Overall
- Flint
- 93.0
- Burlington
- 93.2
Diff +0.2 RPP
Flint vs Burlington
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Burlington is 0.2% more expensive than Flint.
0.2% more expensive
Burlington, NC is 0.2% more expensive than Flint, MI on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 93.2 vs 93.0). A $100,000 salary in Flint buys about the same as $100,174 in Burlington; the largest component gap is services.
- Overall RPP 93.0 (Flint) vs 93.2 (Burlington)
- $100k in Flint ≈ $100,174 purchasing power in Burlington
- Services drives the gap (-7.8 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair MI:NC 93.0→93.2
PHOTO-FINISH · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-BELOW · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- CROSS-STATE MI × NC
- 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.
Flint
93.0
Cost Index
Burlington
93.2
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Flint, MI and Burlington, NC 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.
Services creates the largest separation: Burlington is 7.8 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 service-heavy household, test childcare, health, and other locally supplied costs before relying on rent alone. The BEA ratio converts $100,000 in Flint to $100,174 in Burlington, but it is not a personal spending weight.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Flint
- 93.7
- Burlington
- 96.6
Diff +2.9 RPP
Services
- Flint
- 97.1
- Burlington
- 89.2
Diff -7.8 RPP
Rents
- Flint
- 74.0
- Burlington
- 77.9
Diff +3.8 RPP
| Category | Flint | Burlington | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 93.0 | 93.2 | +0.2 |
| Goods | 93.7 | 96.6 | +2.9 |
| Services | 97.1 | 89.2 | -7.8 |
| Rents | 74.0 | 77.9 | +3.8 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Flint 93.0
Burlington 93.2
Goods
Flint 93.7
Burlington 96.6
Services
Flint 97.1
Burlington 89.2
Rents
Flint 74.0
Burlington 77.9
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Flint would need to be in Burlington for the same purchasing power:
| In Flint | In Burlington | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $50,087 | +$87 |
| $75,000 | $75,131 | +$131 |
| $100,000 | $100,174 | +$174 |
| $150,000 | $150,261 | +$261 |
$ in Flint = in Burlington
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (93.0 → 93.2), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Burlington more expensive than Flint?
Burlington is 0.2% more expensive than Flint. The overall cost index is 93.2 vs 93.0 (national average = 100).
What salary in Burlington equals $100K in Flint?
A $100,000 salary in Flint has the same purchasing power as $100,174 in Burlington. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Flint and Burlington?
Rents in Flint are indexed at 74.0 while Burlington is at 77.9 (national average = 100). Burlington 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.