Overall
87.3
Cheap
Metro cost profile · 2024 BEA RPP
Dubuque, IA
Cost-of-living indicators for Dubuque, IA, from Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parities, overall, goods, services, and rents vs the U.S. average of 100.
- 87.3
- Overall RPP
- #349
- of 387 metros
- 64.0
- Rents RPP
- $115K
- $100K national buys
Dubuque ranks #349 of 387 U.S. metros by cost, and its overall price index has fallen 6.1 points since 2008.
- falling since 2008
- similar cost to Youngstown-Warren
The verdict
Dubuque costs less than 90% of U.S. metros, an overall index of 87.3, 12.7% below the national average, with rents the biggest swing at 64.0.
- bottom 10%
- by overall cost, nationwide
- 93.7
- goods RPP, tradable items
- 81.2
- services RPP, labor-priced
A $100,000 national salary carries the purchasing power of about $114,511 here; matching a $100K lifestyle takes roughly $87,328.
Latest BEA release change
What changed from 2023 to 2024
Dubuque's overall RPP fell -1.7 points, from 89.1 in 2023 to 87.3 in 2024. The largest category movement was services, changing from 85.1 to 81.2. 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 6.1 points over this period. The largest single-year move was in 2023, when the index jumped 2.7 points from the year before.
Dubuque overall RPP, 2008-2024
Every year on record, national average = 100
| Year | Overall |
|---|---|
| 2008 | 93.4 |
| 2009 | 92.6 |
| 2010 | 91.7 |
| 2011 | 91.3 |
| 2012 | 91.8 |
| 2013 | 92.5 |
| 2014 | 92.8 |
| 2015 | 91.3 |
| 2016 | 91.2 |
| 2017 | 91.5 |
| 2018 | 90.5 |
| 2019 | 89.9 |
| 2020 | 89.8 |
| 2021 | 88.1 |
| 2022 | 86.4 |
| 2023 | 89.1 |
| 2024 | 87.3 |
Housing-led affordability profile
How Dubuque's cost structure works
Housing is the strongest affordability offset in Dubuque: rents index at 64.0, the component furthest below the national benchmark. That does not make every local expense low, but it is the clearest explanation for the metro's overall RPP of 87.3.
Across all reported metros, the closest component-profile matches are Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA, Longview, TX, Jackson, MS. They resemble Dubuque 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, Dubuque's overall index has fallen by 6.1 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.
Dubuque vs every U.S. metro
Where this metro sits in the national cost distribution
87 Bottom 10% higher than 10% 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
Dubuque cost breakdown
BEA RPP by category, 100 = national average
- Rents
Rents
64 RPP
- Services
Services
81.2 RPP
- Overall
Overall
87.3 RPP
- Goods
Goods
93.7 RPP
What this shows Dubuque's cost structure is housing-led: rents at 64.0 depart furthest from 100, while services sits at 81.2. This is a rent-sensitive profile, not a claim that every local expense moves together.
Goods vs. housing, where Dubuque's cost comes from
Metros near Dubuque's overall cost, plotted by their goods price (horizontal) and housing price (vertical). Same headline RPP, very different structures.
Read the chart as text
- Dubuque (Dubuque, this metro): goods RPP 93.7, rents RPP 64
- Youngstown: goods RPP 93.6, rents RPP 53.4
- Decatur: goods RPP 96.4, rents RPP 58.1
- Lafayette: goods RPP 93.7, rents RPP 58.8
- Parkersburg: goods RPP 96.3, rents RPP 45.9
- Waterloo: goods RPP 93.7, rents RPP 63.1
- Minot: goods RPP 95.7, rents RPP 63.2
Price Index Summary
Goods
93.7
Below avg
Services
81.2
Cheap
Rents
64.0
Cheap
Salary Equivalent
A $100,000 salary at the national average cost of living equals:
$87,328
in Dubuque, IA purchasing power
$50,000 nationally
$43,664
$75,000 nationally
$65,496
$125,000 nationally
$109,160
$150,000 nationally
$130,992
$200,000 nationally
$174,656
Use the salary calculator for custom amounts.
Affordability score
B
78/100
How far the median local paycheck goes here, combining income and housing cost
Purchasing power
Not reported
Housing affordability B
78th 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.
IA-relative analysis
Goods prices places Dubuque, IA near the bottom of IA's metros
Among the 8 IA metros PlainCost tracks with reported goods prices data, Dubuque, IA ranks #3 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide rank above: it compares Dubuque, IA only against its own state's metros, not the full US field.
Goods prices
#3 of 8
0th percentile in IA
Services prices
#8 of 8
0th percentile in IA
Rent prices
#6 of 8
25th percentile in IA
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 IA only, not a livability score.
Nationwide metros with similar overall cost or rent prices
Two BEA RPP-derived peer sets for Dubuque, IA: 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 (87.3 here).
Similar rents RPP
Nearest metros by rents regional price parity (64.0 here).
Other IA Metros
Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA 91.7 Iowa City, IA 91.5 Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, IA-IL 89.1 Cedar Rapids, IA 89.0 Ames, IA 88.8 Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA 87.1
View all IA metros → Cheapest in IA → Most expensive in IA →
Decision peers
Metros with a similar cost mix
These metros are closest to Dubuque'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.
Waterloo-Cedar Falls, IA
Goods 93.7 · Services 83.7 · Rents 63.1 Longview, TX
Goods 93.8 · Services 83.5 · Rents 66.7 Jackson, MS
Goods 96.2 · Services 78.1 · Rents 64.8 Las Cruces, NM
Goods 96.1 · Services 77.9 · Rents 63.0 Auburn-Opelika, AL
Goods 96.4 · Services 83.9 · Rents 62.1 Laredo, TX
Goods 93.8 · Services 80.6 · Rents 59.7
Metros with Similar Cost of Living
These metros have an overall RPP closest to Dubuque, IA's index of 87.3.
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 Dubuque
How to read Dubuque'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 $114,511 in Dubuque. Salary calculator
- Start with rents: it indexes at 64.0, 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 Dubuque 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 Dubuque, IA?
Dubuque, IA has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) index of 87.3, meaning it is 12.7% less expensive than the national average. Goods are indexed at 93.7, services at 81.2, and rents at 64.0. It ranks #349 out of 387 U.S. metro areas by overall cost.
What salary do I need in Dubuque, IA to match $100K nationally?
To maintain the same purchasing power as a $100,000 salary at the national average, you would need approximately $87,328 in Dubuque, IA. Conversely, $100K earned in Dubuque, IA has the purchasing power of $114,511 at the national average.
How expensive is rent in Dubuque, IA?
Rents in Dubuque, IA are indexed at 64.0, which is 36.0% below the national average. This makes the area relatively affordable for renters.
Is Dubuque, IA getting more expensive?
From 2008 to 2024, Dubuque, IA's overall cost index changed by -6.1 points (from 93.4 to 87.3). The cost of living has been declining.
What costs the most in Dubuque, IA?
The priciest category in Dubuque, IA is goods at 93.7, 6.3% below the national average, still the highest of the three categories. The most affordable category is rents at 64.0, 36.0% below average.
What metros have a similar cost of living to Dubuque, IA?
Metros with the most similar overall cost index include Youngstown-Warren, Decatur, Lafayette. These areas have RPP values within a few points of Dubuque, IA's 87.3.
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.