Overall
- Paducah
- 86.1
- Sioux City
- 86.5
Diff +0.4 RPP
Paducah vs Sioux City
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Sioux City is 0.4% more expensive than Paducah.
0.4% more expensive
Sioux City, IA-NE-SD is 0.4% more expensive than Paducah, KY-IL on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 86.5 vs 86.1). A $100,000 salary in Paducah buys about the same as $100,430 in Sioux City; the largest component gap is rents.
- Overall RPP 86.1 (Paducah) vs 86.5 (Sioux City)
- $100k in Paducah ≈ $100,430 purchasing power in Sioux City
- Rents drives the gap (+9.1 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair KY:IA 86.1→86.5
PHOTO-FINISH · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-BELOW · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- CROSS-STATE KY × 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.
Paducah
86.1
Cost Index
Sioux City
86.5
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Paducah, KY-IL and Sioux City, IA-NE-SD are a photo finish on overall price level, only 0.4 RPP points apart. A salary conversion is therefore a fine adjustment, not evidence of a fundamentally different cost regime.
Rents creates the largest separation: Sioux City is 9.1 points higher. But 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 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 Paducah corresponds to $100,430 in Sioux City.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Paducah
- 96.0
- Sioux City
- 94.0
Diff -2.0 RPP
Services
- Paducah
- 76.9
- Sioux City
- 82.7
Diff +5.8 RPP
Rents
- Paducah
- 48.8
- Sioux City
- 57.8
Diff +9.1 RPP
| Category | Paducah | Sioux City | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 86.1 | 86.5 | +0.4 |
| Goods | 96.0 | 94.0 | -2.0 |
| Services | 76.9 | 82.7 | +5.8 |
| Rents | 48.8 | 57.8 | +9.1 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Paducah 86.1
Sioux City 86.5
Goods
Paducah 96.0
Sioux City 94.0
Services
Paducah 76.9
Sioux City 82.7
Rents
Paducah 48.8
Sioux City 57.8
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Paducah would need to be in Sioux City for the same purchasing power:
| In Paducah | In Sioux City | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $50,215 | +$215 |
| $75,000 | $75,322 | +$322 |
| $100,000 | $100,430 | +$430 |
| $150,000 | $150,645 | +$645 |
$ in Paducah = in Sioux City
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (86.1 → 86.5), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Sioux City more expensive than Paducah?
Sioux City is 0.4% more expensive than Paducah. The overall cost index is 86.5 vs 86.1 (national average = 100).
What salary in Sioux City equals $100K in Paducah?
A $100,000 salary in Paducah has the same purchasing power as $100,430 in Sioux City. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Paducah and Sioux City?
Rents in Paducah are indexed at 48.8 while Sioux City is at 57.8 (national average = 100). Sioux City 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.