Overall
- Montgomery
- 89.7
- Napa
- 112.6
Diff +22.9 RPP
Montgomery vs Napa
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Napa is 25.5% more expensive than Montgomery.
25.5% more expensive
Napa, CA is 25.5% more expensive than Montgomery, AL on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 112.6 vs 89.7). A $100,000 salary in Montgomery buys about the same as $125,503 in Napa; the largest component gap is rents.
- Overall RPP 89.7 (Montgomery) vs 112.6 (Napa)
- $100k in Montgomery ≈ $125,503 purchasing power in Napa
- Rents drives the gap (+133.1 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair AL:CA 89.7→112.6
TIER-GAP · CROSS-STATE · RENT-LED · BENCH-CROSS · PP-STEEP
- TIER-GAP Clear tier gap
- CROSS-STATE AL × CA
- RENT-LED Rent-led gap
- BENCH-CROSS Benchmark cross
- PP-STEEP Steep PP convert
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.
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Montgomery would need to be in Napa for the same purchasing power:
| In Montgomery | In Napa | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $62,752 | +$12,752 |
| $75,000 | $94,128 | +$19,128 |
| $100,000 | $125,503 | +$25,503 |
| $150,000 | $188,255 | +$38,255 |
$ in Montgomery = in Napa
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (89.7 → 112.6), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Montgomery, AL and Napa, CA sit in clearly different price tiers, separated by 22.9 RPP points. At this distance, treating the same nominal salary as equivalent would materially change purchasing power.
This route crosses the national benchmark: Napa is above 100 while Montgomery is below it. That makes the move a change of price regime, not merely a rank swap.
Rents leads the difference, with Napa 133.1 points higher than Montgomery. 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 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 Montgomery corresponds to $125,503 in Napa.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Montgomery
- 96.4
- Napa
- 105.2
Diff +8.8 RPP
Services
- Montgomery
- 84.9
- Napa
- 156.5
Diff +71.6 RPP
Rents
- Montgomery
- 64.3
- Napa
- 197.4
Diff +133.1 RPP
| Category | Montgomery | Napa | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 89.7 | 112.6 | +22.9 |
| Goods | 96.4 | 105.2 | +8.8 |
| Services | 84.9 | 156.5 | +71.6 |
| Rents | 64.3 | 197.4 | +133.1 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Montgomery 89.7
Napa 112.6
Goods
Montgomery 96.4
Napa 105.2
Services
Montgomery 84.9
Napa 156.5
Rents
Montgomery 64.3
Napa 197.4
Vertical line = national average (100)
Montgomery
89.7
Cost Index
Napa
112.6
Cost Index
How the Price Gap Changed
Montgomery and Napa share 17 published annual releases from 2008 through 2024. Their overall gap narrowed, moving from 23.9 to 22.9 RPP points. Napa remained the higher-index metro in the latest release.
Rents changed the most within this pair: its gap moved 61.5 points between the first and latest shared releases (71.6 to 133.1 points). This describes a relative price-index history, not a forecast or a household budget.
| Release Year | Montgomery RPP | Napa RPP | Relative Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 91.3 | 115.2 | 23.9 points Napa higher |
| 2012 | 93.3 | 111.6 | 18.3 points Napa higher |
| 2016 | 93.1 | 117.8 | 24.6 points Napa higher |
| 2020 | 87.5 | 112.2 | 24.7 points Napa higher |
| 2024 | 89.7 | 112.6 | 22.9 points Napa higher |
Annual BEA Regional Price Parity releases; a higher index means a higher price level relative to the national average of 100. Selected years shown from the full shared series.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Napa more expensive than Montgomery?
Napa is 25.5% more expensive than Montgomery. The overall cost index is 112.6 vs 89.7 (national average = 100).
What salary in Napa equals $100K in Montgomery?
A $100,000 salary in Montgomery has the same purchasing power as $125,503 in Napa. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Montgomery and Napa?
Rents in Montgomery are indexed at 64.3 while Napa is at 197.4 (national average = 100). Napa 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.