Overall
89.2
Cheap
Metro cost profile · 2024 BEA RPP
Rapid City, SD
Cost-of-living indicators for Rapid City, SD, from Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parities, overall, goods, services, and rents vs the U.S. average of 100.
- 89.2
- Overall RPP
- #308
- of 387 metros
- 72.6
- Rents RPP
- $112K
- $100K national buys
Rapid City ranks #308 of 387 U.S. metros by cost, and its overall price index has held steady since 2008.
- stable since 2008
- similar cost to Tulsa
The verdict
Rapid City costs less than 80% of U.S. metros, an overall index of 89.2, 10.8% below the national average, with rents the biggest swing at 72.6.
- bottom 20%
- by overall cost, nationwide
- 95.5
- goods RPP, tradable items
- 79.1
- services RPP, labor-priced
A $100,000 national salary carries the purchasing power of about $112,158 here; matching a $100K lifestyle takes roughly $89,160.
Latest BEA release change
What changed from 2023 to 2024
Rapid City's overall RPP fell -1.1 points, from 90.3 in 2023 to 89.2 in 2024. The largest category movement was rents, changing from 76.9 to 72.6. 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 1.1 points over this period. The largest single-year move was in 2012, when the index jumped 7.6 points from the year before, a bigger swing than the full 2008-2024 change.
Rapid City overall RPP, 2008-2024
Every year on record, national average = 100
| Year | Overall |
|---|---|
| 2008 | 90.3 |
| 2009 | 90.4 |
| 2010 | 91.8 |
| 2011 | 86.8 |
| 2012 | 94.5 |
| 2013 | 93.3 |
| 2014 | 91.7 |
| 2015 | 89.7 |
| 2016 | 89.8 |
| 2017 | 89.3 |
| 2018 | 92.0 |
| 2019 | 92.4 |
| 2020 | 94.2 |
| 2021 | 92.0 |
| 2022 | 90.6 |
| 2023 | 90.3 |
| 2024 | 89.2 |
Housing-led affordability profile
How Rapid City's cost structure works
Housing is the strongest affordability offset in Rapid City: rents index at 72.6, 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 89.2.
Across all reported metros, the closest component-profile matches are Casper, WY, Abilene, TX, Pueblo, CO. They resemble Rapid City 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, Rapid City's overall index has stayed within 1.1 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.
Rapid City vs every U.S. metro
Where this metro sits in the national cost distribution
89 Bottom 20% higher than 20% 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
Rapid City cost breakdown
BEA RPP by category, 100 = national average
- Rents
Rents
72.6 RPP
- Services
Services
79.1 RPP
- Overall
Overall
89.2 RPP
- Goods
Goods
95.5 RPP
What this shows Rapid City's cost structure is housing-led: rents at 72.6 depart furthest from 100, while services sits at 79.1. This is a rent-sensitive profile, not a claim that every local expense moves together.
Goods vs. housing, where Rapid City's cost comes from
Metros near Rapid City's overall cost, plotted by their goods price (horizontal) and housing price (vertical). Same headline RPP, very different structures.
Read the chart as text
- Rapid City (Rapid City, this metro): goods RPP 95.5, rents RPP 72.6
- Tulsa: goods RPP 93.8, rents RPP 68.2
- Davenport: goods RPP 94.2, rents RPP 68.3
- Sierra Vista: goods RPP 96.2, rents RPP 61.9
- Jackson: goods RPP 96.2, rents RPP 64.8
- Sandusky: goods RPP 93.6, rents RPP 59.5
- Weirton: goods RPP 96.4, rents RPP 52.4
Price Index Summary
Goods
95.5
Below avg
Services
79.1
Cheap
Rents
72.6
Cheap
Salary Equivalent
A $100,000 salary at the national average cost of living equals:
$89,160
in Rapid City, SD purchasing power
$50,000 nationally
$44,580
$75,000 nationally
$66,870
$125,000 nationally
$111,450
$150,000 nationally
$133,740
$200,000 nationally
$178,320
Use the salary calculator for custom amounts.
Affordability score
C
63/100
How far the median local paycheck goes here, combining income and housing cost
Purchasing power
Not reported
Housing affordability C
63rd 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.
SD-relative analysis
Services prices places Rapid City, SD near the bottom of SD's metros
Among the 2 SD metros PlainCost tracks with reported services prices data, Rapid City, SD ranks #2 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide rank above: it compares Rapid City, SD only against its own state's metros, not the full US field.
Goods prices
#1 of 2
50th percentile in SD
Services prices
#2 of 2
0th percentile in SD
Rent prices
#2 of 2
0th percentile in SD
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 SD only, not a livability score.
Nationwide metros with similar overall cost or rent prices
Two BEA RPP-derived peer sets for Rapid City, SD: 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 (89.2 here).
Similar rents RPP
Nearest metros by rents regional price parity (72.6 here).
Other SD Metros
View all SD metros → Cheapest in SD → Most expensive in SD →
Decision peers
Metros with a similar cost mix
These metros are closest to Rapid City'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.
Casper, WY
Goods 95.4 · Services 78.9 · Rents 74.2 Abilene, TX
Goods 93.8 · Services 81.2 · Rents 73.8 Pueblo, CO
Goods 96.1 · Services 81.9 · Rents 71.3 El Paso, TX
Goods 93.8 · Services 82.6 · Rents 71.2 Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX
Goods 93.8 · Services 83.1 · Rents 70.9 Birmingham, AL
Goods 96.4 · Services 83.8 · Rents 71.9
Metros with Similar Cost of Living
These metros have an overall RPP closest to Rapid City, SD's index of 89.2.
Showing the 6 closest of 387 metro areas tracked nationally.
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.
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
What this means for Rapid City
How to read Rapid City'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 $112,158 in Rapid City. Salary calculator
- Start with rents: it indexes at 72.6, 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 Rapid City 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 Rapid City, SD?
Rapid City, SD has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) index of 89.2, meaning it is 10.8% less expensive than the national average. Goods are indexed at 95.5, services at 79.1, and rents at 72.6. It ranks #308 out of 387 U.S. metro areas by overall cost.
What salary do I need in Rapid City, SD to match $100K nationally?
To maintain the same purchasing power as a $100,000 salary at the national average, you would need approximately $89,160 in Rapid City, SD. Conversely, $100K earned in Rapid City, SD has the purchasing power of $112,158 at the national average.
How expensive is rent in Rapid City, SD?
Rents in Rapid City, SD are indexed at 72.6, which is 27.4% below the national average. This makes the area relatively affordable for renters.
Is Rapid City, SD getting more expensive?
From 2008 to 2024, Rapid City, SD's overall cost index changed by -1.1 points (from 90.3 to 89.2). The cost of living has remained relatively stable.
What costs the most in Rapid City, SD?
The priciest category in Rapid City, SD is goods at 95.5, 4.5% below the national average, still the highest of the three categories. The most affordable category is rents at 72.6, 27.4% below average.
What metros have a similar cost of living to Rapid City, SD?
Metros with the most similar overall cost index include Tulsa, Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, Sierra Vista-Douglas. These areas have RPP values within a few points of Rapid City, SD's 89.2.
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.