Overall
Diff +2.1 RPP
Monroe vs Joplin
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Joplin is 2.5% more expensive than Monroe.
2.5% more expensive
Joplin, MO-KS is 2.5% more expensive than Monroe, LA on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 85.7 vs 83.6). A $100,000 salary in Monroe buys about the same as $102,537 in Joplin; the largest component gap is services.
- Overall RPP 83.6 (Monroe) vs 85.7 (Joplin)
- $100k in Monroe ≈ $102,537 purchasing power in Joplin
- Services drives the gap (+13.7 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair LA:MO 83.6→85.7
TIER-NEAR · CROSS-STATE · SERVICES-LED · BOTH-BELOW · PP-SHIFT
- TIER-NEAR Near tier
- CROSS-STATE LA × MO
- SERVICES-LED Services-led gap
- BOTH-BELOW Both below 100
- PP-SHIFT PP shift
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.
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
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.
Joplin, MO-KS is 2.5% more expensive than Monroe, LA, a meaningful but not extreme shift. The move decision turns on which budget category creates the 2.1-point overall gap.
Services leads the difference, with Joplin 13.7 points higher than Monroe. 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.
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 Monroe to $102,537 in Joplin, but it is not a personal spending weight.
Category Breakdown
Goods
Diff +0.5 RPP
Services
Diff +13.7 RPP
Rents
Diff +11.2 RPP
| Category | Monroe | Joplin | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 83.6 | 85.7 | +2.1 |
| Goods | 93.7 | 94.2 | +0.5 |
| Services | 72.2 | 85.9 | +13.7 |
| Rents | 42.8 | 54.0 | +11.2 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Monroe 83.6
Joplin 85.7
Goods
Monroe 93.7
Joplin 94.2
Services
Monroe 72.2
Joplin 85.9
Rents
Monroe 42.8
Joplin 54.0
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Monroe would need to be in Joplin for the same purchasing power:
| In Monroe | In Joplin | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $51,269 | +$1,269 |
| $75,000 | $76,903 | +$1,903 |
| $100,000 | $102,537 | +$2,537 |
| $150,000 | $153,806 | +$3,806 |
$ in Monroe = in Joplin
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (83.6 → 85.7), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Monroe
83.6
Cost Index
Joplin
85.7
Cost Index
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Joplin more expensive than Monroe?
Joplin is 2.5% more expensive than Monroe. The overall cost index is 85.7 vs 83.6 (national average = 100).
What salary in Joplin equals $100K in Monroe?
A $100,000 salary in Monroe has the same purchasing power as $102,537 in Joplin. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Monroe and Joplin?
Rents in Monroe are indexed at 42.8 while Joplin is at 54.0 (national average = 100). Joplin 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.