Overall
- Sioux Falls
- 90.6
- Bowling Green
- 90.2
Diff -0.5 RPP
Sioux Falls vs Bowling Green
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Bowling Green is 0.5% less expensive than Sioux Falls.
0.5% less expensive
Bowling Green, KY is 0.5% less expensive than Sioux Falls, SD-MN on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 90.2 vs 90.6). A $100,000 salary in Sioux Falls buys about the same as $99,501 in Bowling Green; the largest component gap is rents.
- Overall RPP 90.6 (Sioux Falls) vs 90.2 (Bowling Green)
- $100k in Sioux Falls ≈ $99,501 purchasing power in Bowling Green
- Rents drives the gap (-14.2 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair SD:KY 90.6→90.2
PHOTO-FINISH · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-BELOW · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- CROSS-STATE SD × KY
- 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.
Sioux Falls
90.6
Cost Index
Bowling Green
90.2
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Sioux Falls, SD-MN and Bowling Green, KY are a photo finish on overall price level, only 0.5 RPP points apart. A salary conversion is therefore a fine adjustment, not evidence of a fundamentally different cost regime.
Rents creates the largest separation: Bowling Green is 14.2 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 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 Sioux Falls corresponds to $99,501 in Bowling Green.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Sioux Falls
- 95.5
- Bowling Green
- 96.2
Diff +0.8 RPP
Services
- Sioux Falls
- 80.7
- Bowling Green
- 75.2
Diff -5.5 RPP
Rents
- Sioux Falls
- 77.6
- Bowling Green
- 63.4
Diff -14.2 RPP
| Category | Sioux Falls | Bowling Green | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 90.6 | 90.2 | -0.5 |
| Goods | 95.5 | 96.2 | +0.8 |
| Services | 80.7 | 75.2 | -5.5 |
| Rents | 77.6 | 63.4 | -14.2 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Sioux Falls 90.6
Bowling Green 90.2
Goods
Sioux Falls 95.5
Bowling Green 96.2
Services
Sioux Falls 80.7
Bowling Green 75.2
Rents
Sioux Falls 77.6
Bowling Green 63.4
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Sioux Falls would need to be in Bowling Green for the same purchasing power:
| In Sioux Falls | In Bowling Green | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $49,751 | $-249 |
| $75,000 | $74,626 | $-374 |
| $100,000 | $99,501 | $-499 |
| $150,000 | $149,252 | $-748 |
$ in Sioux Falls = in Bowling Green
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (90.6 → 90.2), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Bowling Green more expensive than Sioux Falls?
Bowling Green is 0.5% less expensive than Sioux Falls. The overall cost index is 90.2 vs 90.6 (national average = 100).
What salary in Bowling Green equals $100K in Sioux Falls?
A $100,000 salary in Sioux Falls has the same purchasing power as $99,501 in Bowling Green. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Sioux Falls and Bowling Green?
Rents in Sioux Falls are indexed at 77.6 while Bowling Green is at 63.4 (national average = 100). Sioux Falls 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.