Overall
- Tuscaloosa
- 87.7
- Parkersburg-Vienna
- 87.1
Diff -0.7 RPP
Tuscaloosa vs Parkersburg-Vienna
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Parkersburg-Vienna is 0.7% less expensive than Tuscaloosa.
0.7% less expensive
Parkersburg-Vienna, WV is 0.7% less expensive than Tuscaloosa, AL on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 87.1 vs 87.7). A $100,000 salary in Tuscaloosa buys about the same as $99,252 in Parkersburg-Vienna; the largest component gap is rents.
- Overall RPP 87.7 (Tuscaloosa) vs 87.1 (Parkersburg-Vienna)
- $100k in Tuscaloosa ≈ $99,252 purchasing power in Parkersburg-Vienna
- Rents drives the gap (-12.4 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair AL:WV 87.7→87.1
PHOTO-FINISH · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-BELOW · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- CROSS-STATE AL × WV
- 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.
Tuscaloosa
87.7
Cost Index
Parkersburg-Vienna
87.1
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Tuscaloosa, AL and Parkersburg-Vienna, WV 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: Parkersburg-Vienna is 12.4 points lower. But services 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 Tuscaloosa corresponds to $99,252 in Parkersburg-Vienna.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Tuscaloosa
- 96.4
- Parkersburg-Vienna
- 96.3
Diff -0.1 RPP
Services
- Tuscaloosa
- 84.4
- Parkersburg-Vienna
- 92.9
Diff +8.5 RPP
Rents
- Tuscaloosa
- 58.2
- Parkersburg-Vienna
- 45.9
Diff -12.4 RPP
| Category | Tuscaloosa | Parkersburg-Vienna | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 87.7 | 87.1 | -0.7 |
| Goods | 96.4 | 96.3 | -0.1 |
| Services | 84.4 | 92.9 | +8.5 |
| Rents | 58.2 | 45.9 | -12.4 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Tuscaloosa 87.7
Parkersburg-Vienna 87.1
Goods
Tuscaloosa 96.4
Parkersburg-Vienna 96.3
Services
Tuscaloosa 84.4
Parkersburg-Vienna 92.9
Rents
Tuscaloosa 58.2
Parkersburg-Vienna 45.9
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Tuscaloosa would need to be in Parkersburg-Vienna for the same purchasing power:
| In Tuscaloosa | In Parkersburg-Vienna | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $49,626 | $-374 |
| $75,000 | $74,439 | $-561 |
| $100,000 | $99,252 | $-748 |
| $150,000 | $148,878 | $-1,122 |
$ in Tuscaloosa = in Parkersburg-Vienna
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (87.7 → 87.1), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Parkersburg-Vienna more expensive than Tuscaloosa?
Parkersburg-Vienna is 0.7% less expensive than Tuscaloosa. The overall cost index is 87.1 vs 87.7 (national average = 100).
What salary in Parkersburg-Vienna equals $100K in Tuscaloosa?
A $100,000 salary in Tuscaloosa has the same purchasing power as $99,252 in Parkersburg-Vienna. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Tuscaloosa and Parkersburg-Vienna?
Rents in Tuscaloosa are indexed at 58.2 while Parkersburg-Vienna is at 45.9 (national average = 100). Tuscaloosa 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.