Overall
- Lawton
- 85.9
- Grand Island
- 86.7
Diff +0.7 RPP
Lawton vs Grand Island
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Grand Island is 0.8% more expensive than Lawton.
0.8% more expensive
Grand Island, NE is 0.8% more expensive than Lawton, OK on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 86.7 vs 85.9). A $100,000 salary in Lawton buys about the same as $100,833 in Grand Island; the largest component gap is rents.
- Overall RPP 85.9 (Lawton) vs 86.7 (Grand Island)
- $100k in Lawton ≈ $100,833 purchasing power in Grand Island
- Rents drives the gap (+4.4 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair OK:NE 85.9→86.7
PHOTO-FINISH · CROSS-STATE · RENT-LED · BOTH-BELOW · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- CROSS-STATE OK × NE
- RENT-LED Rent-led gap
- 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.
Lawton
85.9
Cost Index
Grand Island
86.7
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Lawton, OK and Grand Island, NE are a photo finish on overall price level, only 0.7 RPP points apart. A salary conversion is therefore a fine adjustment, not evidence of a fundamentally different cost regime.
Rents leads the difference, with Grand Island 4.4 points higher than Lawton. Goods, services, and rents all point in the same broad direction, making the headline comparison more transferable across household types.
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 Lawton corresponds to $100,833 in Grand Island.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Lawton
- 93.8
- Grand Island
- 94.1
Diff +0.3 RPP
Services
- Lawton
- 73.0
- Grand Island
- 74.2
Diff +1.3 RPP
Rents
- Lawton
- 57.4
- Grand Island
- 61.7
Diff +4.4 RPP
| Category | Lawton | Grand Island | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 85.9 | 86.7 | +0.7 |
| Goods | 93.8 | 94.1 | +0.3 |
| Services | 73.0 | 74.2 | +1.3 |
| Rents | 57.4 | 61.7 | +4.4 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Lawton 85.9
Grand Island 86.7
Goods
Lawton 93.8
Grand Island 94.1
Services
Lawton 73.0
Grand Island 74.2
Rents
Lawton 57.4
Grand Island 61.7
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Lawton would need to be in Grand Island for the same purchasing power:
| In Lawton | In Grand Island | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $50,417 | +$417 |
| $75,000 | $75,625 | +$625 |
| $100,000 | $100,833 | +$833 |
| $150,000 | $151,250 | +$1,250 |
$ in Lawton = in Grand Island
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (85.9 → 86.7), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Grand Island more expensive than Lawton?
Grand Island is 0.8% more expensive than Lawton. The overall cost index is 86.7 vs 85.9 (national average = 100).
What salary in Grand Island equals $100K in Lawton?
A $100,000 salary in Lawton has the same purchasing power as $100,833 in Grand Island. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Lawton and Grand Island?
Rents in Lawton are indexed at 57.4 while Grand Island is at 61.7 (national average = 100). Grand Island 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.