Overall
- Janesville-Beloit
- 93.7
- Roanoke
- 93.6
Diff -0.1 RPP
Janesville-Beloit vs Roanoke
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Roanoke is 0.1% less expensive than Janesville-Beloit.
0.1% less expensive
Roanoke, VA is 0.1% less expensive than Janesville-Beloit, WI on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 93.6 vs 93.7). A $100,000 salary in Janesville-Beloit buys about the same as $99,909 in Roanoke; the largest component gap is goods.
- Overall RPP 93.7 (Janesville-Beloit) vs 93.6 (Roanoke)
- $100k in Janesville-Beloit ≈ $99,909 purchasing power in Roanoke
- Goods drives the gap (+3.0 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair WI:VA 93.7→93.6
PHOTO-FINISH · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-BELOW · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- CROSS-STATE WI × VA
- 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.
Janesville-Beloit
93.7
Cost Index
Roanoke
93.6
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Janesville-Beloit, WI and Roanoke, VA are a photo finish on overall price level, only 0.1 RPP points apart. A salary conversion is therefore a fine adjustment, not evidence of a fundamentally different cost regime.
Goods creates the largest separation: Roanoke is 3.0 points higher. But 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 goods-led difference, remember that many tradable prices vary less by address than housing or labor-priced services. Use $99,909 in Roanoke as the BEA equivalent of $100,000 in Janesville-Beloit, then replace the national basket with your own.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Janesville-Beloit
- 93.8
- Roanoke
- 96.8
Diff +3.0 RPP
Services
- Janesville-Beloit
- 90.4
- Roanoke
- 88.9
Diff -1.4 RPP
Rents
- Janesville-Beloit
- 79.6
- Roanoke
- 78.5
Diff -1.0 RPP
| Category | Janesville-Beloit | Roanoke | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 93.7 | 93.6 | -0.1 |
| Goods | 93.8 | 96.8 | +3.0 |
| Services | 90.4 | 88.9 | -1.4 |
| Rents | 79.6 | 78.5 | -1.0 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Janesville-Beloit 93.7
Roanoke 93.6
Goods
Janesville-Beloit 93.8
Roanoke 96.8
Services
Janesville-Beloit 90.4
Roanoke 88.9
Rents
Janesville-Beloit 79.6
Roanoke 78.5
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Janesville-Beloit would need to be in Roanoke for the same purchasing power:
| In Janesville-Beloit | In Roanoke | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $49,955 | $-45 |
| $75,000 | $74,932 | $-68 |
| $100,000 | $99,909 | $-91 |
| $150,000 | $149,864 | $-136 |
$ in Janesville-Beloit = in Roanoke
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (93.7 → 93.6), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Roanoke more expensive than Janesville-Beloit?
Roanoke is 0.1% less expensive than Janesville-Beloit. The overall cost index is 93.6 vs 93.7 (national average = 100).
What salary in Roanoke equals $100K in Janesville-Beloit?
A $100,000 salary in Janesville-Beloit has the same purchasing power as $99,909 in Roanoke. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Janesville-Beloit and Roanoke?
Rents in Janesville-Beloit are indexed at 79.6 while Roanoke is at 78.5 (national average = 100). Janesville-Beloit 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.