Overall
- Monroe
- 83.6
Diff -1.5 RPP
Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux vs Monroe
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Monroe is 1.8% less expensive than Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux.
1.8% less expensive
Monroe, LA is 1.8% less expensive than Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux, LA on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 83.6 vs 85.1). A $100,000 salary in Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux buys about the same as $98,230 in Monroe; the largest component gap is rents.
- Overall RPP 85.1 (Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux) vs 83.6 (Monroe)
- $100k in Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux ≈ $98,230 purchasing power in Monroe
- Rents drives the gap (-8.5 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair LA:LA 85.1→83.6
PHOTO-FINISH · SAME-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-BELOW · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- SAME-STATE Same state · 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.
Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux
85.1
Cost Index
Monroe
83.6
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux, LA and Monroe, LA are a photo finish on overall price level, only 1.5 RPP points apart. A salary conversion is therefore a fine adjustment, not evidence of a fundamentally different cost regime.
Rents creates the largest separation: Monroe is 8.5 points lower. But services and goods 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 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 $98,230 in Monroe.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Monroe
- 93.7
Diff 0.0 RPP
Services
- Monroe
- 72.2
Diff +0.9 RPP
Rents
- Monroe
- 42.8
Diff -8.5 RPP
| Category | Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux | Monroe | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 85.1 | 83.6 | -1.5 |
| Goods | 93.7 | 93.7 | 0.0 |
| Services | 71.3 | 72.2 | +0.9 |
| Rents | 51.3 | 42.8 | -8.5 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux 85.1
Monroe 83.6
Goods
Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux 93.7
Monroe 93.7
Services
Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux 71.3
Monroe 72.2
Rents
Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux 51.3
Monroe 42.8
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux would need to be in Monroe for the same purchasing power:
| In Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux | In Monroe | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $49,115 | $-885 |
| $75,000 | $73,673 | $-1,327 |
| $100,000 | $98,230 | $-1,770 |
| $150,000 | $147,346 | $-2,654 |
$ in Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux = in Monroe
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (85.1 → 83.6), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Monroe more expensive than Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux?
Monroe is 1.8% less expensive than Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux. The overall cost index is 83.6 vs 85.1 (national average = 100).
What salary in Monroe equals $100K in Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux?
A $100,000 salary in Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux has the same purchasing power as $98,230 in Monroe. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux and Monroe?
Rents in Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux are indexed at 51.3 while Monroe is at 42.8 (national average = 100). Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux 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.