Overall
- Springfield
- 96.1
Diff -0.3 RPP
Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin vs Springfield
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Springfield is 0.3% less expensive than Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin.
0.3% less expensive
Springfield, MA is 0.3% less expensive than Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 96.1 vs 96.3). A $100,000 salary in Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin buys about the same as $99,712 in Springfield; the largest component gap is services.
- Overall RPP 96.3 (Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin) vs 96.1 (Springfield)
- $100k in Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin ≈ $99,712 purchasing power in Springfield
- Services drives the gap (+83.0 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair TN:MA 96.3→96.1
PHOTO-FINISH · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-BELOW · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- CROSS-STATE TN × MA
- 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.
Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin
96.3
Cost Index
Springfield
96.1
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN and Springfield, MA are a photo finish on overall price level, only 0.3 RPP points apart. A salary conversion is therefore a fine adjustment, not evidence of a fundamentally different cost regime.
Services creates the largest separation: Springfield is 83.0 points higher. 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 service-heavy household, test childcare, health, and other locally supplied costs before relying on rent alone. The BEA ratio converts $100,000 in Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin to $99,712 in Springfield, but it is not a personal spending weight.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Springfield
- 97.0
Diff +0.8 RPP
Services
- Springfield
- 155.0
Diff +83.0 RPP
Rents
- Springfield
- 75.8
Diff -28.8 RPP
| Category | Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin | Springfield | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 96.3 | 96.1 | -0.3 |
| Goods | 96.2 | 97.0 | +0.8 |
| Services | 72.0 | 155.0 | +83.0 |
| Rents | 104.6 | 75.8 | -28.8 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin 96.3
Springfield 96.1
Goods
Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin 96.2
Springfield 97.0
Services
Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin 72.0
Springfield 155.0
Rents
Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin 104.6
Springfield 75.8
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin would need to be in Springfield for the same purchasing power:
| In Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin | In Springfield | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $49,856 | $-144 |
| $75,000 | $74,784 | $-216 |
| $100,000 | $99,712 | $-288 |
| $150,000 | $149,569 | $-431 |
$ in Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin = in Springfield
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (96.3 → 96.1), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Springfield more expensive than Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin?
Springfield is 0.3% less expensive than Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin. The overall cost index is 96.1 vs 96.3 (national average = 100).
What salary in Springfield equals $100K in Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin?
A $100,000 salary in Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin has the same purchasing power as $99,712 in Springfield. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin and Springfield?
Rents in Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin are indexed at 104.6 while Springfield is at 75.8 (national average = 100). Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin 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.