Overall
103.6
Above avg
Metro cost profile · 2024 BEA RPP
Bend, OR
Cost-of-living indicators for Bend, OR, from Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parities, overall, goods, services, and rents vs the U.S. average of 100.
- 103.6
- Overall RPP
- #40
- of 387 metros
- 110.0
- Rents RPP
- $97K
- $100K national buys
Bend ranks #40 of 387 U.S. metros by cost, and its overall price index has risen 3.8 points since 2008.
- rising since 2008
- similar cost to Chicago-Naperville-Elgin
The verdict
Bend is more expensive than 90% of U.S. metros, an overall cost index of 103.6, 3.6% above the national average, led by rents at 110.0.
- top 10%
- by overall cost, nationwide
- 105.3
- goods RPP, tradable items
- 105.0
- services RPP, labor-priced
A $100,000 national salary carries the purchasing power of about $96,519 here; matching a $100K lifestyle takes roughly $103,607.
Latest BEA release change
What changed from 2023 to 2024
Bend's overall RPP fell -1.7 points, from 105.3 in 2023 to 103.6 in 2024. The largest category movement was services, changing from 90.4 to 105.0. 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 3.8 points over this period. The largest single-year move was in 2022, when the index jumped 4.9 points from the year before, a bigger swing than the full 2008-2024 change.
Bend overall RPP, 2008-2024
Every year on record, national average = 100
| Year | Overall |
|---|---|
| 2008 | 99.8 |
| 2009 | 98.7 |
| 2010 | 96.6 |
| 2011 | 95.7 |
| 2012 | 95.8 |
| 2013 | 96.1 |
| 2014 | 98.2 |
| 2015 | 100.9 |
| 2016 | 99.0 |
| 2017 | 101.3 |
| 2018 | 103.1 |
| 2019 | 102.9 |
| 2020 | 102.9 |
| 2021 | 102.0 |
| 2022 | 106.8 |
| 2023 | 105.3 |
| 2024 | 103.6 |
Housing-led cost profile
How Bend's cost structure works
Housing is the defining pressure in Bend: rents index at 110.0, the furthest component above the national benchmark. The overall index of 103.6 places Bend in the top quartile for cost; the rent line explains why a similar headline RPP can still require a different housing budget.
Across all reported metros, the closest component-profile matches are Salem, OR, Corvallis, OR, Bellingham, WA. They resemble Bend 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, Bend's overall index has risen by 3.8 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.
Bend vs every U.S. metro
Where this metro sits in the national cost distribution
104 Top 10% higher than 90% 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
Bend cost breakdown
BEA RPP by category, 100 = national average
- Rents
Rents
110 RPP
- Services
Services
105 RPP
- Overall
Overall
103.6 RPP
- Goods
Goods
105.3 RPP
What this shows Bend's cost structure is housing-led: rents at 110.0 depart furthest from 100, while goods sits at 105.3. This is a rent-sensitive profile, not a claim that every local expense moves together.
Goods vs. housing, where Bend's cost comes from
Metros near Bend's overall cost, plotted by their goods price (horizontal) and housing price (vertical). Same headline RPP, very different structures.
Read the chart as text
- Bend (Bend, this metro): goods RPP 105.3, rents RPP 110
- Chicago: goods RPP 107.3, rents RPP 112
- Salem: goods RPP 105.3, rents RPP 110.3
- Olympia: goods RPP 105, rents RPP 116.7
- Wenatchee: goods RPP 105, rents RPP 115
- Bellingham: goods RPP 105, rents RPP 112.9
- Ithaca: goods RPP 99.7, rents RPP 128.4
Price Index Summary
Goods
105.3
Above avg
Services
105.0
Above avg
Rents
110.0
Above avg
Salary Equivalent
A $100,000 salary at the national average cost of living equals:
$103,607
in Bend, OR purchasing power
$50,000 nationally
$51,804
$75,000 nationally
$77,705
$125,000 nationally
$129,509
$150,000 nationally
$155,411
$200,000 nationally
$207,214
Use the salary calculator for custom amounts.
Affordability score
F
17/100
How far the median local paycheck goes here, combining income and housing cost
Purchasing power
Not reported
Housing affordability F
17th 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 Bend, OR toward the bottom of OR's metros
Among the 8 OR metros PlainCost tracks with reported goods prices data, Bend, OR ranks #1 - the 13th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide rank above: it compares Bend, OR only against its own state's metros, not the full US field.
Goods prices
#1 of 8
13th percentile in OR
Services prices
#3 of 8
63rd percentile in OR
Rent prices
#4 of 8
50th 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 Bend, 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 (103.6 here).
Similar rents RPP
Nearest metros by rents regional price parity (110.0 here).
Other OR Metros
Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA 105.4 Corvallis, OR 104.0 Salem, OR 103.6 Albany, OR 102.1 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 Bend'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.
Salem, OR
Goods 105.3 · Services 104.7 · Rents 110.3 Corvallis, OR
Goods 105.3 · Services 108.6 · Rents 114.4 Bellingham, WA
Goods 105.0 · Services 99.9 · Rents 112.9 Wenatchee-East Wenatchee, WA
Goods 105.0 · Services 100.6 · Rents 115.0 Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ
Goods 100.6 · Services 107.6 · Rents 105.5 Anchorage, AK
Goods 107.3 · Services 111.8 · Rents 109.9
Metros with Similar Cost of Living
These metros have an overall RPP closest to Bend, OR's index of 103.6.
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 Bend
How to read Bend'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 $96,519 in Bend. Salary calculator
- Start with rents: it indexes at 110.0, 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 Bend 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 Bend, OR?
Bend, OR has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) index of 103.6, meaning it is 3.6% more expensive than the national average. Goods are indexed at 105.3, services at 105.0, and rents at 110.0. It ranks #40 out of 387 U.S. metro areas by overall cost.
What salary do I need in Bend, OR to match $100K nationally?
To maintain the same purchasing power as a $100,000 salary at the national average, you would need approximately $103,607 in Bend, OR. Conversely, $100K earned in Bend, OR has the purchasing power of $96,519 at the national average.
How expensive is rent in Bend, OR?
Rents in Bend, OR are indexed at 110.0, which is 10.0% above the national average. This is close to the U.S. average.
Is Bend, OR getting more expensive?
From 2008 to 2024, Bend, OR's overall cost index changed by +3.8 points (from 99.8 to 103.6). The cost of living has been trending upward.
What costs the most in Bend, OR?
The priciest category in Bend, OR is rents at 110.0, 10.0% above the national average. The most affordable category is services at 105.0, 5.0% above average, still the lowest of the three categories.
What metros have a similar cost of living to Bend, OR?
Metros with the most similar overall cost index include Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, Salem, Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater. These areas have RPP values within a few points of Bend, OR's 103.6.
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.