Overall
- Parkersburg-Vienna
- 87.1
- St. Joseph
- 86.4
Diff -0.7 RPP
Parkersburg-Vienna vs St. Joseph
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. St. Joseph is 0.8% less expensive than Parkersburg-Vienna.
0.8% less expensive
St. Joseph, MO-KS is 0.8% less expensive than Parkersburg-Vienna, WV on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 86.4 vs 87.1). A $100,000 salary in Parkersburg-Vienna buys about the same as $99,214 in St. Joseph; the largest component gap is rents.
- Overall RPP 87.1 (Parkersburg-Vienna) vs 86.4 (St. Joseph)
- $100k in Parkersburg-Vienna ≈ $99,214 purchasing power in St. Joseph
- Rents drives the gap (+9.5 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair WV:MO 87.1→86.4
PHOTO-FINISH · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-BELOW · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- CROSS-STATE WV × MO
- 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.
Parkersburg-Vienna
87.1
Cost Index
St. Joseph
86.4
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Parkersburg-Vienna, WV and St. Joseph, MO-KS are a photo finish on overall price level, only 0.7 RPP points apart. A salary conversion is therefore a fine adjustment, not evidence of a fundamentally different cost regime.
Rents creates the largest separation: St. Joseph is 9.5 points higher. But rents 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 Parkersburg-Vienna corresponds to $99,214 in St. Joseph.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Parkersburg-Vienna
- 96.3
- St. Joseph
- 94.2
Diff -2.1 RPP
Services
- Parkersburg-Vienna
- 92.9
- St. Joseph
- 88.3
Diff -4.6 RPP
Rents
- Parkersburg-Vienna
- 45.9
- St. Joseph
- 55.4
Diff +9.5 RPP
| Category | Parkersburg-Vienna | St. Joseph | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 87.1 | 86.4 | -0.7 |
| Goods | 96.3 | 94.2 | -2.1 |
| Services | 92.9 | 88.3 | -4.6 |
| Rents | 45.9 | 55.4 | +9.5 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Parkersburg-Vienna 87.1
St. Joseph 86.4
Goods
Parkersburg-Vienna 96.3
St. Joseph 94.2
Services
Parkersburg-Vienna 92.9
St. Joseph 88.3
Rents
Parkersburg-Vienna 45.9
St. Joseph 55.4
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Parkersburg-Vienna would need to be in St. Joseph for the same purchasing power:
| In Parkersburg-Vienna | In St. Joseph | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $49,607 | $-393 |
| $75,000 | $74,411 | $-589 |
| $100,000 | $99,214 | $-786 |
| $150,000 | $148,822 | $-1,178 |
$ in Parkersburg-Vienna = in St. Joseph
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (87.1 → 86.4), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is St. Joseph more expensive than Parkersburg-Vienna?
St. Joseph is 0.8% less expensive than Parkersburg-Vienna. The overall cost index is 86.4 vs 87.1 (national average = 100).
What salary in St. Joseph equals $100K in Parkersburg-Vienna?
A $100,000 salary in Parkersburg-Vienna has the same purchasing power as $99,214 in St. Joseph. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Parkersburg-Vienna and St. Joseph?
Rents in Parkersburg-Vienna are indexed at 45.9 while St. Joseph is at 55.4 (national average = 100). St. Joseph 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.