Overall
106.9
Above avg
Metro cost profile · 2024 BEA RPP
Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT Metropolitan Statistical Area
Cost-of-living indicators for Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT Metropolitan Statistical Area, from Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parities, overall, goods, services, and rents vs the U.S. average of 100.
- 106.9
- Overall RPP
- #21
- of 387 metros
- 150.5
- Rents RPP
- $94K
- $100K national buys
Bridgeport ranks #21 of 387 U.S. metros by cost, and its overall price index has fallen 10.2 points since 2008.
- falling since 2008
- similar cost to Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom
The verdict
Bridgeport is more expensive than 95% of U.S. metros, an overall cost index of 106.9, 6.9% above the national average, led by rents at 150.5.
- top 5%
- by overall cost, nationwide
- 97.3
- goods RPP, tradable items
- 147.1
- services RPP, labor-priced
A $100,000 national salary carries the purchasing power of about $93,577 here; matching a $100K lifestyle takes roughly $106,864.
Bridgeport vs every U.S. metro
Where this metro sits in the national cost distribution
107 Top 5% higher than 95% 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
Bridgeport cost breakdown
BEA RPP by category, 100 = national average
- Rents
Rents
150.5 RPP
- Services
Services
147.1 RPP
- Overall
Overall
106.9 RPP
- Goods
Goods
97.3 RPP
What this shows Bridgeport's cost structure is housing-led: rents at 150.5 depart furthest from 100, while services sits at 147.1. This is a rent-sensitive profile, not a claim that every local expense moves together.
Goods vs. housing, where Bridgeport's cost comes from
Metros near Bridgeport's overall cost, plotted by their goods price (horizontal) and housing price (vertical). Same headline RPP, very different structures.
Read the chart as text
- Bridgeport (Bridgeport, this metro): goods RPP 97.3, rents RPP 150.5
- Sacramento: goods RPP 105.2, rents RPP 130.2
- Riverside: goods RPP 101.4, rents RPP 129.3
- Santa Rosa: goods RPP 105.2, rents RPP 139.6
- Denver: goods RPP 101, rents RPP 146.9
- Manchester: goods RPP 97.7, rents RPP 134.2
- Bremerton: goods RPP 105, rents RPP 129.6
Price Index Summary
Goods
97.3
Below avg
Services
147.1
Expensive
Rents
150.5
Expensive
Housing-led cost profile
How Bridgeport's cost structure works
Housing is the defining pressure in Bridgeport: rents index at 150.5, the furthest component above the national benchmark. The overall index of 106.9 places Bridgeport 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 Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH, Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA, San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles, CA. They resemble Bridgeport 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, Bridgeport's overall index has fallen by 10.2 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.
Salary Equivalent
A $100,000 salary at the national average cost of living equals:
$106,864
in Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT Metropolitan Statistical Area purchasing power
$50,000 nationally
$53,432
$75,000 nationally
$80,148
$125,000 nationally
$133,580
$150,000 nationally
$160,296
$200,000 nationally
$213,728
Use the salary calculator for custom amounts.
Affordability score
F
3/100
How far the median local paycheck goes here, combining income and housing cost
Purchasing power
Not reported
Housing affordability F
3rd 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.
Latest BEA release change
What changed from 2023 to 2024
Bridgeport's overall RPP fell -0.1 points, from 107.0 in 2023 to 106.9 in 2024. The largest category movement was services, changing from 153.5 to 147.1. 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 downward, decreasing by 10.2 points over this period. The largest single-year move was in 2018, when the index dropped 4.7 points from the year before.
Bridgeport overall RPP, 2008-2024
Every year on record, national average = 100
| Year | Overall |
|---|---|
| 2008 | 117.0 |
| 2009 | 117.7 |
| 2010 | 113.4 |
| 2011 | 114.0 |
| 2012 | 113.9 |
| 2013 | 114.9 |
| 2014 | 115.2 |
| 2015 | 113.6 |
| 2016 | 113.8 |
| 2017 | 111.9 |
| 2018 | 107.3 |
| 2019 | 106.2 |
| 2020 | 108.6 |
| 2021 | 106.2 |
| 2022 | 109.9 |
| 2023 | 107.0 |
| 2024 | 106.9 |
Decision peers
Metros with a similar cost mix
These metros are closest to Bridgeport'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.
Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH
Goods 99.7 · Services 148.8 · Rents 148.4 Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA
Goods 105.2 · Services 149.8 · Rents 151.4 San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles, CA
Goods 105.2 · Services 147.8 · Rents 144.4 Salinas, CA
Goods 105.2 · Services 154.2 · Rents 145.7 Vallejo, CA
Goods 105.2 · Services 155.0 · Rents 142.0 Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA
Goods 105.2 · Services 154.8 · Rents 139.6
Metros with Similar Cost of Living
These metros have an overall RPP closest to Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT Metropolitan Statistical Area's index of 106.9.
Showing the 6 closest of 387 metro areas tracked nationally.
CT-relative analysis
Goods prices places Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT Metropolitan Statistical Area near the bottom of CT's metros
Among the 5 CT metros PlainCost tracks with reported goods prices data, Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT Metropolitan Statistical Area ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide rank above: it compares Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT Metropolitan Statistical Area only against its own state's metros, not the full US field.
Goods prices
#1 of 5
0th percentile in CT
Services prices
#3 of 5
40th percentile in CT
Rent prices
#1 of 5
80th percentile in CT
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 CT only, not a livability score.
Nationwide metros with similar overall cost or rent prices
Two BEA RPP-derived peer sets for Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT Metropolitan Statistical Area: 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 (106.9 here).
Similar rents RPP
Nearest metros by rents regional price parity (150.5 here).
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Rents 151.1 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA Rents 151.3 Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA Rents 151.4 New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ Rents 148.6 Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH Rents 148.4 Salinas, CA Rents 145.7 Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL Rents 155.6 San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles, CA Rents 144.4
Other CT Metros
New Haven, CT 104.6 Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT 102.7 Norwich-New London-Willimantic, CT 100.4 Waterbury-Shelton, CT 99.8
View all CT metros → Cheapest in CT → Most expensive in CT →
Compare to Other Metros
Cost of living guides →, cheapest and most-expensive metro rankings, salary negotiation with RPP data, and step-by-step comparison walkthroughs.
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Take this cost snapshot with you
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What this means for Bridgeport
How to read Bridgeport'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 $93,577 in Bridgeport. Salary calculator
- Start with rents: it indexes at 150.5, 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 Bridgeport 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 Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT Metropolitan Statistical Area?
Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT Metropolitan Statistical Area has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) index of 106.9, meaning it is 6.9% more expensive than the national average. Goods are indexed at 97.3, services at 147.1, and rents at 150.5. It ranks #21 out of 387 U.S. metro areas by overall cost.
What salary do I need in Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT Metropolitan Statistical Area to match $100K nationally?
To maintain the same purchasing power as a $100,000 salary at the national average, you would need approximately $106,864 in Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT Metropolitan Statistical Area. Conversely, $100K earned in Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT Metropolitan Statistical Area has the purchasing power of $93,577 at the national average.
How expensive is rent in Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT Metropolitan Statistical Area?
Rents in Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT Metropolitan Statistical Area are indexed at 150.5, which is 50.5% above the national average. This is significantly higher than typical U.S. rents.
Is Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT Metropolitan Statistical Area getting more expensive?
From 2008 to 2024, Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT Metropolitan Statistical Area's overall cost index changed by -10.2 points (from 117.0 to 106.9). The cost of living has been declining.
What costs the most in Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT Metropolitan Statistical Area?
The priciest category in Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT Metropolitan Statistical Area is rents at 150.5, 50.5% above the national average. The most affordable category is goods at 97.3, 2.7% below average.
What metros have a similar cost of living to Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT Metropolitan Statistical Area?
Metros with the most similar overall cost index include Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, Santa Rosa-Petaluma. These areas have RPP values within a few points of Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT Metropolitan Statistical Area's 106.9.
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.