Overall
102.1
Above avg
Metro cost profile · 2024 BEA RPP
Albany, OR
Cost-of-living indicators for Albany, OR, from Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parities, overall, goods, services, and rents vs the U.S. average of 100.
- 102.1
- Overall RPP
- #57
- of 387 metros
- 101.1
- Rents RPP
- $98K
- $100K national buys
Albany ranks #57 of 387 U.S. metros by cost, and its overall price index has risen 2.8 points since 2008.
- rising since 2008
- similar cost to Fresno
The verdict
Albany is more expensive than 85% of U.S. metros, an overall cost index of 102.1, 2.1% above the national average, led by goods at 105.3.
- top 15%
- by overall cost, nationwide
- 105.3
- goods RPP, tradable items
- 104.8
- services RPP, labor-priced
A $100,000 national salary carries the purchasing power of about $97,943 here; matching a $100K lifestyle takes roughly $102,100.
Latest BEA release change
What changed from 2023 to 2024
Albany's overall RPP fell -2.6 points, from 104.7 in 2023 to 102.1 in 2024. The largest category movement was services, changing from 90.7 to 104.8. This is a relative change against the national benchmark, not a household's dollar bill.
RPP History (2008-2024)
The cost of living has been trending upward, increasing by 2.8 points over this period. The largest single-year move was in 2018, when the index jumped 4.4 points from the year before, a bigger swing than the full 2008-2024 change.
Albany overall RPP, 2008-2024
Every year on record, national average = 100
| Year | Overall |
|---|---|
| 2008 | 99.3 |
| 2009 | 100.0 |
| 2010 | 97.0 |
| 2011 | 96.2 |
| 2012 | 96.6 |
| 2013 | 96.9 |
| 2014 | 98.8 |
| 2015 | 98.7 |
| 2016 | 98.9 |
| 2017 | 98.8 |
| 2018 | 103.2 |
| 2019 | 103.0 |
| 2020 | 102.7 |
| 2021 | 101.9 |
| 2022 | 104.6 |
| 2023 | 104.7 |
| 2024 | 102.1 |
Goods-cost-led profile
How Albany's cost structure works
Everyday goods are the standout cost in Albany: their index is 105.3, the component furthest above the national benchmark. This is not a housing-only story: the overall RPP of 102.1 reflects a broader spending pressure.
Across all reported metros, the closest component-profile matches are Eugene-Springfield, OR, Medford, OR, Lexington Park, MD. They resemble Albany across goods, services, and rents together, so they are stronger structure peers than a place selected only because its overall RPP happens to be nearby.
Across 2008-2024, Albany's overall index has risen by 2.8 points. This is a relative price-level history, not a prediction or a personal affordability recommendation; pair it with current local wages and housing options before making a decision.
Albany vs every U.S. metro
Where this metro sits in the national cost distribution
102 Top 15% higher than 85% of 387 US metros
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US metros. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities · 2024
Albany cost breakdown
BEA RPP by category, 100 = national average
- Rents
Rents
101.1 RPP
- Services
Services
104.8 RPP
- Overall
Overall
102.1 RPP
- Goods
Goods
105.3 RPP
What this shows Albany's unusual line is goods at 105.3, with services at 104.8. That broader tradable-price signal makes a housing-only explanation incomplete.
Goods vs. housing, where Albany's cost comes from
Metros near Albany's overall cost, plotted by their goods price (horizontal) and housing price (vertical). Same headline RPP, very different structures.
Read the chart as text
- Albany (Albany, this metro): goods RPP 105.3, rents RPP 101.1
- Fresno: goods RPP 105.2, rents RPP 95.7
- Portland: goods RPP 97.2, rents RPP 105.2
- Cape Coral: goods RPP 96.2, rents RPP 125.1
- North Port: goods RPP 96.2, rents RPP 128
- Providence: goods RPP 97.1, rents RPP 103.9
- Mount Vernon: goods RPP 105, rents RPP 108.2
Price Index Summary
Goods
105.3
Above avg
Services
104.8
Above avg
Rents
101.1
Above avg
Salary Equivalent
A $100,000 salary at the national average cost of living equals:
$102,100
in Albany, OR purchasing power
$50,000 nationally
$51,050
$75,000 nationally
$76,575
$125,000 nationally
$127,625
$150,000 nationally
$153,150
$200,000 nationally
$204,200
Use the salary calculator for custom amounts.
Affordability score
F
24/100
How far the median local paycheck goes here, combining income and housing cost
Purchasing power
Not reported
Housing affordability F
24th percentile
A weighted composite (60% purchasing power, 40% housing affordability) percentile-ranked against every other tracked metro; a missing input redistributes its weight rather than deflating the score. Sources: Census ACS 5-Year 2023 (income) + BEA Regional Price Parities 2024 (cost). Vintages differ by design; see methodology.
