Overall
94.4
Below avg
Metro cost profile · 2024 BEA RPP
Elmira, NY
Cost-of-living indicators for Elmira, NY, from Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parities, overall, goods, services, and rents vs the U.S. average of 100.
- 94.4
- Overall RPP
- #178
- of 387 metros
- 76.4
- Rents RPP
- $106K
- $100K national buys
Elmira ranks #178 of 387 U.S. metros by cost, and its overall price index has held steady since 2008.
- stable since 2008
- similar cost to Idaho Falls
The verdict
Elmira costs less than 46% of U.S. metros, an overall index of 94.4, 5.6% below the national average, with services the biggest swing at 131.6.
- bottom 54%
- by overall cost, nationwide
- 99.7
- goods RPP, tradable items
- 131.6
- services RPP, labor-priced
A $100,000 national salary carries the purchasing power of about $105,934 here; matching a $100K lifestyle takes roughly $94,398.
Elmira vs every U.S. metro
Where this metro sits in the national cost distribution
94 Top 46% higher than 54% 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
Elmira cost breakdown
BEA RPP by category, 100 = national average
- Rents
Rents
76.4 RPP
- Services
Services
131.6 RPP
- Overall
Overall
94.4 RPP
- Goods
Goods
99.7 RPP
What this shows Elmira's strongest departure is services at 131.6; rents follows at 76.4. Labor-priced local activity, rather than housing alone, is the first budget line to investigate.
Goods vs. housing, where Elmira's cost comes from
Metros near Elmira's overall cost, plotted by their goods price (horizontal) and housing price (vertical). Same headline RPP, very different structures.
Read the chart as text
- Elmira (Elmira, this metro): goods RPP 99.7, rents RPP 76.4
- Idaho Falls: goods RPP 96.2, rents RPP 84
- Hagerstown: goods RPP 96.4, rents RPP 75.7
- Chambersburg: goods RPP 100.7, rents RPP 71.9
- Pittsburgh: goods RPP 100.7, rents RPP 72
- Daphne: goods RPP 96.4, rents RPP 89.2
- Lake Havasu City: goods RPP 96.2, rents RPP 79.8
Price Index Summary
Goods
99.7
Below avg
Services
131.6
Expensive
Rents
76.4
Cheap
Service-cost-led profile
How Elmira's cost structure works
Services are the defining pressure in Elmira: the BEA services component is 131.6, farther above the national baseline than local rents or tradable goods. That service-heavy pattern explains an overall RPP of 94.4 differently from a housing-led metro.
Across all reported metros, the closest component-profile matches are Glens Falls, NY, Bangor, ME, Syracuse, NY. They resemble Elmira 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, Elmira's overall index has stayed within 1.3 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.
RPP History (2008-2024)
The cost of living has remained relatively stable, changing by only 1.3 points over this period. The largest single-year move was in 2013, when the index jumped 4.5 points from the year before, a bigger swing than the full 2008-2024 change.
Elmira overall RPP, 2008-2024
Every year on record, national average = 100
| Year | Overall |
|---|---|
| 2008 | 95.7 |
| 2009 | 96.6 |
| 2010 | 96.2 |
| 2011 | 97.7 |
| 2012 | 94.4 |
| 2013 | 98.9 |
| 2014 | 97.6 |
| 2015 | 97.6 |
| 2016 | 95.3 |
| 2017 | 97.8 |
| 2018 | 96.2 |
| 2019 | 95.7 |
| 2020 | 95.3 |
| 2021 | 94.7 |
| 2022 | 92.9 |
| 2023 | 92.7 |
| 2024 | 94.4 |
Latest BEA release change
What changed from 2023 to 2024
Elmira's overall RPP rose +1.7 points, from 92.7 in 2023 to 94.4 in 2024. The largest category movement was rents, changing from 67.6 to 76.4. 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:
$94,398
in Elmira, NY purchasing power
$50,000 nationally
$47,199
$75,000 nationally
$70,799
$125,000 nationally
$117,997
$150,000 nationally
$141,597
$200,000 nationally
$188,796
Use the salary calculator for custom amounts.
Affordability score
C
56/100
How far the median local paycheck goes here, combining income and housing cost
Purchasing power
Not reported
Housing affordability C
56th 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 Elmira'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.
Glens Falls, NY
Goods 99.7 · Services 133.8 · Rents 76.2 Bangor, ME
Goods 97.2 · Services 134.8 · Rents 77.7 Syracuse, NY
Goods 99.7 · Services 133.4 · Rents 80.7 Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY
Goods 99.7 · Services 129.5 · Rents 81.0 Binghamton, NY
Goods 99.7 · Services 131.6 · Rents 69.7 Lewiston-Auburn, ME
Goods 97.2 · Services 134.4 · Rents 69.0
NY-relative analysis
Goods prices places Elmira, NY near the bottom of NY's metros
Among the 13 NY metros PlainCost tracks with reported goods prices data, Elmira, NY ranks #3 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide rank above: it compares Elmira, NY only against its own state's metros, not the full US field.
Goods prices
#3 of 13
0th percentile in NY
Services prices
#10 of 13
23rd percentile in NY
Rent prices
#9 of 13
31st percentile in NY
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 NY only, not a livability score.
Nationwide metros with similar overall cost or rent prices
Two BEA RPP-derived peer sets for Elmira, NY: 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 (94.4 here).
Similar rents RPP
Nearest metros by rents regional price parity (76.4 here).
Other NY Metros
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ 112.6 Kiryas Joel-Poughkeepsie-Newburgh, NY 109.4 Ithaca, NY 103.3 Kingston, NY 100.7 Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY 99.6 Rochester, NY 97.0
View all NY metros → Cheapest in NY → Most expensive in NY →
Metros with Similar Cost of Living
These metros have an overall RPP closest to Elmira, NY's index of 94.4.
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
Download the data card or share this exact metro record. The card uses the same BEA-derived values shown above.
What this means for Elmira
How to read Elmira'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 $105,934 in Elmira. Salary calculator
- Start with services: it indexes at 131.6, 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 Elmira 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 Elmira, NY?
Elmira, NY has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) index of 94.4, meaning it is 5.6% less expensive than the national average. Goods are indexed at 99.7, services at 131.6, and rents at 76.4. It ranks #178 out of 387 U.S. metro areas by overall cost.
What salary do I need in Elmira, NY to match $100K nationally?
To maintain the same purchasing power as a $100,000 salary at the national average, you would need approximately $94,398 in Elmira, NY. Conversely, $100K earned in Elmira, NY has the purchasing power of $105,934 at the national average.
How expensive is rent in Elmira, NY?
Rents in Elmira, NY are indexed at 76.4, which is 23.6% below the national average. This makes the area relatively affordable for renters.
Is Elmira, NY getting more expensive?
From 2008 to 2024, Elmira, NY's overall cost index changed by -1.3 points (from 95.7 to 94.4). The cost of living has remained relatively stable.
What costs the most in Elmira, NY?
The priciest category in Elmira, NY is services at 131.6, 31.6% above the national average. The most affordable category is rents at 76.4, 23.6% below average.
What metros have a similar cost of living to Elmira, NY?
Metros with the most similar overall cost index include Idaho Falls, Hagerstown-Martinsburg, Chambersburg. These areas have RPP values within a few points of Elmira, NY's 94.4.
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.