Overall
95.5
Below avg
Metro cost profile · 2024 BEA RPP
Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI
Cost-of-living indicators for Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI, from Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parities, overall, goods, services, and rents vs the U.S. average of 100.
- 95.5
- Overall RPP
- #156
- of 387 metros
- 86.6
- Rents RPP
- $105K
- $100K national buys
Grand Rapids ranks #156 of 387 U.S. metros by cost, and its overall price index has held steady since 2008.
- stable since 2008
- similar cost to Albuquerque
The verdict
Grand Rapids costs less than 40% of U.S. metros, an overall index of 95.5, 4.5% below the national average, with rents the biggest swing at 86.6.
- bottom 60%
- by overall cost, nationwide
- 93.7
- goods RPP, tradable items
- 93.8
- services RPP, labor-priced
A $100,000 national salary carries the purchasing power of about $104,662 here; matching a $100K lifestyle takes roughly $95,546.
Salary Equivalent
A $100,000 salary at the national average cost of living equals:
$95,546
in Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI purchasing power
$50,000 nationally
$47,773
$75,000 nationally
$71,660
$125,000 nationally
$119,433
$150,000 nationally
$143,319
$200,000 nationally
$191,092
Use the salary calculator for custom amounts.
Affordability score
D
39/100
How far the median local paycheck goes here, combining income and housing cost
Purchasing power
Not reported
Housing affordability D
39th 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.
RPP History (2008-2024)
The cost of living has remained relatively stable, changing by only 0.0 points over this period. The largest single-year move was in 2022, when the index dropped 2.1 points from the year before, a bigger swing than the full 2008-2024 change.
Grand Rapids overall RPP, 2008-2024
Every year on record, national average = 100
| Year | Overall |
|---|---|
| 2008 | 95.6 |
| 2009 | 95.6 |
| 2010 | 95.2 |
| 2011 | 94.2 |
| 2012 | 94.7 |
| 2013 | 95.6 |
| 2014 | 95.1 |
| 2015 | 93.4 |
| 2016 | 94.2 |
| 2017 | 92.2 |
| 2018 | 94.1 |
| 2019 | 95.7 |
| 2020 | 94.3 |
| 2021 | 96.2 |
| 2022 | 94.1 |
| 2023 | 95.0 |
| 2024 | 95.5 |
Latest BEA release change
What changed from 2023 to 2024
Grand Rapids's overall RPP rose +0.6 points, from 95.0 in 2023 to 95.5 in 2024. The largest category movement was rents, changing from 88.8 to 86.6. This is a relative change against the national benchmark, not a household's dollar bill.
Housing-led affordability profile
How Grand Rapids's cost structure works
Housing is the strongest affordability offset in Grand Rapids: rents index at 86.6, 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 95.5.
Across all reported metros, the closest component-profile matches are Columbus, OH, Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN, Lansing-East Lansing, MI. They resemble Grand Rapids 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 Rapids's overall index has stayed within 0.0 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 Rapids vs every U.S. metro
Where this metro sits in the national cost distribution
96 Top 40% higher than 60% 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 Rapids cost breakdown
BEA RPP by category, 100 = national average
- Rents
Rents
86.6 RPP
- Services
Services
93.8 RPP
- Overall
Overall
95.5 RPP
- Goods
Goods
93.7 RPP
What this shows Grand Rapids's cost structure is housing-led: rents at 86.6 depart furthest from 100, while goods sits at 93.7. This is a rent-sensitive profile, not a claim that every local expense moves together.
Goods vs. housing, where Grand Rapids's cost comes from
Metros near Grand Rapids'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 Rapids (Grand Rapids, this metro): goods RPP 93.7, rents RPP 86.6
- Albuquerque: goods RPP 96.1, rents RPP 89.2
- Yakima: goods RPP 105, rents RPP 72.6
- Grand Junction: goods RPP 96.1, rents RPP 86.4
- Salisbury: goods RPP 96.6, rents RPP 87.2
- Columbus: goods RPP 93.6, rents RPP 87.9
- Helena: goods RPP 96, rents RPP 90.1
Price Index Summary
Goods
93.7
Below avg
Services
93.8
Below avg
Rents
86.6
Cheap
Metros with Similar Cost of Living
These metros have an overall RPP closest to Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI's index of 95.5.
Showing the 6 closest of 387 metro areas tracked nationally.
Decision peers
Metros with a similar cost mix
These metros are closest to Grand Rapids'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.
Columbus, OH
Goods 93.6 · Services 95.5 · Rents 87.9 Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN
Goods 93.8 · Services 91.0 · Rents 87.6 Lansing-East Lansing, MI
Goods 93.7 · Services 95.5 · Rents 83.5 Kansas City, MO-KS
Goods 94.1 · Services 89.0 · Rents 86.6 Savannah, GA
Goods 96.3 · Services 88.6 · Rents 86.0 Winchester, VA-WV
Goods 96.7 · Services 89.7 · Rents 90.0
MI-relative analysis
Goods prices places Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI near the bottom of MI's metros
Among the 15 MI metros PlainCost tracks with reported goods prices data, Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI ranks #2 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide rank above: it compares Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI only against its own state's metros, not the full US field.
Goods prices
#2 of 15
0th percentile in MI
Services prices
#12 of 15
20th percentile in MI
Rent prices
#3 of 15
80th percentile in MI
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 MI only, not a livability score.
Nationwide metros with similar overall cost or rent prices
Two BEA RPP-derived peer sets for Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI: 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 (86.6 here).
Other MI Metros
Ann Arbor, MI 100.9 Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI 100.3 Lansing-East Lansing, MI 95.0 Kalamazoo-Portage, MI 94.8 Monroe, MI 93.5 Traverse City, MI 93.4
View all MI metros → Cheapest in MI → Most expensive in MI →
Cost of living guides →, cheapest and most-expensive metro rankings, salary negotiation with RPP data, and step-by-step comparison walkthroughs.
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.
Compare to Other Metros
What this means for Grand Rapids
How to read Grand Rapids'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 $104,662 in Grand Rapids. Salary calculator
- Start with rents: it indexes at 86.6, 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 Grand Rapids 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 Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI?
Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI 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 93.7, services at 93.8, and rents at 86.6. It ranks #156 out of 387 U.S. metro areas by overall cost.
What salary do I need in Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI to match $100K nationally?
To maintain the same purchasing power as a $100,000 salary at the national average, you would need approximately $95,546 in Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI. Conversely, $100K earned in Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI has the purchasing power of $104,662 at the national average.
How expensive is rent in Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI?
Rents in Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI are indexed at 86.6, which is 13.4% below the national average. This makes the area relatively affordable for renters.
Is Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI getting more expensive?
From 2008 to 2024, Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI's overall cost index changed by +-0.0 points (from 95.6 to 95.5). The cost of living has remained relatively stable.
What costs the most in Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI?
The priciest category in Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI is services at 93.8, 6.2% below the national average, still the highest of the three categories. The most affordable category is rents at 86.6, 13.4% below average.
What metros have a similar cost of living to Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI?
Metros with the most similar overall cost index include Albuquerque, Yakima, Grand Junction. These areas have RPP values within a few points of Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI'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.