Overall
- Lancaster
- 98.3
- Raleigh-Cary
- 98.2
Diff -0.1 RPP
Lancaster vs Raleigh-Cary
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Raleigh-Cary is 0.1% less expensive than Lancaster.
0.1% less expensive
Raleigh-Cary, NC is 0.1% less expensive than Lancaster, PA on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 98.2 vs 98.3). A $100,000 salary in Lancaster buys about the same as $99,898 in Raleigh-Cary; the largest component gap is services.
- Overall RPP 98.3 (Lancaster) vs 98.2 (Raleigh-Cary)
- $100k in Lancaster ≈ $99,898 purchasing power in Raleigh-Cary
- Services drives the gap (-18.3 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair PA:NC 98.3→98.2
PHOTO-FINISH · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-BELOW · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- CROSS-STATE PA × NC
- 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.
Lancaster
98.3
Cost Index
Raleigh-Cary
98.2
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Lancaster, PA and Raleigh-Cary, NC 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.
Services creates the largest separation: Raleigh-Cary is 18.3 points lower. But 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 Lancaster to $99,898 in Raleigh-Cary, but it is not a personal spending weight.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Lancaster
- 100.7
- Raleigh-Cary
- 96.6
Diff -4.1 RPP
Services
- Lancaster
- 107.3
- Raleigh-Cary
- 89.0
Diff -18.3 RPP
Rents
- Lancaster
- 93.8
- Raleigh-Cary
- 103.5
Diff +9.7 RPP
| Category | Lancaster | Raleigh-Cary | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 98.3 | 98.2 | -0.1 |
| Goods | 100.7 | 96.6 | -4.1 |
| Services | 107.3 | 89.0 | -18.3 |
| Rents | 93.8 | 103.5 | +9.7 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Lancaster 98.3
Raleigh-Cary 98.2
Goods
Lancaster 100.7
Raleigh-Cary 96.6
Services
Lancaster 107.3
Raleigh-Cary 89.0
Rents
Lancaster 93.8
Raleigh-Cary 103.5
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Lancaster would need to be in Raleigh-Cary for the same purchasing power:
| In Lancaster | In Raleigh-Cary | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $49,949 | $-51 |
| $75,000 | $74,924 | $-76 |
| $100,000 | $99,898 | $-102 |
| $150,000 | $149,847 | $-153 |
$ in Lancaster = in Raleigh-Cary
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (98.3 → 98.2), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Raleigh-Cary more expensive than Lancaster?
Raleigh-Cary is 0.1% less expensive than Lancaster. The overall cost index is 98.2 vs 98.3 (national average = 100).
What salary in Raleigh-Cary equals $100K in Lancaster?
A $100,000 salary in Lancaster has the same purchasing power as $99,898 in Raleigh-Cary. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Lancaster and Raleigh-Cary?
Rents in Lancaster are indexed at 93.8 while Raleigh-Cary is at 103.5 (national average = 100). Raleigh-Cary 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.