Overall
- Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater
- 103.7
- Fort Wayne
- 92.6
Diff -11.1 RPP
Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater vs Fort Wayne
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Fort Wayne is 10.7% less expensive than Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater.
10.7% less expensive
Fort Wayne, IN is 10.7% less expensive than Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 92.6 vs 103.7). A $100,000 salary in Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater buys about the same as $89,295 in Fort Wayne; the largest component gap is rents.
- Overall RPP 103.7 (Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater) vs 92.6 (Fort Wayne)
- $100k in Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater ≈ $89,295 purchasing power in Fort Wayne
- Rents drives the gap (-44.4 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair WA:IN 103.7→92.6
TIER-GAP · CROSS-STATE · RENT-LED · BENCH-CROSS · PP-SHIFT
- TIER-GAP Clear tier gap
- CROSS-STATE WA × IN
- RENT-LED Rent-led gap
- BENCH-CROSS Benchmark cross
- 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.
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater would need to be in Fort Wayne for the same purchasing power:
| In Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater | In Fort Wayne | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $44,647 | $-5,353 |
| $75,000 | $66,971 | $-8,029 |
| $100,000 | $89,295 | $-10,705 |
| $150,000 | $133,942 | $-16,058 |
$ in Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater = in Fort Wayne
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (103.7 → 92.6), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA and Fort Wayne, IN sit in clearly different price tiers, separated by 11.1 RPP points. At this distance, treating the same nominal salary as equivalent would materially change purchasing power.
This route crosses the national benchmark: Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater is above 100 while Fort Wayne is below it. That makes the move a change of price regime, not merely a rank swap.
Rents leads the difference, with Fort Wayne 44.4 points lower than Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater. 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 Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater corresponds to $89,295 in Fort Wayne.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater
- 105.0
- Fort Wayne
- 94.3
Diff -10.7 RPP
Services
- Fort Wayne
- 86.2
Diff -5.5 RPP
Rents
- Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater
- 116.7
- Fort Wayne
- 72.3
Diff -44.4 RPP
| Category | Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater | Fort Wayne | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 103.7 | 92.6 | -11.1 |
| Goods | 105.0 | 94.3 | -10.7 |
| Services | 91.7 | 86.2 | -5.5 |
| Rents | 116.7 | 72.3 | -44.4 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater 103.7
Fort Wayne 92.6
Goods
Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater 105.0
Fort Wayne 94.3
Services
Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater 91.7
Fort Wayne 86.2
Rents
Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater 116.7
Fort Wayne 72.3
Vertical line = national average (100)
Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater
103.7
Cost Index
Fort Wayne
92.6
Cost Index
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Fort Wayne more expensive than Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater?
Fort Wayne is 10.7% less expensive than Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater. The overall cost index is 92.6 vs 103.7 (national average = 100).
What salary in Fort Wayne equals $100K in Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater?
A $100,000 salary in Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater has the same purchasing power as $89,295 in Fort Wayne. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater and Fort Wayne?
Rents in Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater are indexed at 116.7 while Fort Wayne is at 72.3 (national average = 100). Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater 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.