Overall
- Lawrence
- 90.2
- Elizabethtown
- 90.6
Diff +0.3 RPP
Lawrence vs Elizabethtown
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Elizabethtown is 0.4% more expensive than Lawrence.
0.4% more expensive
Elizabethtown, KY is 0.4% more expensive than Lawrence, KS on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 90.6 vs 90.2). A $100,000 salary in Lawrence buys about the same as $100,365 in Elizabethtown; the largest component gap is services.
- Overall RPP 90.2 (Lawrence) vs 90.6 (Elizabethtown)
- $100k in Lawrence ≈ $100,365 purchasing power in Elizabethtown
- Services drives the gap (-14.7 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair KS:KY 90.2→90.6
PHOTO-FINISH · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-BELOW · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- CROSS-STATE KS × KY
- 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.
Lawrence
90.2
Cost Index
Elizabethtown
90.6
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Lawrence, KS and Elizabethtown, KY are a photo finish on overall price level, only 0.3 RPP points apart. A salary conversion is therefore a fine adjustment, not evidence of a fundamentally different cost regime.
Services creates the largest separation: Elizabethtown is 14.7 points lower. But services 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 Lawrence to $100,365 in Elizabethtown, but it is not a personal spending weight.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Lawrence
- 94.0
- Elizabethtown
- 96.2
Diff +2.2 RPP
Services
- Lawrence
- 89.3
- Elizabethtown
- 74.6
Diff -14.7 RPP
Rents
- Lawrence
- 71.6
- Elizabethtown
- 66.7
Diff -5.0 RPP
| Category | Lawrence | Elizabethtown | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 90.2 | 90.6 | +0.3 |
| Goods | 94.0 | 96.2 | +2.2 |
| Services | 89.3 | 74.6 | -14.7 |
| Rents | 71.6 | 66.7 | -5.0 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Lawrence 90.2
Elizabethtown 90.6
Goods
Lawrence 94.0
Elizabethtown 96.2
Services
Lawrence 89.3
Elizabethtown 74.6
Rents
Lawrence 71.6
Elizabethtown 66.7
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Lawrence would need to be in Elizabethtown for the same purchasing power:
| In Lawrence | In Elizabethtown | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $50,182 | +$182 |
| $75,000 | $75,273 | +$273 |
| $100,000 | $100,365 | +$365 |
| $150,000 | $150,547 | +$547 |
$ in Lawrence = in Elizabethtown
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (90.2 → 90.6), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Elizabethtown more expensive than Lawrence?
Elizabethtown is 0.4% more expensive than Lawrence. The overall cost index is 90.6 vs 90.2 (national average = 100).
What salary in Elizabethtown equals $100K in Lawrence?
A $100,000 salary in Lawrence has the same purchasing power as $100,365 in Elizabethtown. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Lawrence and Elizabethtown?
Rents in Lawrence are indexed at 71.6 while Elizabethtown is at 66.7 (national average = 100). Lawrence 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.