Overall
85.9
Cheap
Metro cost profile · 2024 BEA RPP
Jonesboro, AR
Cost-of-living indicators for Jonesboro, AR, from Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parities, overall, goods, services, and rents vs the U.S. average of 100.
- 85.9
- Overall RPP
- #371
- of 387 metros
- 53.8
- Rents RPP
- $116K
- $100K national buys
Jonesboro ranks #371 of 387 U.S. metros by cost, and its overall price index has held steady since 2008.
- stable since 2008
- similar cost to Fort Smith
The verdict
Jonesboro costs less than 96% of U.S. metros, an overall index of 85.9, 14.1% below the national average, with rents the biggest swing at 53.8.
- bottom 4%
- by overall cost, nationwide
- 93.6
- goods RPP, tradable items
- 75.0
- services RPP, labor-priced
A $100,000 national salary carries the purchasing power of about $116,447 here; matching a $100K lifestyle takes roughly $85,876.
Jonesboro vs every U.S. metro
Where this metro sits in the national cost distribution
86 Bottom 4% higher than 4% 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
Jonesboro cost breakdown
BEA RPP by category, 100 = national average
- Rents
Rents
53.8 RPP
- Services
Services
75 RPP
- Overall
Overall
85.9 RPP
- Goods
Goods
93.6 RPP
What this shows Jonesboro's cost structure is housing-led: rents at 53.8 depart furthest from 100, while services sits at 75.0. This is a rent-sensitive profile, not a claim that every local expense moves together.
Goods vs. housing, where Jonesboro's cost comes from
Metros near Jonesboro's overall cost, plotted by their goods price (horizontal) and housing price (vertical). Same headline RPP, very different structures.
Read the chart as text
- Jonesboro (Jonesboro, this metro): goods RPP 93.6, rents RPP 53.8
- Fort Smith: goods RPP 93.6, rents RPP 53.4
- McAllen: goods RPP 93.8, rents RPP 55.9
- Lake Charles: goods RPP 93.7, rents RPP 51.8
- Johnstown: goods RPP 100.7, rents RPP 42.3
- Lawton: goods RPP 93.8, rents RPP 57.4
- Anniston: goods RPP 96.4, rents RPP 54.7
Price Index Summary
Goods
93.6
Below avg
Services
75.0
Cheap
Rents
53.8
Cheap
Housing-led affordability profile
How Jonesboro's cost structure works
Housing is the strongest affordability offset in Jonesboro: rents index at 53.8, 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 85.9.
Across all reported metros, the closest component-profile matches are Fort Smith, AR-OK, Enid, OK *, Shreveport-Bossier City, LA. They resemble Jonesboro 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, Jonesboro's overall index has stayed within 1.6 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.
Salary Equivalent
A $100,000 salary at the national average cost of living equals:
$85,876
in Jonesboro, AR purchasing power
$50,000 nationally
$42,938
$75,000 nationally
$64,407
$125,000 nationally
$107,345
$150,000 nationally
$128,814
$200,000 nationally
$171,752
Use the salary calculator for custom amounts.
Affordability score
A
93/100
How far the median local paycheck goes here, combining income and housing cost
Purchasing power
Not reported
Housing affordability A
93rd 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.
Latest BEA release change
What changed from 2023 to 2024
Jonesboro's overall RPP fell -0.1 points, from 86.0 in 2023 to 85.9 in 2024. The largest category movement was services, changing from 80.8 to 75.0. This is a relative change against the national benchmark, not a household's dollar bill.
RPP History (2008-2024)
The cost of living has remained relatively stable, changing by only 1.6 points over this period. The largest single-year move was in 2009, when the index dropped 2.4 points from the year before, a bigger swing than the full 2008-2024 change.
Jonesboro overall RPP, 2008-2024
Every year on record, national average = 100
| Year | Overall |
|---|---|
| 2008 | 84.2 |
| 2009 | 81.9 |
| 2010 | 84.0 |
| 2011 | 85.4 |
| 2012 | 85.8 |
| 2013 | 85.1 |
| 2014 | 85.6 |
| 2015 | 85.5 |
| 2016 | 84.8 |
| 2017 | 85.4 |
| 2018 | 84.6 |
| 2019 | 85.4 |
| 2020 | 85.5 |
| 2021 | 86.7 |
| 2022 | 86.5 |
| 2023 | 86.0 |
| 2024 | 85.9 |
Decision peers
Metros with a similar cost mix
These metros are closest to Jonesboro'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.
Fort Smith, AR-OK
Goods 93.6 · Services 73.8 · Rents 53.4 Enid, OK *
Goods 93.8 · Services 74.4 · Rents 51.4 Shreveport-Bossier City, LA
Goods 93.7 · Services 72.6 · Rents 52.3 Owensboro, KY
Goods 96.2 · Services 75.2 · Rents 55.7 Hot Springs, AR
Goods 93.6 · Services 74.3 · Rents 57.3 Lake Charles, LA
Goods 93.7 · Services 71.7 · Rents 51.8
Metros with Similar Cost of Living
These metros have an overall RPP closest to Jonesboro, AR's index of 85.9.
Showing the 6 closest of 387 metro areas tracked nationally.
AR-relative analysis
Goods prices places Jonesboro, AR near the bottom of AR's metros
Among the 5 AR metros PlainCost tracks with reported goods prices data, Jonesboro, AR ranks #2 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide rank above: it compares Jonesboro, AR only against its own state's metros, not the full US field.
Goods prices
#2 of 5
0th percentile in AR
Services prices
#2 of 5
60th percentile in AR
Rent prices
#4 of 5
20th percentile in AR
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 AR only, not a livability score.
Nationwide metros with similar overall cost or rent prices
Two BEA RPP-derived peer sets for Jonesboro, AR: 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 (85.9 here).
Similar rents RPP
Nearest metros by rents regional price parity (53.8 here).
Other AR Metros
Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR 91.4 Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR 89.4 Fort Smith, AR-OK 85.9 Hot Springs, AR 85.7
View all AR metros → Cheapest in AR → Most expensive in AR →
Compare to Other Metros
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.
What this means for Jonesboro
How to read Jonesboro'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 $116,447 in Jonesboro. Salary calculator
- Start with rents: it indexes at 53.8, 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 Jonesboro 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 Jonesboro, AR?
Jonesboro, AR has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) index of 85.9, meaning it is 14.1% less expensive than the national average. Goods are indexed at 93.6, services at 75.0, and rents at 53.8. It ranks #371 out of 387 U.S. metro areas by overall cost.
What salary do I need in Jonesboro, AR to match $100K nationally?
To maintain the same purchasing power as a $100,000 salary at the national average, you would need approximately $85,876 in Jonesboro, AR. Conversely, $100K earned in Jonesboro, AR has the purchasing power of $116,447 at the national average.
How expensive is rent in Jonesboro, AR?
Rents in Jonesboro, AR are indexed at 53.8, which is 46.2% below the national average. This makes the area relatively affordable for renters.
Is Jonesboro, AR getting more expensive?
From 2008 to 2024, Jonesboro, AR's overall cost index changed by +1.6 points (from 84.2 to 85.9). The cost of living has remained relatively stable.
What costs the most in Jonesboro, AR?
The priciest category in Jonesboro, AR is goods at 93.6, 6.4% below the national average, still the highest of the three categories. The most affordable category is rents at 53.8, 46.2% below average.
What metros have a similar cost of living to Jonesboro, AR?
Metros with the most similar overall cost index include Fort Smith, McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, Lake Charles. These areas have RPP values within a few points of Jonesboro, AR's 85.9.
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.