Overall
88.0
Cheap
Metro cost profile · 2024 BEA RPP
Sumter, SC
Cost-of-living indicators for Sumter, SC, from Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parities, overall, goods, services, and rents vs the U.S. average of 100.
- 88.0
- Overall RPP
- #335
- of 387 metros
- 60.8
- Rents RPP
- $114K
- $100K national buys
Sumter ranks #335 of 387 U.S. metros by cost, and its overall price index has held steady since 2008.
- stable since 2008
- similar cost to Rocky Mount
The verdict
Sumter costs less than 87% of U.S. metros, an overall index of 88.0, 12.0% below the national average, with rents the biggest swing at 60.8.
- bottom 13%
- by overall cost, nationwide
- 96.3
- goods RPP, tradable items
- 87.3
- services RPP, labor-priced
A $100,000 national salary carries the purchasing power of about $113,611 here; matching a $100K lifestyle takes roughly $88,020.
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 2021, when the index jumped 5.0 points from the year before, a bigger swing than the full 2008-2024 change.
Sumter overall RPP, 2008-2024
Every year on record, national average = 100
| Year | Overall |
|---|---|
| 2008 | 89.4 |
| 2009 | 87.6 |
| 2010 | 91.8 |
| 2011 | 93.9 |
| 2012 | 89.6 |
| 2013 | 90.2 |
| 2014 | 89.1 |
| 2015 | 89.3 |
| 2016 | 87.1 |
| 2017 | 90.2 |
| 2018 | 87.6 |
| 2019 | 85.8 |
| 2020 | 81.4 |
| 2021 | 86.4 |
| 2022 | 89.9 |
| 2023 | 86.8 |
| 2024 | 88.0 |
Latest BEA release change
What changed from 2023 to 2024
Sumter's overall RPP rose +1.2 points, from 86.8 in 2023 to 88.0 in 2024. The largest category movement was rents, changing from 53.9 to 60.8. 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:
$88,020
in Sumter, SC purchasing power
$50,000 nationally
$44,010
$75,000 nationally
$66,015
$125,000 nationally
$110,025
$150,000 nationally
$132,030
$200,000 nationally
$176,040
Use the salary calculator for custom amounts.
Affordability score
B
82/100
How far the median local paycheck goes here, combining income and housing cost
Purchasing power
Not reported
Housing affordability B
82nd 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.
Sumter vs every U.S. metro
Where this metro sits in the national cost distribution
88 Bottom 13% higher than 13% 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
Sumter cost breakdown
BEA RPP by category, 100 = national average
- Rents
Rents
60.8 RPP
- Services
Services
87.3 RPP
- Overall
Overall
88 RPP
- Goods
Goods
96.3 RPP
What this shows Sumter's cost structure is housing-led: rents at 60.8 depart furthest from 100, while services sits at 87.3. This is a rent-sensitive profile, not a claim that every local expense moves together.
Goods vs. housing, where Sumter's cost comes from
Metros near Sumter's overall cost, plotted by their goods price (horizontal) and housing price (vertical). Same headline RPP, very different structures.
Read the chart as text
- Sumter (Sumter, this metro): goods RPP 96.3, rents RPP 60.8
- Rocky Mount: goods RPP 96.6, rents RPP 56.1
- Jefferson City: goods RPP 94.2, rents RPP 62.1
- Cleveland: goods RPP 96.2, rents RPP 60.3
- Mobile: goods RPP 96.4, rents RPP 60.1
- Auburn: goods RPP 96.4, rents RPP 62.1
- Johnson City: goods RPP 96.2, rents RPP 63.2
Price Index Summary
Goods
96.3
Below avg
Services
87.3
Cheap
Rents
60.8
Cheap
Housing-led affordability profile
How Sumter's cost structure works
Housing is the strongest affordability offset in Sumter: rents index at 60.8, 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 88.0.
Across all reported metros, the closest component-profile matches are Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC, Pinehurst-Southern Pines, NC, Valdosta, GA. They resemble Sumter 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, Sumter'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.
SC-relative analysis
Goods prices places Sumter, SC near the bottom of SC's metros
Among the 8 SC metros PlainCost tracks with reported goods prices data, Sumter, SC ranks #1 - the 0th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide rank above: it compares Sumter, SC only against its own state's metros, not the full US field.
Goods prices
#1 of 8
0th percentile in SC
Services prices
#8 of 8
0th percentile in SC
Rent prices
#7 of 8
13th percentile in SC
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 SC only, not a livability score.
Nationwide metros with similar overall cost or rent prices
Two BEA RPP-derived peer sets for Sumter, SC: 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 (88.0 here).
Similar rents RPP
Nearest metros by rents regional price parity (60.8 here).
Other SC Metros
Charleston-North Charleston, SC 101.0 Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC 98.0 Columbia, SC 93.7 Myrtle Beach-Conway-North Myrtle Beach, SC 93.6 Greenville-Anderson-Greer, SC 93.3 Spartanburg, SC 91.1
View all SC metros → Cheapest in SC → Most expensive in SC →
Metros with Similar Cost of Living
These metros have an overall RPP closest to Sumter, SC's index of 88.0.
Showing the 6 closest of 387 metro areas tracked nationally.
Decision peers
Metros with a similar cost mix
These metros are closest to Sumter'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.
Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC
Goods 96.6 · Services 87.8 · Rents 59.6 Pinehurst-Southern Pines, NC
Goods 96.6 · Services 88.2 · Rents 59.3 Valdosta, GA
Goods 96.3 · Services 87.8 · Rents 58.8 Columbus, GA-AL
Goods 96.3 · Services 89.7 · Rents 61.2 Kokomo, IN
Goods 94.3 · Services 86.3 · Rents 59.3 Dalton, GA
Goods 96.3 · Services 88.8 · Rents 63.3
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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 Sumter
How to read Sumter'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 $113,611 in Sumter. Salary calculator
- Start with rents: it indexes at 60.8, 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 Sumter 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 Sumter, SC?
Sumter, SC has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) index of 88.0, meaning it is 12.0% less expensive than the national average. Goods are indexed at 96.3, services at 87.3, and rents at 60.8. It ranks #335 out of 387 U.S. metro areas by overall cost.
What salary do I need in Sumter, SC to match $100K nationally?
To maintain the same purchasing power as a $100,000 salary at the national average, you would need approximately $88,020 in Sumter, SC. Conversely, $100K earned in Sumter, SC has the purchasing power of $113,611 at the national average.
How expensive is rent in Sumter, SC?
Rents in Sumter, SC are indexed at 60.8, which is 39.2% below the national average. This makes the area relatively affordable for renters.
Is Sumter, SC getting more expensive?
From 2008 to 2024, Sumter, SC's overall cost index changed by -1.4 points (from 89.4 to 88.0). The cost of living has remained relatively stable.
What costs the most in Sumter, SC?
The priciest category in Sumter, SC is goods at 96.3, 3.7% below the national average, still the highest of the three categories. The most affordable category is rents at 60.8, 39.2% below average.
What metros have a similar cost of living to Sumter, SC?
Metros with the most similar overall cost index include Rocky Mount, Jefferson City, Cleveland. These areas have RPP values within a few points of Sumter, SC's 88.0.
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.