Overall
- Casper
- 93.8
Diff +0.3 RPP
Scranton--Wilkes-Barre vs Casper
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Casper is 0.3% more expensive than Scranton--Wilkes-Barre.
0.3% more expensive
Casper, WY is 0.3% more expensive than Scranton--Wilkes-Barre, PA on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 93.8 vs 93.6). A $100,000 salary in Scranton--Wilkes-Barre buys about the same as $100,292 in Casper; the largest component gap is services.
- Overall RPP 93.6 (Scranton--Wilkes-Barre) vs 93.8 (Casper)
- $100k in Scranton--Wilkes-Barre ≈ $100,292 purchasing power in Casper
- Services drives the gap (-27.7 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair PA:WY 93.6→93.8
PHOTO-FINISH · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-BELOW · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- CROSS-STATE PA × WY
- 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.
Scranton--Wilkes-Barre
93.6
Cost Index
Casper
93.8
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Scranton--Wilkes-Barre, PA and Casper, WY 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: Casper is 27.7 points lower. But services and 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 Scranton--Wilkes-Barre to $100,292 in Casper, but it is not a personal spending weight.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Scranton--Wilkes-Barre
- 100.7
- Casper
- 95.4
Diff -5.3 RPP
Services
- Scranton--Wilkes-Barre
- 106.5
- Casper
- 78.9
Diff -27.7 RPP
Rents
- Casper
- 74.2
Diff +7.2 RPP
| Category | Scranton--Wilkes-Barre | Casper | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 93.6 | 93.8 | +0.3 |
| Goods | 100.7 | 95.4 | -5.3 |
| Services | 106.5 | 78.9 | -27.7 |
| Rents | 67.0 | 74.2 | +7.2 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Scranton--Wilkes-Barre 93.6
Casper 93.8
Goods
Scranton--Wilkes-Barre 100.7
Casper 95.4
Services
Scranton--Wilkes-Barre 106.5
Casper 78.9
Rents
Scranton--Wilkes-Barre 67.0
Casper 74.2
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Scranton--Wilkes-Barre would need to be in Casper for the same purchasing power:
| In Scranton--Wilkes-Barre | In Casper | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $50,146 | +$146 |
| $75,000 | $75,219 | +$219 |
| $100,000 | $100,292 | +$292 |
| $150,000 | $150,438 | +$438 |
$ in Scranton--Wilkes-Barre = in Casper
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (93.6 → 93.8), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Casper more expensive than Scranton--Wilkes-Barre?
Casper is 0.3% more expensive than Scranton--Wilkes-Barre. The overall cost index is 93.8 vs 93.6 (national average = 100).
What salary in Casper equals $100K in Scranton--Wilkes-Barre?
A $100,000 salary in Scranton--Wilkes-Barre has the same purchasing power as $100,292 in Casper. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Scranton--Wilkes-Barre and Casper?
Rents in Scranton--Wilkes-Barre are indexed at 67.0 while Casper is at 74.2 (national average = 100). Casper 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.