Overall
- Mobile
- 88.1
- Tuscaloosa
- 87.7
Diff -0.4 RPP
Mobile vs Tuscaloosa
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Tuscaloosa is 0.4% less expensive than Mobile.
0.4% less expensive
Tuscaloosa, AL is 0.4% less expensive than Mobile, AL on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 87.7 vs 88.1). A $100,000 salary in Mobile buys about the same as $99,573 in Tuscaloosa; the largest component gap is rents.
- Overall RPP 88.1 (Mobile) vs 87.7 (Tuscaloosa)
- $100k in Mobile ≈ $99,573 purchasing power in Tuscaloosa
- Rents drives the gap (-1.9 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair AL:AL 88.1→87.7
PHOTO-FINISH · SAME-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-BELOW · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- SAME-STATE Same state · AL
- 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.
Mobile
88.1
Cost Index
Tuscaloosa
87.7
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Mobile, AL and Tuscaloosa, AL 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.
Rents creates the largest separation: Tuscaloosa is 1.9 points lower. But services and 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 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 Mobile corresponds to $99,573 in Tuscaloosa.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Mobile
- 96.4
- Tuscaloosa
- 96.4
Diff 0.0 RPP
Services
- Mobile
- 84.2
- Tuscaloosa
- 84.4
Diff +0.2 RPP
Rents
- Mobile
- 60.1
- Tuscaloosa
- 58.2
Diff -1.9 RPP
| Category | Mobile | Tuscaloosa | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 88.1 | 87.7 | -0.4 |
| Goods | 96.4 | 96.4 | 0.0 |
| Services | 84.2 | 84.4 | +0.2 |
| Rents | 60.1 | 58.2 | -1.9 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Mobile 88.1
Tuscaloosa 87.7
Goods
Mobile 96.4
Tuscaloosa 96.4
Services
Mobile 84.2
Tuscaloosa 84.4
Rents
Mobile 60.1
Tuscaloosa 58.2
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Mobile would need to be in Tuscaloosa for the same purchasing power:
| In Mobile | In Tuscaloosa | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $49,787 | $-213 |
| $75,000 | $74,680 | $-320 |
| $100,000 | $99,573 | $-427 |
| $150,000 | $149,360 | $-640 |
$ in Mobile = in Tuscaloosa
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (88.1 → 87.7), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Tuscaloosa more expensive than Mobile?
Tuscaloosa is 0.4% less expensive than Mobile. The overall cost index is 87.7 vs 88.1 (national average = 100).
What salary in Tuscaloosa equals $100K in Mobile?
A $100,000 salary in Mobile has the same purchasing power as $99,573 in Tuscaloosa. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Mobile and Tuscaloosa?
Rents in Mobile are indexed at 60.1 while Tuscaloosa is at 58.2 (national average = 100). Mobile 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.