Overall
- Jackson
- 85.5
Diff +0.4 RPP
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Jackson is 0.5% more expensive than Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux.
Jackson, TN is 0.5% more expensive than Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux, LA on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 85.5 vs 85.1). A $100,000 salary in Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux buys about the same as $100,492 in Jackson; the largest component gap is rents.
RPP parity plate
Pair LA:TN 85.1→85.5
PHOTO-FINISH · CROSS-STATE · RENT-LED · BOTH-BELOW · PP-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.
Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux, LA and Jackson, TN are a photo finish on overall price level, only 0.4 RPP points apart. A salary conversion is therefore a fine adjustment, not evidence of a fundamentally different cost regime.
Rents leads the difference, with Jackson 5.3 points higher than Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux. 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.
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 Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux corresponds to $100,492 in Jackson.
Diff +0.4 RPP
Diff +2.6 RPP
Diff +1.3 RPP
Diff +5.3 RPP
| Category | Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux | Jackson | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 85.1 | 85.5 | +0.4 |
| Goods | 93.7 | 96.2 | +2.6 |
| Services | 71.3 | 72.6 | +1.3 |
| Rents | 51.3 | 56.6 | +5.3 |
Vertical line = national average (100)
What a salary in Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux would need to be in Jackson for the same purchasing power:
| In Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux | In Jackson | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $50,246 | +$246 |
| $75,000 | $75,369 | +$369 |
| $100,000 | $100,492 | +$492 |
| $150,000 | $150,739 | +$739 |
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (85.1 → 85.5), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Jackson is 0.5% more expensive than Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux. The overall cost index is 85.5 vs 85.1 (national average = 100).
A $100,000 salary in Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux has the same purchasing power as $100,492 in Jackson. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
Rents in Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux are indexed at 51.3 while Jackson is at 56.6 (national average = 100). Jackson has higher rents.
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.