Overall
94.7
Below avg
Metro cost profile · 2024 BEA RPP
San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX
Cost-of-living indicators for San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX, from Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parities, overall, goods, services, and rents vs the U.S. average of 100.
- 94.7
- Overall RPP
- #173
- of 387 metros
- 94.6
- Rents RPP
- $106K
- $100K national buys
San Antonio ranks #173 of 387 U.S. metros by cost, and its overall price index has held steady since 2008.
- stable since 2008
- similar cost to Lewiston-Auburn
The verdict
San Antonio costs less than 45% of U.S. metros, an overall index of 94.7, 5.3% below the national average, with services the biggest swing at 82.2.
- bottom 55%
- by overall cost, nationwide
- 93.8
- goods RPP, tradable items
- 82.2
- services RPP, labor-priced
A $100,000 national salary carries the purchasing power of about $105,579 here; matching a $100K lifestyle takes roughly $94,716.
Salary Equivalent
A $100,000 salary at the national average cost of living equals:
$94,716
in San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX purchasing power
$50,000 nationally
$47,358
$75,000 nationally
$71,037
$125,000 nationally
$118,395
$150,000 nationally
$142,074
$200,000 nationally
$189,432
Use the salary calculator for custom amounts.
Affordability score
D
31/100
How far the median local paycheck goes here, combining income and housing cost
Purchasing power
Not reported
Housing affordability D
31st 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 1.4 points over this period. The largest single-year move was in 2018, when the index dropped 1.6 points from the year before, a bigger swing than the full 2008-2024 change.
San Antonio overall RPP, 2008-2024
Every year on record, national average = 100
| Year | Overall |
|---|---|
| 2008 | 96.1 |
| 2009 | 95.1 |
| 2010 | 96.4 |
| 2011 | 96.6 |
| 2012 | 97.4 |
| 2013 | 97.4 |
| 2014 | 97.7 |
| 2015 | 97.5 |
| 2016 | 98.3 |
| 2017 | 97.1 |
| 2018 | 95.5 |
| 2019 | 95.8 |
| 2020 | 96.8 |
| 2021 | 96.2 |
| 2022 | 95.0 |
| 2023 | 94.3 |
| 2024 | 94.7 |
Latest BEA release change
What changed from 2023 to 2024
San Antonio's overall RPP rose +0.4 points, from 94.3 in 2023 to 94.7 in 2024. The largest category movement was services, changing from 88.4 to 82.2. This is a relative change against the national benchmark, not a household's dollar bill.
Service-cost relief profile
How San Antonio's cost structure works
Services provide the strongest cost offset in San Antonio: their index is 82.2, farther below the national baseline than rents or tradable goods. The overall RPP of 94.7 therefore has a different source than a place with cheaper housing instead.
Across all reported metros, the closest component-profile matches are Odessa, TX, Sherman-Denison, TX, Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL. They resemble San Antonio 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, San Antonio's overall index has stayed within 1.4 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.
San Antonio vs every U.S. metro
Where this metro sits in the national cost distribution
95 Top 45% higher than 55% 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
San Antonio cost breakdown
BEA RPP by category, 100 = national average
- Rents
Rents
94.6 RPP
- Services
Services
82.2 RPP
- Overall
Overall
94.7 RPP
- Goods
Goods
93.8 RPP
What this shows San Antonio's strongest departure is services at 82.2; goods follows at 93.8. Labor-priced local activity, rather than housing alone, is the first budget line to investigate.
Goods vs. housing, where San Antonio's cost comes from
Metros near San Antonio's overall cost, plotted by their goods price (horizontal) and housing price (vertical). Same headline RPP, very different structures.
Read the chart as text
- San Antonio (San Antonio, this metro): goods RPP 93.8, rents RPP 94.6
- Lewiston: goods RPP 97.2, rents RPP 69
- Daphne: goods RPP 96.4, rents RPP 89.2
- Pittsburgh: goods RPP 100.7, rents RPP 72
- Chambersburg: goods RPP 100.7, rents RPP 71.9
- Kalamazoo: goods RPP 93.7, rents RPP 81.6
- Glens Falls: goods RPP 99.7, rents RPP 76.2
Price Index Summary
Goods
93.8
Below avg
Services
82.2
Cheap
Rents
94.6
Below avg
Metros with Similar Cost of Living
These metros have an overall RPP closest to San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX's index of 94.7.
Showing the 6 closest of 387 metro areas tracked nationally.
Decision peers
Metros with a similar cost mix
These metros are closest to San Antonio'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.
Odessa, TX
Goods 93.8 · Services 82.9 · Rents 89.7 Sherman-Denison, TX
Goods 93.8 · Services 83.3 · Rents 89.5 Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL
Goods 96.2 · Services 86.9 · Rents 95.9 Daphne-Fairhope-Foley, AL
Goods 96.4 · Services 83.3 · Rents 89.2 Logan, UT-ID
Goods 96.4 · Services 77.9 · Rents 91.0 St. George, UT
Goods 96.4 · Services 77.7 · Rents 98.1
TX-relative analysis
Goods prices places San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX near the bottom of TX's metros
Among the 26 TX metros PlainCost tracks with reported goods prices data, San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX ranks #3 - the 4th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide rank above: it compares San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX only against its own state's metros, not the full US field.
Goods prices
#3 of 26
4th percentile in TX
Services prices
#15 of 26
42nd percentile in TX
Rent prices
#5 of 26
81st percentile in TX
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 TX only, not a livability score.
Nationwide metros with similar overall cost or rent prices
Two BEA RPP-derived peer sets for San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX: 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 (94.7 here).
Similar rents RPP
Nearest metros by rents regional price parity (94.6 here).
Other TX Metros
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX 103.1 Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX 98.6 Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX 98.1 Midland, TX 95.8 Odessa, TX 93.9 Sherman-Denison, TX 93.8
View all TX metros → Cheapest in TX → Most expensive in TX →
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 San Antonio
How to read San Antonio'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 $105,579 in San Antonio. Salary calculator
- Start with services: it indexes at 82.2, 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 San Antonio 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 San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX?
San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) index of 94.7, meaning it is 5.3% less expensive than the national average. Goods are indexed at 93.8, services at 82.2, and rents at 94.6. It ranks #173 out of 387 U.S. metro areas by overall cost.
What salary do I need in San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX to match $100K nationally?
To maintain the same purchasing power as a $100,000 salary at the national average, you would need approximately $94,716 in San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX. Conversely, $100K earned in San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX has the purchasing power of $105,579 at the national average.
How expensive is rent in San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX?
Rents in San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX are indexed at 94.6, which is 5.4% below the national average. This is close to the U.S. average.
Is San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX getting more expensive?
From 2008 to 2024, San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX's overall cost index changed by -1.4 points (from 96.1 to 94.7). The cost of living has remained relatively stable.
What costs the most in San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX?
The priciest category in San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX is rents at 94.6, 5.4% below the national average, still the highest of the three categories. The most affordable category is services at 82.2, 17.8% below average.
What metros have a similar cost of living to San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX?
Metros with the most similar overall cost index include Lewiston-Auburn, Daphne-Fairhope-Foley, Pittsburgh. These areas have RPP values within a few points of San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX's 94.7.
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.