Overall
101.0
Above avg
Metro cost profile · 2024 BEA RPP
Reno, NV
Cost-of-living indicators for Reno, NV, from Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parities, overall, goods, services, and rents vs the U.S. average of 100.
- 101.0
- Overall RPP
- #67
- of 387 metros
- 123.5
- Rents RPP
- $99K
- $100K national buys
Reno ranks #67 of 387 U.S. metros by cost, and its overall price index has held steady since 2008.
- stable since 2008
- similar cost to Charleston-North Charleston
The verdict
Reno is more expensive than 83% of U.S. metros, an overall cost index of 101.0, 1.0% above the national average, led by rents at 123.5.
- top 17%
- by overall cost, nationwide
- 96.3
- goods RPP, tradable items
- 89.3
- services RPP, labor-priced
A $100,000 national salary carries the purchasing power of about $98,996 here; matching a $100K lifestyle takes roughly $101,014.
RPP History (2008-2024)
The cost of living has remained relatively stable, changing by only 0.3 points over this period. The largest single-year move was in 2018, when the index dropped 3.0 points from the year before, a bigger swing than the full 2008-2024 change.
Reno overall RPP, 2008-2024
Every year on record, national average = 100
| Year | Overall |
|---|---|
| 2008 | 101.3 |
| 2009 | 103.2 |
| 2010 | 101.3 |
| 2011 | 102.9 |
| 2012 | 102.5 |
| 2013 | 100.9 |
| 2014 | 99.9 |
| 2015 | 99.4 |
| 2016 | 98.2 |
| 2017 | 100.5 |
| 2018 | 97.5 |
| 2019 | 100.2 |
| 2020 | 98.3 |
| 2021 | 96.9 |
| 2022 | 97.9 |
| 2023 | 98.0 |
| 2024 | 101.0 |
Latest BEA release change
What changed from 2023 to 2024
Reno's overall RPP rose +3.0 points, from 98.0 in 2023 to 101.0 in 2024. The largest category movement was rents, changing from 115.9 to 123.5. 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:
$101,014
in Reno, NV purchasing power
$50,000 nationally
$50,507
$75,000 nationally
$75,761
$125,000 nationally
$126,268
$150,000 nationally
$151,521
$200,000 nationally
$202,028
Use the salary calculator for custom amounts.
Affordability score
F
9/100
How far the median local paycheck goes here, combining income and housing cost
Purchasing power
Not reported
Housing affordability F
9th 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.
Reno vs every U.S. metro
Where this metro sits in the national cost distribution
101 Top 17% higher than 83% 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
Reno cost breakdown
BEA RPP by category, 100 = national average
- Rents
Rents
123.5 RPP
- Services
Services
89.3 RPP
- Overall
Overall
101 RPP
- Goods
Goods
96.3 RPP
What this shows Reno's cost structure is housing-led: rents at 123.5 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 Reno's cost comes from
Metros near Reno's overall cost, plotted by their goods price (horizontal) and housing price (vertical). Same headline RPP, very different structures.
Read the chart as text
- Reno (Reno, this metro): goods RPP 96.3, rents RPP 123.5
- Charleston: goods RPP 96.3, rents RPP 119.8
- Burlington: goods RPP 97.3, rents RPP 103.8
- Kenosha: goods RPP 106.2, rents RPP 95.8
- Fort Collins: goods RPP 96.1, rents RPP 120.6
- Tampa: goods RPP 95.5, rents RPP 125.8
- Bakersfield: goods RPP 105.2, rents RPP 90.3
Price Index Summary
Goods
96.3
Below avg
Services
89.3
Cheap
Rents
123.5
Expensive
Housing-led cost profile
How Reno's cost structure works
Housing is the defining pressure in Reno: rents index at 123.5, the furthest component above the national benchmark. The overall index of 101.0 places Reno among the priciest quarter of U.S. metros; the rent line explains why a similar headline RPP can still require a different housing budget.
Across all reported metros, the closest component-profile matches are Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL, Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL, Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL. They resemble Reno 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, Reno's overall index has stayed within 0.3 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.
NV-relative analysis
Goods prices places Reno, NV near the bottom of NV's metros
Among the 3 NV metros PlainCost tracks with reported goods prices data, Reno, NV ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide rank above: it compares Reno, NV only against its own state's metros, not the full US field.
Goods prices
#1 of 3
0th percentile in NV
Services prices
#3 of 3
0th percentile in NV
Rent prices
#1 of 3
67th percentile in NV
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 NV only, not a livability score.
Nationwide metros with similar overall cost or rent prices
Two BEA RPP-derived peer sets for Reno, NV: 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 (101.0 here).
Similar rents RPP
Nearest metros by rents regional price parity (123.5 here).
Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL Rents 123.4 Salt Lake City-Murray, UT Rents 123.3 New Haven, CT Rents 124.3 Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL Rents 125.1 Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA Rents 125.1 Ann Arbor, MI Rents 125.3 Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ Rents 121.2 Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL Rents 125.8
Other NV Metros
View all NV metros → Cheapest in NV → Most expensive in NV →
Metros with Similar Cost of Living
These metros have an overall RPP closest to Reno, NV's index of 101.0.
Showing the 6 closest of 387 metro areas tracked nationally.
Decision peers
Metros with a similar cost mix
These metros are closest to Reno'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.
Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL
Goods 96.2 · Services 87.2 · Rents 123.4 Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL
Goods 95.5 · Services 88.5 · Rents 125.8 Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL
Goods 96.2 · Services 86.9 · Rents 125.1 Charleston-North Charleston, SC
Goods 96.3 · Services 88.2 · Rents 119.8 North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota, FL
Goods 96.2 · Services 88.2 · Rents 128.0 Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ
Goods 95.0 · Services 93.3 · Rents 121.2
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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.
What this means for Reno
How to read Reno'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 $98,996 in Reno. Salary calculator
- Start with rents: it indexes at 123.5, 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 Reno 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 Reno, NV?
Reno, NV has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) index of 101.0, meaning it is 1.0% more expensive than the national average. Goods are indexed at 96.3, services at 89.3, and rents at 123.5. It ranks #67 out of 387 U.S. metro areas by overall cost.
What salary do I need in Reno, NV to match $100K nationally?
To maintain the same purchasing power as a $100,000 salary at the national average, you would need approximately $101,014 in Reno, NV. Conversely, $100K earned in Reno, NV has the purchasing power of $98,996 at the national average.
How expensive is rent in Reno, NV?
Rents in Reno, NV are indexed at 123.5, which is 23.5% above the national average. This is significantly higher than typical U.S. rents.
Is Reno, NV getting more expensive?
From 2008 to 2024, Reno, NV's overall cost index changed by -0.3 points (from 101.3 to 101.0). The cost of living has remained relatively stable.
What costs the most in Reno, NV?
The priciest category in Reno, NV is rents at 123.5, 23.5% above the national average. The most affordable category is services at 89.3, 10.7% below average.
What metros have a similar cost of living to Reno, NV?
Metros with the most similar overall cost index include Charleston-North Charleston, Burlington-South Burlington, Kenosha. These areas have RPP values within a few points of Reno, NV's 101.0.
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.