Overall
- Rocky Mount
- 88.0
- Albany
- 87.7
Diff -0.3 RPP
Rocky Mount vs Albany
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Albany is 0.4% less expensive than Rocky Mount.
0.4% less expensive
Albany, GA is 0.4% less expensive than Rocky Mount, NC on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 87.7 vs 88.0). A $100,000 salary in Rocky Mount buys about the same as $99,610 in Albany; the largest component gap is rents.
- Overall RPP 88.0 (Rocky Mount) vs 87.7 (Albany)
- $100k in Rocky Mount ≈ $99,610 purchasing power in Albany
- Rents drives the gap (-1.5 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair NC:GA 88.0→87.7
PHOTO-FINISH · CROSS-STATE · RENT-LED · BOTH-BELOW · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- CROSS-STATE NC × GA
- RENT-LED Rent-led gap
- 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.
Rocky Mount
88.0
Cost Index
Albany
87.7
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Rocky Mount, NC and Albany, GA 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.
Rents leads the difference, with Albany 1.5 points lower than Rocky Mount. 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.
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 Rocky Mount corresponds to $99,610 in Albany.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Rocky Mount
- 96.6
- Albany
- 96.3
Diff -0.4 RPP
Services
- Rocky Mount
- 88.4
- Albany
- 88.3
Diff -0.1 RPP
Rents
- Rocky Mount
- 56.1
- Albany
- 54.6
Diff -1.5 RPP
| Category | Rocky Mount | Albany | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 88.0 | 87.7 | -0.3 |
| Goods | 96.6 | 96.3 | -0.4 |
| Services | 88.4 | 88.3 | -0.1 |
| Rents | 56.1 | 54.6 | -1.5 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Rocky Mount 88.0
Albany 87.7
Goods
Rocky Mount 96.6
Albany 96.3
Services
Rocky Mount 88.4
Albany 88.3
Rents
Rocky Mount 56.1
Albany 54.6
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Rocky Mount would need to be in Albany for the same purchasing power:
| In Rocky Mount | In Albany | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $49,805 | $-195 |
| $75,000 | $74,708 | $-292 |
| $100,000 | $99,610 | $-390 |
| $150,000 | $149,415 | $-585 |
$ in Rocky Mount = in Albany
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (88.0 → 87.7), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Albany more expensive than Rocky Mount?
Albany is 0.4% less expensive than Rocky Mount. The overall cost index is 87.7 vs 88.0 (national average = 100).
What salary in Albany equals $100K in Rocky Mount?
A $100,000 salary in Rocky Mount has the same purchasing power as $99,610 in Albany. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Rocky Mount and Albany?
Rents in Rocky Mount are indexed at 56.1 while Albany is at 54.6 (national average = 100). Rocky Mount 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.