Overall
Diff +0.2 RPP
Joplin vs Jonesboro
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Jonesboro is 0.2% more expensive than Joplin.
0.2% more expensive
Jonesboro, AR is 0.2% more expensive than Joplin, MO-KS on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 85.9 vs 85.7). A $100,000 salary in Joplin buys about the same as $100,184 in Jonesboro; the largest component gap is services.
- Overall RPP 85.7 (Joplin) vs 85.9 (Jonesboro)
- $100k in Joplin ≈ $100,184 purchasing power in Jonesboro
- Services drives the gap (-10.9 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair MO:AR 85.7→85.9
PHOTO-FINISH · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-BELOW · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- CROSS-STATE MO × AR
- 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.
Joplin
85.7
Cost Index
Jonesboro
85.9
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Joplin, MO-KS and Jonesboro, AR are a photo finish on overall price level, only 0.2 RPP points apart. A salary conversion is therefore a fine adjustment, not evidence of a fundamentally different cost regime.
Services creates the largest separation: Jonesboro is 10.9 points lower. But services and goods and rents 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 service-heavy household, test childcare, health, and other locally supplied costs before relying on rent alone. The BEA ratio converts $100,000 in Joplin to $100,184 in Jonesboro, but it is not a personal spending weight.
Category Breakdown
Goods
Diff -0.6 RPP
Services
Diff -10.9 RPP
Rents
Diff -0.1 RPP
| Category | Joplin | Jonesboro | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 85.7 | 85.9 | +0.2 |
| Goods | 94.2 | 93.6 | -0.6 |
| Services | 85.9 | 75.0 | -10.9 |
| Rents | 54.0 | 53.8 | -0.1 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Joplin 85.7
Jonesboro 85.9
Goods
Joplin 94.2
Jonesboro 93.6
Services
Joplin 85.9
Jonesboro 75.0
Rents
Joplin 54.0
Jonesboro 53.8
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Joplin would need to be in Jonesboro for the same purchasing power:
| In Joplin | In Jonesboro | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $50,092 | +$92 |
| $75,000 | $75,138 | +$138 |
| $100,000 | $100,184 | +$184 |
| $150,000 | $150,276 | +$276 |
$ in Joplin = in Jonesboro
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (85.7 → 85.9), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Jonesboro more expensive than Joplin?
Jonesboro is 0.2% more expensive than Joplin. The overall cost index is 85.9 vs 85.7 (national average = 100).
What salary in Jonesboro equals $100K in Joplin?
A $100,000 salary in Joplin has the same purchasing power as $100,184 in Jonesboro. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Joplin and Jonesboro?
Rents in Joplin are indexed at 54.0 while Jonesboro is at 53.8 (national average = 100). Joplin 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.