Overall
- Walla Walla
- 98.5
- Utica-Rome
- 92.7
Diff -5.8 RPP
Walla Walla vs Utica-Rome
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Utica-Rome is 5.9% less expensive than Walla Walla.
5.9% less expensive
Utica-Rome, NY is 5.9% less expensive than Walla Walla, WA on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 92.7 vs 98.5). A $100,000 salary in Walla Walla buys about the same as $94,071 in Utica-Rome; the largest component gap is services.
- Overall RPP 98.5 (Walla Walla) vs 92.7 (Utica-Rome)
- $100k in Walla Walla ≈ $94,071 purchasing power in Utica-Rome
- Services drives the gap (+37.6 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair WA:NY 98.5→92.7
TIER-NEAR · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-BELOW · PP-SHIFT
- TIER-NEAR Near tier
- CROSS-STATE WA × NY
- SPLIT-BUDGET Split budget
- 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.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Walla Walla
- 105.0
- Utica-Rome
- 99.7
Diff -5.3 RPP
Services
- Walla Walla
- 94.3
- Utica-Rome
- 131.9
Diff +37.6 RPP
Rents
- Walla Walla
- 86.6
- Utica-Rome
- 66.1
Diff -20.5 RPP
| Category | Walla Walla | Utica-Rome | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 98.5 | 92.7 | -5.8 |
| Goods | 105.0 | 99.7 | -5.3 |
| Services | 94.3 | 131.9 | +37.6 |
| Rents | 86.6 | 66.1 | -20.5 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Walla Walla 98.5
Utica-Rome 92.7
Goods
Walla Walla 105.0
Utica-Rome 99.7
Services
Walla Walla 94.3
Utica-Rome 131.9
Rents
Walla Walla 86.6
Utica-Rome 66.1
Vertical line = national average (100)
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Services creates the largest separation: Utica-Rome is 37.6 points higher. But services move against the overall direction, so this is a split budget rather than a clean across-the-board winner.
Utica-Rome, NY is 5.9% less expensive than Walla Walla, WA, a meaningful but not extreme shift. The move decision turns on which budget category creates the 5.8-point overall gap.
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.
Comparable population context is incomplete for this pair, so no market-scale explanation is inferred from the price indexes.
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 Walla Walla to $94,071 in Utica-Rome, but it is not a personal spending weight.
Walla Walla
98.5
Cost Index
Utica-Rome
92.7
Cost Index
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Walla Walla would need to be in Utica-Rome for the same purchasing power:
| In Walla Walla | In Utica-Rome | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $47,036 | $-2,964 |
| $75,000 | $70,553 | $-4,447 |
| $100,000 | $94,071 | $-5,929 |
| $150,000 | $141,107 | $-8,893 |
$ in Walla Walla = in Utica-Rome
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (98.5 → 92.7), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
How the Price Gap Changed
Walla Walla and Utica-Rome share 17 published annual releases from 2008 through 2024. Their overall gap widened, moving from 0.1 to 5.8 RPP points. Walla Walla remained the higher-index metro in the latest release.
Services changed the most within this pair: its gap moved 38.4 points between the first and latest shared releases (76.0 to 37.6 points). This describes a relative price-index history, not a forecast or a household budget.
| Release Year | Walla Walla RPP | Utica-Rome RPP | Relative Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 95.6 | 95.7 | 0.1 points Utica-Rome higher |
| 2012 | 95.1 | 93.5 | 1.6 points Walla Walla higher |
| 2016 | 96.3 | 95.3 | 1.0 points Walla Walla higher |
| 2020 | 95.2 | 93.4 | 1.8 points Walla Walla higher |
| 2024 | 98.5 | 92.7 | 5.8 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.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Utica-Rome more expensive than Walla Walla?
Utica-Rome is 5.9% less expensive than Walla Walla. The overall cost index is 92.7 vs 98.5 (national average = 100).
What salary in Utica-Rome equals $100K in Walla Walla?
A $100,000 salary in Walla Walla has the same purchasing power as $94,071 in Utica-Rome. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Walla Walla and Utica-Rome?
Rents in Walla Walla are indexed at 86.6 while Utica-Rome is at 66.1 (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.