Overall
- Milwaukee-Waukesha
- 96.9
- Cheyenne
- 96.5
Diff -0.4 RPP
Milwaukee-Waukesha vs Cheyenne
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Cheyenne is 0.5% less expensive than Milwaukee-Waukesha.
0.5% less expensive
Cheyenne, WY is 0.5% less expensive than Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 96.5 vs 96.9). A $100,000 salary in Milwaukee-Waukesha buys about the same as $99,540 in Cheyenne; the largest component gap is services.
- Overall RPP 96.9 (Milwaukee-Waukesha) vs 96.5 (Cheyenne)
- $100k in Milwaukee-Waukesha ≈ $99,540 purchasing power in Cheyenne
- Services drives the gap (-13.6 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair WI:WY 96.9→96.5
PHOTO-FINISH · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-BELOW · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- CROSS-STATE WI × WY
- 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.
Milwaukee-Waukesha
96.9
Cost Index
Cheyenne
96.5
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI and Cheyenne, WY are a photo finish on overall price level, only 0.4 RPP points apart. A salary conversion is therefore a fine adjustment, not evidence of a fundamentally different cost regime.
Services creates the largest separation: Cheyenne is 13.6 points lower. 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 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 Milwaukee-Waukesha to $99,540 in Cheyenne, but it is not a personal spending weight.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Milwaukee-Waukesha
- 93.8
- Cheyenne
- 95.4
Diff +1.6 RPP
Services
- Milwaukee-Waukesha
- 91.6
- Cheyenne
- 78.0
Diff -13.6 RPP
Rents
- Milwaukee-Waukesha
- 97.1
- Cheyenne
- 89.8
Diff -7.3 RPP
| Category | Milwaukee-Waukesha | Cheyenne | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 96.9 | 96.5 | -0.4 |
| Goods | 93.8 | 95.4 | +1.6 |
| Services | 91.6 | 78.0 | -13.6 |
| Rents | 97.1 | 89.8 | -7.3 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Milwaukee-Waukesha 96.9
Cheyenne 96.5
Goods
Milwaukee-Waukesha 93.8
Cheyenne 95.4
Services
Milwaukee-Waukesha 91.6
Cheyenne 78.0
Rents
Milwaukee-Waukesha 97.1
Cheyenne 89.8
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Milwaukee-Waukesha would need to be in Cheyenne for the same purchasing power:
| In Milwaukee-Waukesha | In Cheyenne | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $49,770 | $-230 |
| $75,000 | $74,655 | $-345 |
| $100,000 | $99,540 | $-460 |
| $150,000 | $149,310 | $-690 |
$ in Milwaukee-Waukesha = in Cheyenne
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (96.9 → 96.5), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Cheyenne more expensive than Milwaukee-Waukesha?
Cheyenne is 0.5% less expensive than Milwaukee-Waukesha. The overall cost index is 96.5 vs 96.9 (national average = 100).
What salary in Cheyenne equals $100K in Milwaukee-Waukesha?
A $100,000 salary in Milwaukee-Waukesha has the same purchasing power as $99,540 in Cheyenne. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Milwaukee-Waukesha and Cheyenne?
Rents in Milwaukee-Waukesha are indexed at 97.1 while Cheyenne is at 89.8 (national average = 100). Milwaukee-Waukesha 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.