse
- Services drives the gap (+42.5 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair OH:NY 95.4→95.7
PHOTO-FINISH · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-BELOW · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- CROSS-STATE OH × NY
- 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.
Cincinnati
95.4
Cost Index
Syracuse
95.7
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN and Syracuse, NY 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.
Services creates the largest separation: Syracuse is 42.5 points higher. But rents 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 service-heavy household, test childcare, health, and other locally supplied costs before relying on rent alone. The BEA ratio converts $100,000 in Cincinnati to $100,390 in Syracuse, but it is not a personal spending weight.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Cincinnati
- 93.8
- Syracuse
- 99.7
Diff +5.9 RPP
Services
- Cincinnati
- 91.0
- Syracuse
- 133.4
Diff +42.5 RPP
Rents
- Cincinnati
- 87.6
- Syracuse
- 80.7
Diff -7.0 RPP
| Category | Cincinnati | Syracuse | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 95.4 | 95.7 | +0.4 |
| Goods | 93.8 | 99.7 | +5.9 |
| Services | 91.0 | 133.4 | +42.5 |
| Rents | 87.6 | 80.7 | -7.0 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Cincinnati 95.4
Syracuse 95.7
Goods
Cincinnati 93.8
Syracuse 99.7
Services
Cincinnati 91.0
Syracuse 133.4
Rents
Cincinnati 87.6
Syracuse 80.7
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Cincinnati would need to be in Syracuse for the same purchasing power:
| In Cincinnati | In Syracuse | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $50,195 | +$195 |
| $75,000 | $75,293 | +$293 |
| $100,000 | $100,390 | +$390 |
| $150,000 | $150,585 | +$585 |
$ in Cincinnati = in Syracuse
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (95.4 → 95.7), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Syracuse more expensive than Cincinnati?
Syracuse is 0.4% more expensive than Cincinnati. The overall cost index is 95.7 vs 95.4 (national average = 100).
What salary in Syracuse equals $100K in Cincinnati?
A $100,000 salary in Cincinnati has the same purchasing power as $100,390 in Syracuse. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Cincinnati and Syracuse?
Rents in Cincinnati are indexed at 87.6 while Syracuse is at 80.7 (national average = 100). Cincinnati 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.