Overall
- Harrisburg-Carlisle
- 98.7
- Grand Island
- 86.7
Diff -12.0 RPP
Harrisburg-Carlisle vs Grand Island
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Grand Island is 12.2% less expensive than Harrisburg-Carlisle.
12.2% less expensive
Grand Island, NE is 12.2% less expensive than Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 86.7 vs 98.7). A $100,000 salary in Harrisburg-Carlisle buys about the same as $87,843 in Grand Island; the largest component gap is rents.
- Overall RPP 98.7 (Harrisburg-Carlisle) vs 86.7 (Grand Island)
- $100k in Harrisburg-Carlisle ≈ $87,843 purchasing power in Grand Island
- Rents drives the gap (-34.5 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair PA:NE 98.7→86.7
TIER-GAP · CROSS-STATE · RENT-LED · BOTH-BELOW · PP-SHIFT
- TIER-GAP Clear tier gap
- CROSS-STATE PA × NE
- RENT-LED Rent-led gap
- 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.
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Harrisburg-Carlisle would need to be in Grand Island for the same purchasing power:
| In Harrisburg-Carlisle | In Grand Island | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $43,921 | $-6,079 |
| $75,000 | $65,882 | $-9,118 |
| $100,000 | $87,843 | $-12,157 |
| $150,000 | $131,764 | $-18,236 |
$ in Harrisburg-Carlisle = in Grand Island
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (98.7 → 86.7), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
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.
Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA and Grand Island, NE sit in clearly different price tiers, separated by 12.0 RPP points. At this distance, treating the same nominal salary as equivalent would materially change purchasing power.
Rents leads the difference, with Grand Island 34.5 points lower than Harrisburg-Carlisle. Goods, services, and rents all point in the same broad direction, making the headline comparison more transferable across household types.
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 Harrisburg-Carlisle corresponds to $87,843 in Grand Island.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Harrisburg-Carlisle
- 100.7
- Grand Island
- 94.1
Diff -6.6 RPP
Services
- Harrisburg-Carlisle
- 108.1
- Grand Island
- 74.2
Diff -33.8 RPP
Rents
- Harrisburg-Carlisle
- 96.3
- Grand Island
- 61.7
Diff -34.5 RPP
| Category | Harrisburg-Carlisle | Grand Island | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 98.7 | 86.7 | -12.0 |
| Goods | 100.7 | 94.1 | -6.6 |
| Services | 108.1 | 74.2 | -33.8 |
| Rents | 96.3 | 61.7 | -34.5 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Harrisburg-Carlisle 98.7
Grand Island 86.7
Goods
Harrisburg-Carlisle 100.7
Grand Island 94.1
Services
Harrisburg-Carlisle 108.1
Grand Island 74.2
Rents
Harrisburg-Carlisle 96.3
Grand Island 61.7
Vertical line = national average (100)
Harrisburg-Carlisle
98.7
Cost Index
Grand Island
86.7
Cost Index
How the Price Gap Changed
Harrisburg-Carlisle and Grand Island share 17 published annual releases from 2008 through 2024. Their overall gap narrowed, moving from 17.2 to 12.0 RPP points. Harrisburg-Carlisle remained the higher-index metro in the latest release.
Goods changed the most within this pair: its gap moved 16.3 points between the first and latest shared releases (22.8 to 6.6 points). This describes a relative price-index history, not a forecast or a household budget.
| Release Year | Harrisburg-Carlisle RPP | Grand Island RPP | Relative Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 99.0 | 81.8 | 17.2 points Harrisburg-Carlisle higher |
| 2012 | 97.0 | 85.0 | 12.0 points Harrisburg-Carlisle higher |
| 2016 | 98.2 | 87.7 | 10.5 points Harrisburg-Carlisle higher |
| 2020 | 96.1 | 90.5 | 5.6 points Harrisburg-Carlisle higher |
| 2024 | 98.7 | 86.7 | 12.0 points Harrisburg-Carlisle higher |
Annual BEA Regional Price Parity releases; a higher index means a higher price level relative to the national average of 100. Selected years shown from the full shared series.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Grand Island more expensive than Harrisburg-Carlisle?
Grand Island is 12.2% less expensive than Harrisburg-Carlisle. The overall cost index is 86.7 vs 98.7 (national average = 100).
What salary in Grand Island equals $100K in Harrisburg-Carlisle?
A $100,000 salary in Harrisburg-Carlisle has the same purchasing power as $87,843 in Grand Island. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Harrisburg-Carlisle and Grand Island?
Rents in Harrisburg-Carlisle are indexed at 96.3 while Grand Island is at 61.7 (national average = 100). Harrisburg-Carlisle 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.