Overall
100.3
Above avg
Metro cost profile · 2024 BEA RPP
Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA
Cost-of-living indicators for Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA, from Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parities, overall, goods, services, and rents vs the U.S. average of 100.
- 100.3
- Overall RPP
- #81
- of 387 metros
- 97.1
- Rents RPP
- $100K
- $100K national buys
Spokane ranks #81 of 387 U.S. metros by cost, and its overall price index has risen 5.1 points since 2008.
- rising since 2008
- similar cost to Ogden
The verdict
Spokane is more expensive than 79% of U.S. metros, an overall cost index of 100.3, 0.3% above the national average, led by services at 91.2.
- top 21%
- by overall cost, nationwide
- 105.0
- goods RPP, tradable items
- 91.2
- services RPP, labor-priced
A $100,000 national salary carries the purchasing power of about $99,655 here; matching a $100K lifestyle takes roughly $100,346.
Salary Equivalent
A $100,000 salary at the national average cost of living equals:
$100,346
in Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA purchasing power
$50,000 nationally
$50,173
$75,000 nationally
$75,260
$125,000 nationally
$125,433
$150,000 nationally
$150,519
$200,000 nationally
$200,692
Use the salary calculator for custom amounts.
Affordability score
D
28/100
How far the median local paycheck goes here, combining income and housing cost
Purchasing power
Not reported
Housing affordability D
28th 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.
Service-cost relief profile
How Spokane's cost structure works
Services provide the strongest cost offset in Spokane: their index is 91.2, farther below the national baseline than rents or tradable goods. The overall RPP of 100.3 therefore has a different source than a place with cheaper housing instead.
Across all reported metros, the closest component-profile matches are Kennewick-Richland, WA, Kenosha, WI, Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC. They resemble Spokane 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, Spokane's overall index has risen by 5.1 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.
Spokane vs every U.S. metro
Where this metro sits in the national cost distribution
100 Top 21% higher than 79% 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
Spokane cost breakdown
BEA RPP by category, 100 = national average
- Rents
Rents
97.1 RPP
- Services
Services
91.2 RPP
- Overall
Overall
100.3 RPP
- Goods
Goods
105 RPP
What this shows Spokane's strongest departure is services at 91.2; goods follows at 105.0. Labor-priced local activity, rather than housing alone, is the first budget line to investigate.
Goods vs. housing, where Spokane's cost comes from
Metros near Spokane's overall cost, plotted by their goods price (horizontal) and housing price (vertical). Same headline RPP, very different structures.
Crosshairs sit at the group median (goods 97, rents 97.5). Spokane is skewed toward everyday-goods costs relative to its peer group. Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.
Read the chart as text
- Spokane (Spokane, this metro): goods RPP 105, rents RPP 97.1
- Ogden: goods RPP 96.4, rents RPP 117.9
- Flagstaff: goods RPP 96.2, rents RPP 109
- Detroit: goods RPP 98.8, rents RPP 94.7
- Norwich: goods RPP 97.3, rents RPP 93.7
- Amherst Town: goods RPP 97, rents RPP 97.5
- Port St. Lucie: goods RPP 96.2, rents RPP 113.6
Price Index Summary
Goods
105.0
Above avg
Services
91.2
Below avg
Rents
97.1
Below avg
Latest BEA release change
What changed from 2023 to 2024
Spokane's overall RPP fell -0.6 points, from 100.9 in 2023 to 100.3 in 2024. The largest category movement was services, changing from 82.4 to 91.2. 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 upward, increasing by 5.1 points over this period. The largest single-year move was in 2022, when the index jumped 3.9 points from the year before.
Spokane overall RPP, 2008-2024
Every year on record, national average = 100
| Year | Overall |
|---|---|
| 2008 | 95.3 |
| 2009 | 98.1 |
| 2010 | 96.8 |
| 2011 | 97.0 |
| 2012 | 97.9 |
| 2013 | 97.5 |
| 2014 | 96.7 |
| 2015 | 96.2 |
| 2016 | 96.1 |
| 2017 | 97.2 |
| 2018 | 100.2 |
| 2019 | 99.4 |
| 2020 | 98.6 |
| 2021 | 98.7 |
| 2022 | 102.6 |
| 2023 | 100.9 |
| 2024 | 100.3 |
Metros with Similar Cost of Living
These metros have an overall RPP closest to Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA's index of 100.3.
WA-relative analysis
Services prices places Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA near the bottom of WA's metros
Among the 11 WA metros PlainCost tracks with reported services prices data, Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA ranks #11 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide rank above: it compares Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA only against its own state's metros, not the full US field.
Goods prices
#1 of 11
9th percentile in WA
Services prices
#11 of 11
0th percentile in WA
Rent prices
#7 of 11
36th percentile in WA
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 WA only, not a livability score.
Other WA Metros
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA 111.1 Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard, WA 105.6 Wenatchee-East Wenatchee, WA 103.9 Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA 103.7 Bellingham, WA 103.3 Mount Vernon-Anacortes, WA 102.4
View all WA metros → Cheapest in WA → Most expensive in WA →
Decision peers
Metros with a similar cost mix
These metros are closest to Spokane'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.
Kennewick-Richland, WA
Goods 105.0 · Services 93.6 · Rents 94.8 Kenosha, WI
Goods 106.2 · Services 85.9 · Rents 95.8 Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC
Goods 96.6 · Services 89.2 · Rents 97.6 Richmond, VA
Goods 96.8 · Services 89.2 · Rents 99.1 Durham-Chapel Hill, NC
Goods 96.6 · Services 89.3 · Rents 98.9 Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC
Goods 96.8 · Services 89.6 · Rents 99.8
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 Spokane
How to read Spokane'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 $99,655 in Spokane. Salary calculator
- Start with services: it indexes at 91.2, 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 Spokane 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 Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA?
Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) index of 100.3, meaning it is 0.3% more expensive than the national average. Goods are indexed at 105.0, services at 91.2, and rents at 97.1. It ranks #81 out of 387 U.S. metro areas by overall cost.
What salary do I need in Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA to match $100K nationally?
To maintain the same purchasing power as a $100,000 salary at the national average, you would need approximately $100,346 in Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA. Conversely, $100K earned in Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA has the purchasing power of $99,655 at the national average.
How expensive is rent in Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA?
Rents in Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA are indexed at 97.1, which is 2.9% below the national average. This is close to the U.S. average.
Is Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA getting more expensive?
From 2008 to 2024, Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA's overall cost index changed by +5.1 points (from 95.3 to 100.3). The cost of living has been trending upward.
What costs the most in Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA?
The priciest category in Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA is goods at 105.0, 5.0% above the national average. The most affordable category is services at 91.2, 8.8% below average.
What metros have a similar cost of living to Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA?
Metros with the most similar overall cost index include Ogden, Flagstaff, Detroit-Warren-Dearborn. These areas have RPP values within a few points of Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA's 100.3.
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.