Overall
- Denver-Aurora-Centennial
- 105.8
- Lancaster
- 98.3
Diff -7.5 RPP
Denver-Aurora-Centennial vs Lancaster
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Lancaster is 7.1% less expensive than Denver-Aurora-Centennial.
7.1% less expensive
Lancaster, PA is 7.1% less expensive than Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 98.3 vs 105.8). A $100,000 salary in Denver-Aurora-Centennial buys about the same as $92,886 in Lancaster; the largest component gap is rents.
- Overall RPP 105.8 (Denver-Aurora-Centennial) vs 98.3 (Lancaster)
- $100k in Denver-Aurora-Centennial ≈ $92,886 purchasing power in Lancaster
- Rents drives the gap (-53.1 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair CO:PA 105.8→98.3
TIER-NEAR · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BENCH-CROSS · PP-SHIFT
- TIER-NEAR Near tier
- CROSS-STATE CO × PA
- SPLIT-BUDGET Split budget
- 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.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Denver-Aurora-Centennial
- 101.0
- Lancaster
- 100.7
Diff -0.3 RPP
Services
- Lancaster
- 107.3
Diff +19.4 RPP
Rents
- Denver-Aurora-Centennial
- 146.9
- Lancaster
- 93.8
Diff -53.1 RPP
| Category | Denver-Aurora-Centennial | Lancaster | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 105.8 | 98.3 | -7.5 |
| Goods | 101.0 | 100.7 | -0.3 |
| Services | 87.9 | 107.3 | +19.4 |
| Rents | 146.9 | 93.8 | -53.1 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Denver-Aurora-Centennial 105.8
Lancaster 98.3
Goods
Denver-Aurora-Centennial 101.0
Lancaster 100.7
Services
Denver-Aurora-Centennial 87.9
Lancaster 107.3
Rents
Denver-Aurora-Centennial 146.9
Lancaster 93.8
Vertical line = national average (100)
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Rents creates the largest separation: Lancaster is 53.1 points lower. But services move against the overall direction, so this is a split budget rather than a clean across-the-board winner.
Lancaster, PA is 7.1% less expensive than Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO, a meaningful but not extreme shift. The move decision turns on which budget category creates the 7.5-point overall gap.
This route crosses the national benchmark: Denver-Aurora-Centennial is above 100 while Lancaster is below it. That makes the move a change of price regime, not merely a rank swap.
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 Denver-Aurora-Centennial corresponds to $92,886 in Lancaster.
Denver-Aurora-Centennial
105.8
Cost Index
Lancaster
98.3
Cost Index
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Denver-Aurora-Centennial would need to be in Lancaster for the same purchasing power:
| In Denver-Aurora-Centennial | In Lancaster | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $46,443 | $-3,557 |
| $75,000 | $69,665 | $-5,335 |
| $100,000 | $92,886 | $-7,114 |
| $150,000 | $139,329 | $-10,671 |
$ in Denver-Aurora-Centennial = in Lancaster
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (105.8 → 98.3), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Lancaster more expensive than Denver-Aurora-Centennial?
Lancaster is 7.1% less expensive than Denver-Aurora-Centennial. The overall cost index is 98.3 vs 105.8 (national average = 100).
What salary in Lancaster equals $100K in Denver-Aurora-Centennial?
A $100,000 salary in Denver-Aurora-Centennial has the same purchasing power as $92,886 in Lancaster. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Denver-Aurora-Centennial and Lancaster?
Rents in Denver-Aurora-Centennial are indexed at 146.9 while Lancaster is at 93.8 (national average = 100). Denver-Aurora-Centennial 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.