Overall
103.6
Above avg
Metro cost profile · 2024 BEA RPP
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN
Cost-of-living indicators for Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN, from Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parities, overall, goods, services, and rents vs the U.S. average of 100.
- 103.6
- Overall RPP
- #41
- of 387 metros
- 112.0
- Rents RPP
- $97K
- $100K national buys
Chicago ranks #41 of 387 U.S. metros by cost, and its overall price index has held steady since 2008.
- stable since 2008
- similar cost to Bend
The verdict
Chicago is more expensive than 89% of U.S. metros, an overall cost index of 103.6, 3.6% above the national average, led by services at 83.6.
- top 11%
- by overall cost, nationwide
- 107.3
- goods RPP, tradable items
- 83.6
- services RPP, labor-priced
A $100,000 national salary carries the purchasing power of about $96,530 here; matching a $100K lifestyle takes roughly $103,595.
Service-cost relief profile
How Chicago's cost structure works
Services provide the strongest cost offset in Chicago: their index is 83.6, farther below the national baseline than rents or tradable goods. The overall RPP of 103.6 therefore has a different source than a place with cheaper housing instead.
Across all reported metros, the closest component-profile matches are Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA, Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX, Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI. They resemble Chicago 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, Chicago's overall index has stayed within 1.8 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.
Chicago vs every U.S. metro
Where this metro sits in the national cost distribution
104 Top 11% higher than 89% 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
Chicago cost breakdown
BEA RPP by category, 100 = national average
- Rents
Rents
112 RPP
- Services
Services
83.6 RPP
- Overall
Overall
103.6 RPP
- Goods
Goods
107.3 RPP
What this shows Chicago's strongest departure is services at 83.6; rents follows at 112.0. Labor-priced local activity, rather than housing alone, is the first budget line to investigate.
Goods vs. housing, where Chicago's cost comes from
Metros near Chicago's overall cost, plotted by their goods price (horizontal) and housing price (vertical). Same headline RPP, very different structures.
Read the chart as text
- Chicago (Chicago, this metro): goods RPP 107.3, rents RPP 112
- Bend: goods RPP 105.3, rents RPP 110
- 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
107.3
Above avg
Services
83.6
Cheap
Rents
112.0
Expensive
RPP History (2008-2024)
The cost of living has remained relatively stable, changing by only 1.8 points over this period. The largest single-year move was in 2023, when the index dropped 3.2 points from the year before, a bigger swing than the full 2008-2024 change.
Chicago overall RPP, 2008-2024
Every year on record, national average = 100
| Year | Overall |
|---|---|
| 2008 | 105.4 |
| 2009 | 106.5 |
| 2010 | 106.1 |
| 2011 | 106.9 |
| 2012 | 105.1 |
| 2013 | 104.2 |
| 2014 | 103.2 |
| 2015 | 102.6 |
| 2016 | 103.8 |
| 2017 | 105.2 |
| 2018 | 104.2 |
| 2019 | 102.6 |
| 2020 | 104.5 |
| 2021 | 105.5 |
| 2022 | 105.7 |
| 2023 | 102.5 |
| 2024 | 103.6 |
Latest BEA release change
What changed from 2023 to 2024
Chicago's overall RPP rose +1.1 points, from 102.5 in 2023 to 103.6 in 2024. The largest category movement was services, changing from 77.0 to 83.6. This is a relative change against the national benchmark, not a household's dollar bill.
Salary Equivalent
A $100,000 salary at the national average cost of living equals:
$103,595
in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN purchasing power
$50,000 nationally
$51,797
$75,000 nationally
$77,696
$125,000 nationally
$129,494
$150,000 nationally
$155,393
$200,000 nationally
$207,190
Use the salary calculator for custom amounts.
Affordability score
F
16/100
How far the median local paycheck goes here, combining income and housing cost
Purchasing power
Not reported
Housing affordability F
16th 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.
Decision peers
Metros with a similar cost mix
These metros are closest to Chicago'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.
Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA
Goods 105.0 · Services 91.7 · Rents 116.7 Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX
Goods 102.8 · Services 90.7 · Rents 117.9 Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI
Goods 103.1 · Services 93.5 · Rents 111.8 Greeley, CO
Goods 96.1 · Services 82.0 · Rents 112.6 Port St. Lucie, FL
Goods 96.2 · Services 87.0 · Rents 113.6 Punta Gorda, FL
Goods 96.2 · Services 87.3 · Rents 113.3
IL-relative analysis
Services prices places Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN near the bottom of IL's metros
Among the 8 IL metros PlainCost tracks with reported services prices data, Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN ranks #8 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide rank above: it compares Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN only against its own state's metros, not the full US field.
Goods prices
#1 of 8
88th percentile in IL
Services prices
#8 of 8
0th percentile in IL
Rent prices
#1 of 8
88th percentile in IL
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 IL only, not a livability score.
Nationwide metros with similar overall cost or rent prices
Two BEA RPP-derived peer sets for Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN: 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 (112.0 here).
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI Rents 111.8 Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL Rents 111.7 Greeley, CO Rents 112.6 Bellingham, WA Rents 112.9 Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA Rents 111.0 Worcester, MA Rents 113.0 Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD Rents 113.1 Punta Gorda, FL Rents 113.3
Other IL Metros
Kankakee, IL 96.4 Bloomington, IL 93.5 Springfield, IL 92.7 Champaign-Urbana, IL 92.7 Rockford, IL 92.2 Peoria, IL 91.2
View all IL metros → Cheapest in IL → Most expensive in IL →
Metros with Similar Cost of Living
These metros have an overall RPP closest to Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN's index of 103.6.
Showing the 6 closest of 387 metro areas tracked nationally.
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
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Take this cost snapshot with you
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What this means for Chicago
How to read Chicago'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 $96,530 in Chicago. Salary calculator
- Start with services: it indexes at 83.6, 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 Chicago 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 Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN?
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN 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 107.3, services at 83.6, and rents at 112.0. It ranks #41 out of 387 U.S. metro areas by overall cost.
What salary do I need in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN to match $100K nationally?
To maintain the same purchasing power as a $100,000 salary at the national average, you would need approximately $103,595 in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN. Conversely, $100K earned in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN has the purchasing power of $96,530 at the national average.
How expensive is rent in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN?
Rents in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN are indexed at 112.0, which is 12.0% above the national average. This is significantly higher than typical U.S. rents.
Is Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN getting more expensive?
From 2008 to 2024, Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN's overall cost index changed by -1.8 points (from 105.4 to 103.6). The cost of living has remained relatively stable.
What costs the most in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN?
The priciest category in Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN is rents at 112.0, 12.0% above the national average. The most affordable category is services at 83.6, 16.4% below average.
What metros have a similar cost of living to Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN?
Metros with the most similar overall cost index include Bend, Salem, Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater. These areas have RPP values within a few points of Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN'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.