Overall
- Idaho Falls
- 94.4
Diff -0.3 RPP
San Antonio-New Braunfels vs Idaho Falls
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Idaho Falls is 0.3% less expensive than San Antonio-New Braunfels.
0.3% less expensive
Idaho Falls, ID is 0.3% less expensive than San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 94.4 vs 94.7). A $100,000 salary in San Antonio-New Braunfels buys about the same as $99,679 in Idaho Falls; the largest component gap is services.
- Overall RPP 94.7 (San Antonio-New Braunfels) vs 94.4 (Idaho Falls)
- $100k in San Antonio-New Braunfels ≈ $99,679 purchasing power in Idaho Falls
- Services drives the gap (-12.5 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair TX:ID 94.7→94.4
PHOTO-FINISH · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-BELOW · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- CROSS-STATE TX × ID
- 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.
San Antonio-New Braunfels
94.7
Cost Index
Idaho Falls
94.4
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX and Idaho Falls, ID 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.
Services creates the largest separation: Idaho Falls is 12.5 points lower. 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 service-heavy household, test childcare, health, and other locally supplied costs before relying on rent alone. The BEA ratio converts $100,000 in San Antonio-New Braunfels to $99,679 in Idaho Falls, but it is not a personal spending weight.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Idaho Falls
- 96.2
Diff +2.4 RPP
Services
- Idaho Falls
- 69.7
Diff -12.5 RPP
Rents
- Idaho Falls
- 84.0
Diff -10.6 RPP
| Category | San Antonio-New Braunfels | Idaho Falls | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 94.7 | 94.4 | -0.3 |
| Goods | 93.8 | 96.2 | +2.4 |
| Services | 82.2 | 69.7 | -12.5 |
| Rents | 94.6 | 84.0 | -10.6 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
San Antonio-New Braunfels 94.7
Idaho Falls 94.4
Goods
San Antonio-New Braunfels 93.8
Idaho Falls 96.2
Services
San Antonio-New Braunfels 82.2
Idaho Falls 69.7
Rents
San Antonio-New Braunfels 94.6
Idaho Falls 84.0
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in San Antonio-New Braunfels would need to be in Idaho Falls for the same purchasing power:
| In San Antonio-New Braunfels | In Idaho Falls | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $49,840 | $-160 |
| $75,000 | $74,759 | $-241 |
| $100,000 | $99,679 | $-321 |
| $150,000 | $149,519 | $-481 |
$ in San Antonio-New Braunfels = in Idaho Falls
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (94.7 → 94.4), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Idaho Falls more expensive than San Antonio-New Braunfels?
Idaho Falls is 0.3% less expensive than San Antonio-New Braunfels. The overall cost index is 94.4 vs 94.7 (national average = 100).
What salary in Idaho Falls equals $100K in San Antonio-New Braunfels?
A $100,000 salary in San Antonio-New Braunfels has the same purchasing power as $99,679 in Idaho Falls. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between San Antonio-New Braunfels and Idaho Falls?
Rents in San Antonio-New Braunfels are indexed at 94.6 while Idaho Falls is at 84.0 (national average = 100). San Antonio-New Braunfels 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.