Overall
- Fairbanks-College
- 103.2
- Portland-South Portland
- 101.9
Diff -1.3 RPP
Fairbanks-College vs Portland-South Portland
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Portland-South Portland is 1.3% less expensive than Fairbanks-College.
1.3% less expensive
Portland-South Portland, ME is 1.3% less expensive than Fairbanks-College, AK on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 101.9 vs 103.2). A $100,000 salary in Fairbanks-College buys about the same as $98,692 in Portland-South Portland; the largest component gap is services.
- Overall RPP 103.2 (Fairbanks-College) vs 101.9 (Portland-South Portland)
- $100k in Fairbanks-College ≈ $98,692 purchasing power in Portland-South Portland
- Services drives the gap (+14.8 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair AK:ME 103.2→101.9
PHOTO-FINISH · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-ABOVE · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- CROSS-STATE AK × ME
- SPLIT-BUDGET Split budget
- BOTH-ABOVE Both above 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.
Fairbanks-College
103.2
Cost Index
Portland-South Portland
101.9
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Fairbanks-College, AK and Portland-South Portland, ME are a photo finish on overall price level, only 1.3 RPP points apart. A salary conversion is therefore a fine adjustment, not evidence of a fundamentally different cost regime.
Services creates the largest separation: Portland-South Portland is 14.8 points higher. But services and 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 exceed the U.S. benchmark of 100. The choice is between two national premiums, so local wages need to clear the higher baseline in either market.
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 Fairbanks-College to $98,692 in Portland-South Portland, but it is not a personal spending weight.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Fairbanks-College
- 107.3
Diff -10.2 RPP
Services
- Fairbanks-College
- 119.8
- Portland-South Portland
- 134.6
Diff +14.8 RPP
Rents
- Fairbanks-College
- 92.6
- Portland-South Portland
- 105.2
Diff +12.6 RPP
| Category | Fairbanks-College | Portland-South Portland | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 103.2 | 101.9 | -1.3 |
| Goods | 107.3 | 97.2 | -10.2 |
| Services | 119.8 | 134.6 | +14.8 |
| Rents | 92.6 | 105.2 | +12.6 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Fairbanks-College 103.2
Portland-South Portland 101.9
Goods
Fairbanks-College 107.3
Portland-South Portland 97.2
Services
Fairbanks-College 119.8
Portland-South Portland 134.6
Rents
Fairbanks-College 92.6
Portland-South Portland 105.2
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Fairbanks-College would need to be in Portland-South Portland for the same purchasing power:
| In Fairbanks-College | In Portland-South Portland | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $49,346 | $-654 |
| $75,000 | $74,019 | $-981 |
| $100,000 | $98,692 | $-1,308 |
| $150,000 | $148,038 | $-1,962 |
$ in Fairbanks-College = in Portland-South Portland
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (103.2 → 101.9), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Portland-South Portland more expensive than Fairbanks-College?
Portland-South Portland is 1.3% less expensive than Fairbanks-College. The overall cost index is 101.9 vs 103.2 (national average = 100).
What salary in Portland-South Portland equals $100K in Fairbanks-College?
A $100,000 salary in Fairbanks-College has the same purchasing power as $98,692 in Portland-South Portland. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Fairbanks-College and Portland-South Portland?
Rents in Fairbanks-College are indexed at 92.6 while Portland-South Portland is at 105.2 (national average = 100). Portland-South Portland 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.