Overall
95.5
Below avg
Metro cost profile · 2024 BEA RPP
Grand Junction, CO
Cost-of-living indicators for Grand Junction, CO, from Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parities, overall, goods, services, and rents vs the U.S. average of 100.
- 95.5
- Overall RPP
- #158
- of 387 metros
- 86.4
- Rents RPP
- $105K
- $100K national buys
Grand Junction ranks #158 of 387 U.S. metros by cost, and its overall price index has fallen 8.3 points since 2008.
- falling since 2008
- similar cost to Columbus
The verdict
Grand Junction costs less than 41% of U.S. metros, an overall index of 95.5, 4.5% below the national average, with services the biggest swing at 83.3.
- bottom 59%
- by overall cost, nationwide
- 96.1
- goods RPP, tradable items
- 83.3
- services RPP, labor-priced
A $100,000 national salary carries the purchasing power of about $104,738 here; matching a $100K lifestyle takes roughly $95,476.
Service-cost relief profile
How Grand Junction's cost structure works
Services provide the strongest cost offset in Grand Junction: their index is 83.3, farther below the national baseline than rents or tradable goods. The overall RPP of 95.5 therefore has a different source than a place with cheaper housing instead.
Across all reported metros, the closest component-profile matches are Daphne-Fairhope-Foley, AL, Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA, Iowa City, IA. They resemble Grand Junction 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, Grand Junction's overall index has fallen by 8.3 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.
Grand Junction vs every U.S. metro
Where this metro sits in the national cost distribution
96 Top 41% higher than 59% 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
Grand Junction cost breakdown
BEA RPP by category, 100 = national average
- Rents
Rents
86.4 RPP
- Services
Services
83.3 RPP
- Overall
Overall
95.5 RPP
- Goods
Goods
96.1 RPP
What this shows Grand Junction's strongest departure is services at 83.3; rents follows at 86.4. Labor-priced local activity, rather than housing alone, is the first budget line to investigate.
Goods vs. housing, where Grand Junction's cost comes from
Metros near Grand Junction's overall cost, plotted by their goods price (horizontal) and housing price (vertical). Same headline RPP, very different structures.
Read the chart as text
- Grand Junction (Grand Junction, this metro): goods RPP 96.1, rents RPP 86.4
- Columbus: goods RPP 93.6, rents RPP 87.9
- Yakima: goods RPP 105, rents RPP 72.6
- Albuquerque: goods RPP 96.1, rents RPP 89.2
- Grand Rapids: goods RPP 93.7, rents RPP 86.6
- Gettysburg: goods RPP 100.7, rents RPP 73.9
- Cincinnati: goods RPP 93.8, rents RPP 87.6
Price Index Summary
Goods
96.1
Below avg
Services
83.3
Cheap
Rents
86.4
Cheap
RPP History (2008-2024)
The cost of living has been trending downward, decreasing by 8.3 points over this period. The largest single-year move was in 2018, when the index dropped 5.4 points from the year before.
Grand Junction overall RPP, 2008-2024
Every year on record, national average = 100
| Year | Overall |
|---|---|
| 2008 | 103.7 |
| 2009 | 98.9 |
| 2010 | 97.6 |
| 2011 | 99.7 |
| 2012 | 97.6 |
| 2013 | 96.4 |
| 2014 | 98.9 |
| 2015 | 98.6 |
| 2016 | 98.9 |
| 2017 | 99.4 |
| 2018 | 94.0 |
| 2019 | 98.5 |
| 2020 | 95.2 |
| 2021 | 92.1 |
| 2022 | 93.8 |
| 2023 | 92.8 |
| 2024 | 95.5 |
Latest BEA release change
What changed from 2023 to 2024
Grand Junction's overall RPP rose +2.7 points, from 92.8 in 2023 to 95.5 in 2024. The largest category movement was services, changing from 80.1 to 83.3. 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:
$95,476
in Grand Junction, CO purchasing power
$50,000 nationally
$47,738
$75,000 nationally
$71,607
$125,000 nationally
$119,345
$150,000 nationally
$143,214
$200,000 nationally
$190,952
Use the salary calculator for custom amounts.
Affordability score
D
40/100
How far the median local paycheck goes here, combining income and housing cost
Purchasing power
Not reported
Housing affordability D
40th 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 Grand Junction'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.
Daphne-Fairhope-Foley, AL
Goods 96.4 · Services 83.3 · Rents 89.2 Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA
Goods 93.7 · Services 84.6 · Rents 84.7 Iowa City, IA
Goods 93.7 · Services 83.7 · Rents 84.0 Corpus Christi, TX
Goods 93.8 · Services 81.0 · Rents 84.9 Bloomington, IN
Goods 94.3 · Services 86.5 · Rents 85.6 Ocala, FL
Goods 96.2 · Services 87.1 · Rents 86.2
CO-relative analysis
Goods prices places Grand Junction, CO near the bottom of CO's metros
Among the 7 CO metros PlainCost tracks with reported goods prices data, Grand Junction, CO ranks #2 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide rank above: it compares Grand Junction, CO only against its own state's metros, not the full US field.
Goods prices
#2 of 7
0th percentile in CO
Services prices
#2 of 7
71st percentile in CO
Rent prices
#6 of 7
14th percentile in CO
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 CO only, not a livability score.
Nationwide metros with similar overall cost or rent prices
Two BEA RPP-derived peer sets for Grand Junction, CO: 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 (95.5 here).
Similar rents RPP
Nearest metros by rents regional price parity (86.4 here).
Other CO Metros
Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO 105.8 Boulder, CO 105.2 Fort Collins-Loveland, CO 101.1 Colorado Springs, CO 100.7 Greeley, CO 100.2 Pueblo, CO 91.8
View all CO metros → Cheapest in CO → Most expensive in CO →
Metros with Similar Cost of Living
These metros have an overall RPP closest to Grand Junction, CO's index of 95.5.
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
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.
What this means for Grand Junction
How to read Grand Junction'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 $104,738 in Grand Junction. Salary calculator
- Start with services: it indexes at 83.3, 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 Grand Junction 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 Grand Junction, CO?
Grand Junction, CO has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) index of 95.5, meaning it is 4.5% less expensive than the national average. Goods are indexed at 96.1, services at 83.3, and rents at 86.4. It ranks #158 out of 387 U.S. metro areas by overall cost.
What salary do I need in Grand Junction, CO to match $100K nationally?
To maintain the same purchasing power as a $100,000 salary at the national average, you would need approximately $95,476 in Grand Junction, CO. Conversely, $100K earned in Grand Junction, CO has the purchasing power of $104,738 at the national average.
How expensive is rent in Grand Junction, CO?
Rents in Grand Junction, CO are indexed at 86.4, which is 13.6% below the national average. This makes the area relatively affordable for renters.
Is Grand Junction, CO getting more expensive?
From 2008 to 2024, Grand Junction, CO's overall cost index changed by -8.3 points (from 103.7 to 95.5). The cost of living has been declining.
What costs the most in Grand Junction, CO?
The priciest category in Grand Junction, CO is goods at 96.1, 3.9% below the national average, still the highest of the three categories. The most affordable category is services at 83.3, 16.7% below average.
What metros have a similar cost of living to Grand Junction, CO?
Metros with the most similar overall cost index include Columbus, Yakima, Albuquerque. These areas have RPP values within a few points of Grand Junction, CO's 95.5.
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.