Overall
- Medford
- 101.4
Diff +1.1 RPP
Medford vs Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington is 1.1% more expensive than Medford.
1.1% more expensive
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD is 1.1% more expensive than Medford, OR on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 102.6 vs 101.4). A $100,000 salary in Medford buys about the same as $101,105 in Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington; the largest component gap is rents.
- Overall RPP 101.4 (Medford) vs 102.6 (Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington)
- $100k in Medford ≈ $101,105 purchasing power in Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington
- Rents drives the gap (+15.5 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair OR:PA 101.4→102.6
PHOTO-FINISH · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-ABOVE · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- CROSS-STATE OR × PA
- SPLIT-BUDGET Split budget
- BOTH-ABOVE Both above 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.
Medford
101.4
Cost Index
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington
102.6
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Medford, OR and Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD are a photo finish on overall price level, only 1.1 RPP points apart. A salary conversion is therefore a fine adjustment, not evidence of a fundamentally different cost regime.
Rents creates the largest separation: Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington is 15.5 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 exceed the U.S. benchmark of 100. The choice is between two national premiums, so local wages need to clear the higher baseline in either market.
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 Medford corresponds to $101,105 in Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Medford
- 105.3
Diff -8.4 RPP
Services
- Medford
- 102.3
Diff +12.1 RPP
Rents
- Medford
- 97.7
Diff +15.5 RPP
| Category | Medford | Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 101.4 | 102.6 | +1.1 |
| Goods | 105.3 | 96.8 | -8.4 |
| Services | 102.3 | 114.4 | +12.1 |
| Rents | 97.7 | 113.1 | +15.5 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Medford 101.4
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington 102.6
Goods
Medford 105.3
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington 96.8
Services
Medford 102.3
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington 114.4
Rents
Medford 97.7
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington 113.1
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Medford would need to be in Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington for the same purchasing power:
| In Medford | In Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $50,553 | +$553 |
| $75,000 | $75,829 | +$829 |
| $100,000 | $101,105 | +$1,105 |
| $150,000 | $151,658 | +$1,658 |
$ in Medford = in Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (101.4 → 102.6), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington more expensive than Medford?
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington is 1.1% more expensive than Medford. The overall cost index is 102.6 vs 101.4 (national average = 100).
What salary in Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington equals $100K in Medford?
A $100,000 salary in Medford has the same purchasing power as $101,105 in Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Medford and Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington?
Rents in Medford are indexed at 97.7 while Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington is at 113.1 (national average = 100). Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington 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.