Overall
- Fort Wayne
- 92.6
- Santa Fe
- 98.8
Diff +6.2 RPP
Fort Wayne vs Santa Fe
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Santa Fe is 6.7% more expensive than Fort Wayne.
6.7% more expensive
Santa Fe, NM is 6.7% more expensive than Fort Wayne, IN on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 98.8 vs 92.6). A $100,000 salary in Fort Wayne buys about the same as $106,692 in Santa Fe; the largest component gap is rents.
- Overall RPP 92.6 (Fort Wayne) vs 98.8 (Santa Fe)
- $100k in Fort Wayne ≈ $106,692 purchasing power in Santa Fe
- Rents drives the gap (+35.7 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair IN:NM 92.6→98.8
TIER-NEAR · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-BELOW · PP-SHIFT
- TIER-NEAR Near tier
- CROSS-STATE IN × NM
- SPLIT-BUDGET Split budget
- BOTH-BELOW Both below 100
- 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
- Fort Wayne
- 94.3
- Santa Fe
- 96.1
Diff +1.8 RPP
Services
- Fort Wayne
- 86.2
- Santa Fe
- 76.7
Diff -9.5 RPP
Rents
- Fort Wayne
- 72.3
- Santa Fe
- 108.0
Diff +35.7 RPP
| Category | Fort Wayne | Santa Fe | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 92.6 | 98.8 | +6.2 |
| Goods | 94.3 | 96.1 | +1.8 |
| Services | 86.2 | 76.7 | -9.5 |
| Rents | 72.3 | 108.0 | +35.7 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Fort Wayne 92.6
Santa Fe 98.8
Goods
Fort Wayne 94.3
Santa Fe 96.1
Services
Fort Wayne 86.2
Santa Fe 76.7
Rents
Fort Wayne 72.3
Santa Fe 108.0
Vertical line = national average (100)
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Rents creates the largest separation: Santa Fe is 35.7 points higher. But services move against the overall direction, so this is a split budget rather than a clean across-the-board winner.
Santa Fe, NM is 6.7% more expensive than Fort Wayne, IN, a meaningful but not extreme shift. The move decision turns on which budget category creates the 6.2-point overall gap.
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.
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 Fort Wayne corresponds to $106,692 in Santa Fe.
Fort Wayne
92.6
Cost Index
Santa Fe
98.8
Cost Index
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Fort Wayne would need to be in Santa Fe for the same purchasing power:
| In Fort Wayne | In Santa Fe | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $53,346 | +$3,346 |
| $75,000 | $80,019 | +$5,019 |
| $100,000 | $106,692 | +$6,692 |
| $150,000 | $160,038 | +$10,038 |
$ in Fort Wayne = in Santa Fe
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (92.6 → 98.8), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Santa Fe more expensive than Fort Wayne?
Santa Fe is 6.7% more expensive than Fort Wayne. The overall cost index is 98.8 vs 92.6 (national average = 100).
What salary in Santa Fe equals $100K in Fort Wayne?
A $100,000 salary in Fort Wayne has the same purchasing power as $106,692 in Santa Fe. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Fort Wayne and Santa Fe?
Rents in Fort Wayne are indexed at 72.3 while Santa Fe is at 108.0 (national average = 100). Santa Fe 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.