Overall
Diff +0.1 RPP
Wheeling vs Decatur
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Decatur is 0.1% more expensive than Wheeling.
0.1% more expensive
Decatur, IL is 0.1% more expensive than Wheeling, WV-OH on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 88.4 vs 88.3). A $100,000 salary in Wheeling buys about the same as $100,112 in Decatur; the largest component gap is rents.
- Overall RPP 88.3 (Wheeling) vs 88.4 (Decatur)
- $100k in Wheeling ≈ $100,112 purchasing power in Decatur
- Rents drives the gap (+4.7 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair WV:IL 88.3→88.4
PHOTO-FINISH · CROSS-STATE · SPLIT-BUDGET · BOTH-BELOW · PP-PAR
- PHOTO-FINISH Photo finish
- CROSS-STATE WV × IL
- 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.
Wheeling
88.3
Cost Index
Decatur
88.4
Cost Index
What This Comparison Actually Tells You
Wheeling, WV-OH and Decatur, IL are a photo finish on overall price level, only 0.1 RPP points apart. A salary conversion is therefore a fine adjustment, not evidence of a fundamentally different cost regime.
Rents creates the largest separation: Decatur is 4.7 points higher. But services and 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 Wheeling corresponds to $100,112 in Decatur.
Category Breakdown
Goods
Diff -2.8 RPP
Services
Diff -3.8 RPP
Rents
Diff +4.7 RPP
| Category | Wheeling | Decatur | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 88.3 | 88.4 | +0.1 |
| Goods | 96.4 | 93.6 | -2.8 |
| Services | 94.9 | 91.1 | -3.8 |
| Rents | 51.4 | 56.2 | +4.7 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Wheeling 88.3
Decatur 88.4
Goods
Wheeling 96.4
Decatur 93.6
Services
Wheeling 94.9
Decatur 91.1
Rents
Wheeling 51.4
Decatur 56.2
Vertical line = national average (100)
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Wheeling would need to be in Decatur for the same purchasing power:
| In Wheeling | In Decatur | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $50,056 | +$56 |
| $75,000 | $75,084 | +$84 |
| $100,000 | $100,112 | +$112 |
| $150,000 | $150,168 | +$168 |
$ in Wheeling = in Decatur
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (88.3 → 88.4), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Decatur more expensive than Wheeling?
Decatur is 0.1% more expensive than Wheeling. The overall cost index is 88.4 vs 88.3 (national average = 100).
What salary in Decatur equals $100K in Wheeling?
A $100,000 salary in Wheeling has the same purchasing power as $100,112 in Decatur. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Wheeling and Decatur?
Rents in Wheeling are indexed at 51.4 while Decatur is at 56.2 (national average = 100). Decatur 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.