Overall
90.2
Below avg
Metro cost profile · 2024 BEA RPP
Lawrence, KS
Cost-of-living indicators for Lawrence, KS, from Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parities, overall, goods, services, and rents vs the U.S. average of 100.
- 90.2
- Overall RPP
- #284
- of 387 metros
- 71.6
- Rents RPP
- $111K
- $100K national buys
Lawrence ranks #284 of 387 U.S. metros by cost, and its overall price index has fallen 7.9 points since 2008.
- falling since 2008
- similar cost to Las Cruces
The verdict
Lawrence costs less than 73% of U.S. metros, an overall index of 90.2, 9.8% below the national average, with rents the biggest swing at 71.6.
- bottom 27%
- by overall cost, nationwide
- 94.0
- goods RPP, tradable items
- 89.3
- services RPP, labor-priced
A $100,000 national salary carries the purchasing power of about $110,812 here; matching a $100K lifestyle takes roughly $90,243.
Salary Equivalent
A $100,000 salary at the national average cost of living equals:
$90,243
in Lawrence, KS purchasing power
$50,000 nationally
$45,122
$75,000 nationally
$67,682
$125,000 nationally
$112,804
$150,000 nationally
$135,365
$200,000 nationally
$180,486
Use the salary calculator for custom amounts.
Affordability score
C
65/100
How far the median local paycheck goes here, combining income and housing cost
Purchasing power
Not reported
Housing affordability C
65th 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.
Housing-led affordability profile
How Lawrence's cost structure works
Housing is the strongest affordability offset in Lawrence: rents index at 71.6, 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 90.2.
Across all reported metros, the closest component-profile matches are Wausau, WI, Manhattan, KS, Springfield, IL. They resemble Lawrence 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, Lawrence's overall index has fallen by 7.9 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.
Lawrence vs every U.S. metro
Where this metro sits in the national cost distribution
90 Bottom 27% higher than 27% 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
Lawrence cost breakdown
BEA RPP by category, 100 = national average
- Rents
Rents
71.6 RPP
- Services
Services
89.3 RPP
- Overall
Overall
90.2 RPP
- Goods
Goods
94 RPP
What this shows Lawrence's cost structure is housing-led: rents at 71.6 depart furthest from 100, while services sits at 89.3. This is a rent-sensitive profile, not a claim that every local expense moves together.
Goods vs. housing, where Lawrence's cost comes from
Metros near Lawrence's overall cost, plotted by their goods price (horizontal) and housing price (vertical). Same headline RPP, very different structures.
Read the chart as text
- Lawrence (Lawrence, this metro): goods RPP 94, rents RPP 71.6
- Las Cruces: goods RPP 96.1, rents RPP 63
- Bowling Green: goods RPP 96.2, rents RPP 63.4
- Manhattan: goods RPP 94, rents RPP 72
- Rome: goods RPP 96.3, rents RPP 60.3
- Elkhart: goods RPP 94.3, rents RPP 64.3
- Abilene: goods RPP 93.8, rents RPP 73.8
Price Index Summary
Goods
94.0
Below avg
Services
89.3
Cheap
Rents
71.6
Cheap
Latest BEA release change
What changed from 2023 to 2024
Lawrence's overall RPP fell -0.7 points, from 90.9 in 2023 to 90.2 in 2024. The largest category movement was services, changing from 92.8 to 89.3. 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 7.9 points over this period. The largest single-year move was in 2015, when the index dropped 3.4 points from the year before.
Lawrence overall RPP, 2008-2024
Every year on record, national average = 100
| Year | Overall |
|---|---|
| 2008 | 98.2 |
| 2009 | 97.7 |
| 2010 | 97.5 |
| 2011 | 95.9 |
| 2012 | 96.0 |
| 2013 | 96.1 |
| 2014 | 96.5 |
| 2015 | 93.1 |
| 2016 | 94.1 |
| 2017 | 94.3 |
| 2018 | 94.3 |
| 2019 | 92.2 |
| 2020 | 94.0 |
| 2021 | 92.8 |
| 2022 | 92.2 |
| 2023 | 90.9 |
| 2024 | 90.2 |
Metros with Similar Cost of Living
These metros have an overall RPP closest to Lawrence, KS's index of 90.2.
Showing the 6 closest of 387 metro areas tracked nationally.
KS-relative analysis
Goods prices places Lawrence, KS near the bottom of KS's metros
Among the 4 KS metros PlainCost tracks with reported goods prices data, Lawrence, KS ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide rank above: it compares Lawrence, KS only against its own state's metros, not the full US field.
Goods prices
#1 of 4
0th percentile in KS
Services prices
#1 of 4
75th percentile in KS
Rent prices
#2 of 4
50th percentile in KS
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 KS only, not a livability score.
Nationwide metros with similar overall cost or rent prices
Two BEA RPP-derived peer sets for Lawrence, KS: 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 (90.2 here).
Similar rents RPP
Nearest metros by rents regional price parity (71.6 here).
Other KS Metros
View all KS metros → Cheapest in KS → Most expensive in KS →
Decision peers
Metros with a similar cost mix
These metros are closest to Lawrence'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.
Wausau, WI
Goods 93.8 · Services 90.0 · Rents 71.5 Manhattan, KS
Goods 94.0 · Services 88.4 · Rents 72.0 Springfield, IL
Goods 93.6 · Services 90.4 · Rents 71.6 Champaign-Urbana, IL
Goods 93.6 · Services 90.5 · Rents 71.6 Appleton, WI
Goods 93.8 · Services 90.6 · Rents 70.8 Rockford, IL
Goods 93.6 · Services 89.4 · Rents 70.1
Compare to Other Metros
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Cost of living guides →, cheapest and most-expensive metro rankings, salary negotiation with RPP data, and step-by-step comparison walkthroughs.
What this means for Lawrence
How to read Lawrence'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 $110,812 in Lawrence. Salary calculator
- Start with rents: it indexes at 71.6, 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 Lawrence 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 Lawrence, KS?
Lawrence, KS has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) index of 90.2, meaning it is 9.8% less expensive than the national average. Goods are indexed at 94.0, services at 89.3, and rents at 71.6. It ranks #284 out of 387 U.S. metro areas by overall cost.
What salary do I need in Lawrence, KS to match $100K nationally?
To maintain the same purchasing power as a $100,000 salary at the national average, you would need approximately $90,243 in Lawrence, KS. Conversely, $100K earned in Lawrence, KS has the purchasing power of $110,812 at the national average.
How expensive is rent in Lawrence, KS?
Rents in Lawrence, KS are indexed at 71.6, which is 28.4% below the national average. This makes the area relatively affordable for renters.
Is Lawrence, KS getting more expensive?
From 2008 to 2024, Lawrence, KS's overall cost index changed by -7.9 points (from 98.2 to 90.2). The cost of living has been declining.
What costs the most in Lawrence, KS?
The priciest category in Lawrence, KS is goods at 94.0, 6.0% below the national average, still the highest of the three categories. The most affordable category is rents at 71.6, 28.4% below average.
What metros have a similar cost of living to Lawrence, KS?
Metros with the most similar overall cost index include Las Cruces, Bowling Green, Manhattan. These areas have RPP values within a few points of Lawrence, KS's 90.2.
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.