OR-relative analysis
Goods prices places Albany, OR toward the bottom of OR's metros
Among the 8 OR metros PlainCost tracks with reported goods prices data, Albany, OR ranks #1 - the 13th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide rank above: it compares Albany, OR only against its own state's metros, not the full US field.
Goods prices
#1 of 8
13th percentile in OR
Services prices
#4 of 8
50th percentile in OR
Rent prices
#5 of 8
38th percentile in OR
Ranked by raw value (highest first); a higher rank is not automatically "more expensive is worse", see the national comparison above for direction context. This is a comparison within OR only, not a livability score.
Nationwide metros with similar overall cost or rent prices
Two BEA RPP-derived peer sets for Albany, OR: nearest metros by overall regional price parity and by rents RPP. These are cross-state neighborhoods, not the in-state metro list below.
Similar overall RPP
Nearest metros by overall regional price parity (102.1 here).
Similar rents RPP
Nearest metros by rents regional price parity (101.1 here).
Carson City, NV Rents 101.2 Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC Rents 101.2 Midland, TX Rents 101.5 Sebastian-Vero Beach-West Vero Corridor, FL Rents 101.6 Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC Rents 99.8 Madison, WI Rents 99.7 Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY Rents 102.6 Richmond, VA Rents 99.1
Other OR Metros
Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA 105.4 Corvallis, OR 104.0 Salem, OR 103.6 Bend, OR 103.6 Eugene-Springfield, OR 101.6 Medford, OR 101.4
View all OR metros → Cheapest in OR → Most expensive in OR →
Decision peers
Metros with a similar cost mix
These metros are closest to Albany's combined goods, services, and rents profile. They may not have the same overall RPP, but their price pressures are shaped in a similar way.
Eugene-Springfield, OR
Goods 105.3 · Services 102.5 · Rents 98.3 Medford, OR
Goods 105.3 · Services 102.3 · Rents 97.7 Lexington Park, MD
Goods 99.7 · Services 106.4 · Rents 103.8 Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ
Goods 100.6 · Services 107.6 · Rents 105.5 Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA
Goods 100.7 · Services 108.1 · Rents 96.3 Atlantic City-Hammonton, NJ
Goods 99.8 · Services 109.2 · Rents 98.7
Metros with Similar Cost of Living
These metros have an overall RPP closest to Albany, OR's index of 102.1.
Showing the 6 closest of 387 metro areas tracked nationally.
Shareable data card
Take this cost snapshot with you
Download the data card or share this exact metro record. The card uses the same BEA-derived values shown above.
Cost of living guides →, cheapest and most-expensive metro rankings, salary negotiation with RPP data, and step-by-step comparison walkthroughs.
Compare to Other Metros
What this means for Albany
How to read Albany's cost of living before a move, a job offer, or a budget.
- Budget to local prices, not headline pay, a $100K national salary spends like about $97,943 in Albany. Salary calculator
- Start with goods: it indexes at 105.3, the largest departure from the national benchmark in this metro's BEA cost mix. Compare it with the other components before treating the overall RPP as a complete household budget.
- Compare Albany head-to-head against a specific destination before you decide. Compare metros
RPP is BEA's annual price-level benchmark for the data year shown, not a live market quote. Pair it with current local wages and housing costs before deciding.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the cost of living in Albany, OR?
Albany, OR has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) index of 102.1, meaning it is 2.1% more expensive than the national average. Goods are indexed at 105.3, services at 104.8, and rents at 101.1. It ranks #57 out of 387 U.S. metro areas by overall cost.
What salary do I need in Albany, OR to match $100K nationally?
To maintain the same purchasing power as a $100,000 salary at the national average, you would need approximately $102,100 in Albany, OR. Conversely, $100K earned in Albany, OR has the purchasing power of $97,943 at the national average.
How expensive is rent in Albany, OR?
Rents in Albany, OR are indexed at 101.1, which is 1.1% above the national average. This is close to the U.S. average.
Is Albany, OR getting more expensive?
From 2008 to 2024, Albany, OR's overall cost index changed by +2.8 points (from 99.3 to 102.1). The cost of living has been trending upward.
What costs the most in Albany, OR?
The priciest category in Albany, OR is goods at 105.3, 5.3% above the national average. The most affordable category is rents at 101.1, 1.1% above average, still the lowest of the three categories.
What metros have a similar cost of living to Albany, OR?
Metros with the most similar overall cost index include Fresno, Portland-South Portland, Cape Coral-Fort Myers. These areas have RPP values within a few points of Albany, OR's 102.1.
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.