Overall
- Hot Springs
- 85.7
- Monroe
- 83.6
Diff -2.1 RPP
Hot Springs vs Monroe
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Monroe is 2.5% less expensive than Hot Springs.
2.5% less expensive
Monroe, LA is 2.5% less expensive than Hot Springs, AR on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 83.6 vs 85.7). A $100,000 salary in Hot Springs buys about the same as $97,512 in Monroe; the largest component gap is rents.
- Overall RPP 85.7 (Hot Springs) vs 83.6 (Monroe)
- $100k in Hot Springs ≈ $97,512 purchasing power in Monroe
- Rents drives the gap (-14.5 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair AR:LA 85.7→83.6
TIER-NEAR · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-BELOW · PP-PAR
- TIER-NEAR Near tier
- CROSS-STATE AR × LA
- 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.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Hot Springs
- 93.6
- Monroe
- 93.7
Diff +0.1 RPP
Services
- Hot Springs
- 74.3
- Monroe
- 72.2
Diff -2.0 RPP
Rents
- Hot Springs
- 57.3
- Monroe
- 42.8
Diff -14.5 RPP
| Category | Hot Springs | Monroe | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 85.7 | 83.6 | -2.1 |
| Goods | 93.6 | 93.7 | +0.1 |
| Services | 74.3 | 72.2 | -2.0 |
| Rents | 57.3 | 42.8 | -14.5 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Hot Springs 85.7
Monroe 83.6
Goods
Hot Springs 93.6
Monroe 93.7
Services
Hot Springs 74.3
Monroe 72.2
Rents
Hot Springs 57.3
Monroe 42.8
Vertical line = national average (100)
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Rents creates the largest separation: Monroe is 14.5 points lower. But goods move against the overall direction, so this is a split budget rather than a clean across-the-board winner.
Monroe, LA is 2.5% less expensive than Hot Springs, AR, a meaningful but not extreme shift. The move decision turns on which budget category creates the 2.1-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 Hot Springs corresponds to $97,512 in Monroe.
Hot Springs
85.7
Cost Index
Monroe
83.6
Cost Index
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Hot Springs would need to be in Monroe for the same purchasing power:
| In Hot Springs | In Monroe | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $48,756 | $-1,244 |
| $75,000 | $73,134 | $-1,866 |
| $100,000 | $97,512 | $-2,488 |
| $150,000 | $146,268 | $-3,732 |
$ in Hot Springs = in Monroe
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (85.7 → 83.6), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Monroe more expensive than Hot Springs?
Monroe is 2.5% less expensive than Hot Springs. The overall cost index is 83.6 vs 85.7 (national average = 100).
What salary in Monroe equals $100K in Hot Springs?
A $100,000 salary in Hot Springs has the same purchasing power as $97,512 in Monroe. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Hot Springs and Monroe?
Rents in Hot Springs are indexed at 57.3 while Monroe is at 42.8 (national average = 100). Hot Springs 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.