Overall
- Omaha
- 91.9
Diff -0.2 RPP
Omaha vs Des Moines-West Des Moines
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Des Moines-West Des Moines is 0.2% less expensive than Omaha.
0.2% less expensive
Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA is 0.2% less expensive than Omaha, NE-IA on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 91.7 vs 91.9). A $100,000 salary in Omaha buys about the same as $99,772 in Des Moines-West Des Moines; the largest component gap is services.
- Overall RPP 91.9 (Omaha) vs 91.7 (Des Moines-West Des Moines)
- $100k in Omaha ≈ $99,772 purchasing power in Des Moines-West Des Moines
- Services drives the gap (+8.2 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair NE:IA 91.9→91.7
PHOTO-FINISH · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-BELOW · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- CROSS-STATE NE × IA
- 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.
Omaha
91.9
Cost Index
Des Moines-West Des Moines
91.7
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Omaha, NE-IA and Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA are a photo finish on overall price level, only 0.2 RPP points apart. A salary conversion is therefore a fine adjustment, not evidence of a fundamentally different cost regime.
Services creates the largest separation: Des Moines-West Des Moines is 8.2 points higher. But services 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 Omaha to $99,772 in Des Moines-West Des Moines, but it is not a personal spending weight.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Omaha
- 94.1
Diff -0.3 RPP
Services
- Omaha
- 76.4
Diff +8.2 RPP
Rents
- Omaha
- 86.4
Diff -1.7 RPP
| Category | Omaha | Des Moines-West Des Moines | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 91.9 | 91.7 | -0.2 |
| Goods | 94.1 | 93.7 | -0.3 |
| Services | 76.4 | 84.6 | +8.2 |
| Rents | 86.4 | 84.7 | -1.7 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Omaha 91.9
Des Moines-West Des Moines 91.7
Goods
Omaha 94.1
Des Moines-West Des Moines 93.7
Services
Omaha 76.4
Des Moines-West Des Moines 84.6
Rents
Omaha 86.4
Des Moines-West Des Moines 84.7
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Omaha would need to be in Des Moines-West Des Moines for the same purchasing power:
| In Omaha | In Des Moines-West Des Moines | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $49,886 | $-114 |
| $75,000 | $74,829 | $-171 |
| $100,000 | $99,772 | $-228 |
| $150,000 | $149,657 | $-343 |
$ in Omaha = in Des Moines-West Des Moines
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (91.9 → 91.7), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Des Moines-West Des Moines more expensive than Omaha?
Des Moines-West Des Moines is 0.2% less expensive than Omaha. The overall cost index is 91.7 vs 91.9 (national average = 100).
What salary in Des Moines-West Des Moines equals $100K in Omaha?
A $100,000 salary in Omaha has the same purchasing power as $99,772 in Des Moines-West Des Moines. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Omaha and Des Moines-West Des Moines?
Rents in Omaha are indexed at 86.4 while Des Moines-West Des Moines is at 84.7 (national average = 100). Omaha 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.