Overall
- Fayetteville
- 92.0
- La Crosse-Onalaska
- 91.8
Diff -0.2 RPP
Fayetteville vs La Crosse-Onalaska
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. La Crosse-Onalaska is 0.2% less expensive than Fayetteville.
0.2% less expensive
La Crosse-Onalaska, WI-MN is 0.2% less expensive than Fayetteville, NC on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 91.8 vs 92.0). A $100,000 salary in Fayetteville buys about the same as $99,773 in La Crosse-Onalaska; the largest component gap is rents.
- Overall RPP 92.0 (Fayetteville) vs 91.8 (La Crosse-Onalaska)
- $100k in Fayetteville ≈ $99,773 purchasing power in La Crosse-Onalaska
- Rents drives the gap (-3.7 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair NC:WI 92.0→91.8
PHOTO-FINISH · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-BELOW · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- CROSS-STATE NC × WI
- 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.
Fayetteville
92.0
Cost Index
La Crosse-Onalaska
91.8
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Fayetteville, NC and La Crosse-Onalaska, WI-MN are a photo finish on overall price level, only 0.2 RPP points apart. A salary conversion is therefore a fine adjustment, not evidence of a fundamentally different cost regime.
Rents creates the largest separation: La Crosse-Onalaska is 3.7 points lower. But 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 Fayetteville corresponds to $99,773 in La Crosse-Onalaska.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Fayetteville
- 96.6
- La Crosse-Onalaska
- 93.8
Diff -2.8 RPP
Services
- Fayetteville
- 87.8
- La Crosse-Onalaska
- 89.5
Diff +1.7 RPP
Rents
- Fayetteville
- 73.1
- La Crosse-Onalaska
- 69.4
Diff -3.7 RPP
| Category | Fayetteville | La Crosse-Onalaska | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 92.0 | 91.8 | -0.2 |
| Goods | 96.6 | 93.8 | -2.8 |
| Services | 87.8 | 89.5 | +1.7 |
| Rents | 73.1 | 69.4 | -3.7 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Fayetteville 92.0
La Crosse-Onalaska 91.8
Goods
Fayetteville 96.6
La Crosse-Onalaska 93.8
Services
Fayetteville 87.8
La Crosse-Onalaska 89.5
Rents
Fayetteville 73.1
La Crosse-Onalaska 69.4
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Fayetteville would need to be in La Crosse-Onalaska for the same purchasing power:
| In Fayetteville | In La Crosse-Onalaska | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $49,886 | $-114 |
| $75,000 | $74,830 | $-170 |
| $100,000 | $99,773 | $-227 |
| $150,000 | $149,659 | $-341 |
$ in Fayetteville = in La Crosse-Onalaska
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (92.0 → 91.8), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is La Crosse-Onalaska more expensive than Fayetteville?
La Crosse-Onalaska is 0.2% less expensive than Fayetteville. The overall cost index is 91.8 vs 92.0 (national average = 100).
What salary in La Crosse-Onalaska equals $100K in Fayetteville?
A $100,000 salary in Fayetteville has the same purchasing power as $99,773 in La Crosse-Onalaska. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Fayetteville and La Crosse-Onalaska?
Rents in Fayetteville are indexed at 73.1 while La Crosse-Onalaska is at 69.4 (national average = 100). Fayetteville 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.