Overall
- Walla Walla
- 98.5
- Iowa City
- 91.5
Diff -7.0 RPP
Walla Walla vs Iowa City
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Iowa City is 7.1% less expensive than Walla Walla.
7.1% less expensive
Iowa City, IA is 7.1% less expensive than Walla Walla, WA on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 91.5 vs 98.5). A $100,000 salary in Walla Walla buys about the same as $92,885 in Iowa City; the largest component gap is goods.
- Overall RPP 98.5 (Walla Walla) vs 91.5 (Iowa City)
- $100k in Walla Walla ≈ $92,885 purchasing power in Iowa City
- Goods drives the gap (-11.3 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair WA:IA 98.5→91.5
TIER-NEAR · CROSS-STATE · GOODS-LED · BOTH-BELOW · PP-SHIFT
- TIER-NEAR Near tier
- CROSS-STATE WA × IA
- GOODS-LED Goods-led gap
- BOTH-BELOW Both below 100
- PP-SHIFT PP shift
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.
How the Price Gap Changed
Walla Walla and Iowa City share 17 published annual releases from 2008 through 2024. Their overall gap widened, moving from 0.1 to 7.0 RPP points. Walla Walla remained the higher-index metro in the latest release.
Services changed the most within this pair: its gap moved 34.3 points between the first and latest shared releases (23.7 to 10.6 points). This describes a relative price-index history, not a forecast or a household budget.
| Release Year | Walla Walla RPP | Iowa City RPP | Relative Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 95.6 | 95.7 | 0.1 points Iowa City higher |
| 2012 | 95.1 | 96.5 | 1.3 points Iowa City higher |
| 2016 | 96.3 | 95.4 | 0.9 points Walla Walla higher |
| 2020 | 95.2 | 95.6 | 0.4 points Iowa City higher |
| 2024 | 98.5 | 91.5 | 7.0 points Walla Walla higher |
Annual BEA Regional Price Parity releases; a higher index means a higher price level relative to the national average of 100. Selected years shown from the full shared series.
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
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.
Iowa City, IA is 7.1% less expensive than Walla Walla, WA, a meaningful but not extreme shift. The move decision turns on which budget category creates the 7.0-point overall gap.
Goods leads the difference, with Iowa City 11.3 points lower than Walla Walla. 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.
For a goods-led difference, remember that many tradable prices vary less by address than housing or labor-priced services. Use $92,885 in Iowa City as the BEA equivalent of $100,000 in Walla Walla, then replace the national basket with your own.
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Walla Walla would need to be in Iowa City for the same purchasing power:
| In Walla Walla | In Iowa City | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $46,442 | $-3,558 |
| $75,000 | $69,663 | $-5,337 |
| $100,000 | $92,885 | $-7,115 |
| $150,000 | $139,327 | $-10,673 |
$ in Walla Walla = in Iowa City
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (98.5 → 91.5), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Walla Walla
- 105.0
- Iowa City
- 93.7
Diff -11.3 RPP
Services
- Walla Walla
- 94.3
- Iowa City
- 83.7
Diff -10.6 RPP
Rents
- Walla Walla
- 86.6
- Iowa City
- 84.0
Diff -2.6 RPP
| Category | Walla Walla | Iowa City | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 98.5 | 91.5 | -7.0 |
| Goods | 105.0 | 93.7 | -11.3 |
| Services | 94.3 | 83.7 | -10.6 |
| Rents | 86.6 | 84.0 | -2.6 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Walla Walla 98.5
Iowa City 91.5
Goods
Walla Walla 105.0
Iowa City 93.7
Services
Walla Walla 94.3
Iowa City 83.7
Rents
Walla Walla 86.6
Iowa City 84.0
Vertical line = national average (100)
Walla Walla
98.5
Cost Index
Iowa City
91.5
Cost Index
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Iowa City more expensive than Walla Walla?
Iowa City is 7.1% less expensive than Walla Walla. The overall cost index is 91.5 vs 98.5 (national average = 100).
What salary in Iowa City equals $100K in Walla Walla?
A $100,000 salary in Walla Walla has the same purchasing power as $92,885 in Iowa City. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Walla Walla and Iowa City?
Rents in Walla Walla are indexed at 86.6 while Iowa City is at 84.0 (national average = 100). Walla Walla 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.