Overall
- Winston-Salem
- 92.0
Diff +6.6 RPP
Winston-Salem vs Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands
Cost of living comparison based on BEA Regional Price Parities. Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands is 7.2% more expensive than Winston-Salem.
7.2% more expensive
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX is 7.2% more expensive than Winston-Salem, NC on BEA Regional Price Parities (overall RPP 98.6 vs 92.0). A $100,000 salary in Winston-Salem buys about the same as $107,155 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands; the largest component gap is rents.
- Overall RPP 92.0 (Winston-Salem) vs 98.6 (Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands)
- $100k in Winston-Salem ≈ $107,155 purchasing power in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands
- Rents drives the gap (+33.1 RPP points)
RPP parity plate
Pair NC:TX 92.0→98.6
TIER-NEAR · CROSS-STATE · RENT-LED · BOTH-BELOW · PP-SHIFT
- TIER-NEAR Near tier
- CROSS-STATE NC × TX
- RENT-LED Rent-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.
Salary Equivalents
What a salary in Winston-Salem would need to be in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands for the same purchasing power:
| In Winston-Salem | In Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| $50,000 | $53,578 | +$3,578 |
| $75,000 | $80,367 | +$5,367 |
| $100,000 | $107,155 | +$7,155 |
| $150,000 | $160,733 | +$10,733 |
$ in Winston-Salem = in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands
Same BEA Regional Price Parity ratio as the table above (92.0 → 98.6), computed live from your number, nothing is sent anywhere.
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.
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX is 7.2% more expensive than Winston-Salem, NC, a meaningful but not extreme shift. The move decision turns on which budget category creates the 6.6-point overall gap.
Rents leads the difference, with Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands 33.1 points higher than Winston-Salem. 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 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 Winston-Salem corresponds to $107,155 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands.
Category Breakdown
Goods
- Winston-Salem
- 96.6
Diff +4.0 RPP
Services
- Winston-Salem
- 88.4
Diff +6.9 RPP
Rents
- Winston-Salem
- 71.4
Diff +33.1 RPP
| Category | Winston-Salem | Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 92.0 | 98.6 | +6.6 |
| Goods | 96.6 | 100.6 | +4.0 |
| Services | 88.4 | 95.3 | +6.9 |
| Rents | 71.4 | 104.5 | +33.1 |
Visual Comparison
Overall
Winston-Salem 92.0
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands 98.6
Goods
Winston-Salem 96.6
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands 100.6
Services
Winston-Salem 88.4
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands 95.3
Rents
Winston-Salem 71.4
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands 104.5
Vertical line = national average (100)
Winston-Salem
92.0
Cost Index
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands
98.6
Cost Index
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands more expensive than Winston-Salem?
Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands is 7.2% more expensive than Winston-Salem. The overall cost index is 98.6 vs 92.0 (national average = 100).
What salary in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands equals $100K in Winston-Salem?
A $100,000 salary in Winston-Salem has the same purchasing power as $107,155 in Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands. This is based on the BEA Regional Price Parity indexes.
How do rents compare between Winston-Salem and Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands?
Rents in Winston-Salem are indexed at 71.4 while Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands is at 104.5 (national average = 100). Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands 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.