Overall
98.8
Below avg
Metro cost profile · 2024 BEA RPP
Santa Fe, NM
Cost-of-living indicators for Santa Fe, NM, from Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parities, overall, goods, services, and rents vs the U.S. average of 100.
- 98.8
- Overall RPP
- #99
- of 387 metros
- 108.0
- Rents RPP
- $101K
- $100K national buys
Santa Fe ranks #99 of 387 U.S. metros by cost, and its overall price index has held steady since 2008.
- stable since 2008
- similar cost to Atlantic City-Hammonton
The verdict
Santa Fe costs less than 26% of U.S. metros, an overall index of 98.8, 1.2% below the national average, with services the biggest swing at 76.7.
- bottom 74%
- by overall cost, nationwide
- 96.1
- goods RPP, tradable items
- 76.7
- services RPP, labor-priced
A $100,000 national salary carries the purchasing power of about $101,248 here; matching a $100K lifestyle takes roughly $98,767.
Santa Fe vs every U.S. metro
Where this metro sits in the national cost distribution
99 Top 26% higher than 74% 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
Santa Fe cost breakdown
BEA RPP by category, 100 = national average
- Rents
Rents
108 RPP
- Services
Services
76.7 RPP
- Overall
Overall
98.8 RPP
- Goods
Goods
96.1 RPP
What this shows Santa Fe's strongest departure is services at 76.7; rents follows at 108.0. Labor-priced local activity, rather than housing alone, is the first budget line to investigate.
Goods vs. housing, where Santa Fe's cost comes from
Metros near Santa Fe's overall cost, plotted by their goods price (horizontal) and housing price (vertical). Same headline RPP, very different structures.
Read the chart as text
- Santa Fe (Santa Fe, this metro): goods RPP 96.1, rents RPP 108
- Atlantic City: goods RPP 99.8, rents RPP 98.7
- Harrisburg: goods RPP 100.7, rents RPP 96.3
- Houston: goods RPP 100.6, rents RPP 104.5
- Walla Walla: goods RPP 105, rents RPP 86.6
- Boise City: goods RPP 96.2, rents RPP 105.6
- Charlottesville: goods RPP 96.8, rents RPP 107
Price Index Summary
Goods
96.1
Below avg
Services
76.7
Cheap
Rents
108.0
Above avg
Service-cost relief profile
How Santa Fe's cost structure works
Services provide the strongest cost offset in Santa Fe: their index is 76.7, farther below the national baseline than rents or tradable goods. The overall RPP of 98.8 therefore has a different source than a place with cheaper housing instead.
Across all reported metros, the closest component-profile matches are Provo-Orem-Lehi, UT, Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN, Coeur d'Alene, ID. They resemble Santa Fe 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, Santa Fe's overall index has stayed within 0.8 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.
RPP History (2008-2024)
The cost of living has remained relatively stable, changing by only 0.8 points over this period. The largest single-year move was in 2024, when the index jumped 4.7 points from the year before, a bigger swing than the full 2008-2024 change.
Santa Fe overall RPP, 2008-2024
Every year on record, national average = 100
| Year | Overall |
|---|---|
| 2008 | 98.0 |
| 2009 | 102.0 |
| 2010 | 100.2 |
| 2011 | 103.2 |
| 2012 | 102.1 |
| 2013 | 100.2 |
| 2014 | 101.6 |
| 2015 | 98.7 |
| 2016 | 98.4 |
| 2017 | 98.8 |
| 2018 | 96.2 |
| 2019 | 96.9 |
| 2020 | 96.6 |
| 2021 | 93.2 |
| 2022 | 94.9 |
| 2023 | 94.1 |
| 2024 | 98.8 |
Latest BEA release change
What changed from 2023 to 2024
Santa Fe's overall RPP rose +4.7 points, from 94.1 in 2023 to 98.8 in 2024. The largest category movement was rents, changing from 90.8 to 108.0. 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:
$98,767
in Santa Fe, NM purchasing power
$50,000 nationally
$49,384
$75,000 nationally
$74,075
$125,000 nationally
$123,459
$150,000 nationally
$148,151
$200,000 nationally
$197,534
Use the salary calculator for custom amounts.
Affordability score
F
19/100
How far the median local paycheck goes here, combining income and housing cost
Purchasing power
Not reported
Housing affordability F
19th 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.
Decision peers
Metros with a similar cost mix
These metros are closest to Santa Fe'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.
Provo-Orem-Lehi, UT
Goods 96.4 · Services 78.6 · Rents 104.1 Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN
Goods 96.2 · Services 72.0 · Rents 104.6 Coeur d'Alene, ID
Goods 96.2 · Services 70.8 · Rents 105.6 Boise City, ID
Goods 96.2 · Services 70.7 · Rents 105.6 Greeley, CO
Goods 96.1 · Services 82.0 · Rents 112.6 Midland, TX
Goods 93.8 · Services 83.2 · Rents 101.5
NM-relative analysis
Goods prices places Santa Fe, NM near the bottom of NM's metros
Among the 4 NM metros PlainCost tracks with reported goods prices data, Santa Fe, NM ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide rank above: it compares Santa Fe, NM only against its own state's metros, not the full US field.
Goods prices
#1 of 4
0th percentile in NM
Services prices
#4 of 4
0th percentile in NM
Rent prices
#1 of 4
75th percentile in NM
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 NM only, not a livability score.
Nationwide metros with similar overall cost or rent prices
Two BEA RPP-derived peer sets for Santa Fe, NM: 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 (98.8 here).
Similar rents RPP
Nearest metros by rents regional price parity (108.0 here).
Other NM Metros
View all NM metros → Cheapest in NM → Most expensive in NM →
Metros with Similar Cost of Living
These metros have an overall RPP closest to Santa Fe, NM's index of 98.8.
Showing the 6 closest of 387 metro areas tracked nationally.
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
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 Santa Fe
How to read Santa Fe'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 $101,248 in Santa Fe. Salary calculator
- Start with services: it indexes at 76.7, 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 Santa Fe 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 Santa Fe, NM?
Santa Fe, NM has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) index of 98.8, meaning it is 1.2% less expensive than the national average. Goods are indexed at 96.1, services at 76.7, and rents at 108.0. It ranks #99 out of 387 U.S. metro areas by overall cost.
What salary do I need in Santa Fe, NM to match $100K nationally?
To maintain the same purchasing power as a $100,000 salary at the national average, you would need approximately $98,767 in Santa Fe, NM. Conversely, $100K earned in Santa Fe, NM has the purchasing power of $101,248 at the national average.
How expensive is rent in Santa Fe, NM?
Rents in Santa Fe, NM are indexed at 108.0, which is 8.0% above the national average. This is close to the U.S. average.
Is Santa Fe, NM getting more expensive?
From 2008 to 2024, Santa Fe, NM's overall cost index changed by +0.8 points (from 98.0 to 98.8). The cost of living has remained relatively stable.
What costs the most in Santa Fe, NM?
The priciest category in Santa Fe, NM is rents at 108.0, 8.0% above the national average. The most affordable category is services at 76.7, 23.3% below average.
What metros have a similar cost of living to Santa Fe, NM?
Metros with the most similar overall cost index include Atlantic City-Hammonton, Harrisburg-Carlisle, Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands. These areas have RPP values within a few points of Santa Fe, NM's 98.8.
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.