Overall
- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin
- 103.6
Diff -5.3 RPP
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria vs Chicago-Naperville-Elgin
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Chicago-Naperville-Elgin is 4.9% less expensive than Washington-Arlington-Alexandria.
4.9% less expensive
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN is 4.9% less expensive than Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 103.6 vs 108.9). A $100,000 salary in Washington-Arlington-Alexandria buys about the same as $95,143 in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin; the largest component gap is rents.
- Overall RPP 108.9 (Washington-Arlington-Alexandria) vs 103.6 (Chicago-Naperville-Elgin)
- $100k in Washington-Arlington-Alexandria ≈ $95,143 purchasing power in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin
- Rents drives the gap (-39.1 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair DC:IL 108.9→103.6
TIER-NEAR · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-ABOVE · PP-SHIFT
- TIER-NEAR Near tier
- CROSS-STATE DC × IL
- SPLIT-BUDGET Split budget
- BOTH-ABOVE Both above 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
- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin
- 107.3
Diff +2.4 RPP
Services
Diff -23.1 RPP
Rents
- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin
- 112.0
Diff -39.1 RPP
| Category | Washington-Arlington-Alexandria | Chicago-Naperville-Elgin | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 108.9 | 103.6 | -5.3 |
| Goods | 104.8 | 107.3 | +2.4 |
| Services | 106.7 | 83.6 | -23.1 |
| Rents | 151.1 | 112.0 | -39.1 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria 108.9
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin 103.6
Goods
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria 104.8
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin 107.3
Services
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria 106.7
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin 83.6
Rents
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria 151.1
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin 112.0
Vertical line = national average (100)
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Rents creates the largest separation: Chicago-Naperville-Elgin is 39.1 points lower. But goods move against the overall direction, so this is a split budget rather than a clean across-the-board winner.
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN is 4.9% less expensive than Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV, a meaningful but not extreme shift. The move decision turns on which budget category creates the 5.3-point overall gap.
Both metros exceed the U.S. benchmark of 100. The choice is between two national premiums, so local wages need to clear the higher baseline in either market.
Comparable population context is incomplete for this pair, so no market-scale explanation is inferred from the price indexes.
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 Washington-Arlington-Alexandria corresponds to $95,143 in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin.
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria
108.9
Cost Index
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin
103.6
Cost Index
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Washington-Arlington-Alexandria would need to be in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin for the same purchasing power:
| In Washington-Arlington-Alexandria | In Chicago-Naperville-Elgin | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $47,571 | $-2,429 |
| $75,000 | $71,357 | $-3,643 |
| $100,000 | $95,143 | $-4,857 |
| $150,000 | $142,714 | $-7,286 |
$ in Washington-Arlington-Alexandria = in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (108.9 → 103.6), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Chicago-Naperville-Elgin more expensive than Washington-Arlington-Alexandria?
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin is 4.9% less expensive than Washington-Arlington-Alexandria. The overall cost index is 103.6 vs 108.9 (national average = 100).
What salary in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin equals $100K in Washington-Arlington-Alexandria?
A $100,000 salary in Washington-Arlington-Alexandria has the same purchasing power as $95,143 in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Washington-Arlington-Alexandria and Chicago-Naperville-Elgin?
Rents in Washington-Arlington-Alexandria are indexed at 151.1 while Chicago-Naperville-Elgin is at 112.0 (national average = 100). Washington-Arlington-Alexandria 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.