Overall
98.5
Below avg
Metro cost profile · 2024 BEA RPP
Walla Walla, WA
Cost-of-living indicators for Walla Walla, WA, from Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parities, overall, goods, services, and rents vs the U.S. average of 100.
- 98.5
- Overall RPP
- #102
- of 387 metros
- 86.6
- Rents RPP
- $102K
- $100K national buys
Walla Walla ranks #102 of 387 U.S. metros by cost, and its overall price index has risen 2.9 points since 2008.
- rising since 2008
- similar cost to Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands
The verdict
Walla Walla costs less than 26% of U.S. metros, an overall index of 98.5, 1.5% below the national average, with rents the biggest swing at 86.6.
- bottom 74%
- by overall cost, nationwide
- 105.0
- goods RPP, tradable items
- 94.3
- services RPP, labor-priced
A $100,000 national salary carries the purchasing power of about $101,503 here; matching a $100K lifestyle takes roughly $98,519.
Salary Equivalent
A $100,000 salary at the national average cost of living equals:
$98,519
in Walla Walla, WA purchasing power
$50,000 nationally
$49,260
$75,000 nationally
$73,889
$125,000 nationally
$123,149
$150,000 nationally
$147,779
$200,000 nationally
$197,038
Use the salary calculator for custom amounts.
Affordability score
D
39/100
How far the median local paycheck goes here, combining income and housing cost
Purchasing power
Not reported
Housing affordability D
39th 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 been trending upward, increasing by 2.9 points over this period. The largest single-year move was in 2020, when the index dropped 5.5 points from the year before, a bigger swing than the full 2008-2024 change.
Walla Walla overall RPP, 2008-2024
Every year on record, national average = 100
| Year | Overall |
|---|---|
| 2008 | 95.6 |
| 2009 | 94.9 |
| 2010 | 94.3 |
| 2011 | 94.3 |
| 2012 | 95.1 |
| 2013 | 95.3 |
| 2014 | 98.4 |
| 2015 | 99.9 |
| 2016 | 96.3 |
| 2017 | 99.5 |
| 2018 | 99.4 |
| 2019 | 100.7 |
| 2020 | 95.2 |
| 2021 | 99.1 |
| 2022 | 100.6 |
| 2023 | 97.9 |
| 2024 | 98.5 |
Latest BEA release change
What changed from 2023 to 2024
Walla Walla's overall RPP rose +0.6 points, from 97.9 in 2023 to 98.5 in 2024. The largest category movement was services, changing from 82.6 to 94.3. This is a relative change against the national benchmark, not a household's dollar bill.
Housing-led affordability profile
How Walla Walla's cost structure works
Housing is the strongest affordability offset in Walla Walla: rents index at 86.6, 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 98.5.
Across all reported metros, the closest component-profile matches are Longview-Kelso, WA, Kennewick-Richland, WA, Winchester, VA-WV. They resemble Walla Walla 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, Walla Walla's overall index has risen by 2.9 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.
Walla Walla 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
Walla Walla cost breakdown
BEA RPP by category, 100 = national average
- Rents
Rents
86.6 RPP
- Services
Services
94.3 RPP
- Overall
Overall
98.5 RPP
- Goods
Goods
105 RPP
What this shows Walla Walla's cost structure is housing-led: rents at 86.6 depart furthest from 100, while services sits at 94.3. This is a rent-sensitive profile, not a claim that every local expense moves together.
Goods vs. housing, where Walla Walla's cost comes from
Metros near Walla Walla's overall cost, plotted by their goods price (horizontal) and housing price (vertical). Same headline RPP, very different structures.
Read the chart as text
- Walla Walla (Walla Walla, this metro): goods RPP 105, rents RPP 86.6
- Houston: goods RPP 100.6, rents RPP 104.5
- Boise City: goods RPP 96.2, rents RPP 105.6
- Harrisburg: goods RPP 100.7, rents RPP 96.3
- Barnstable Town: goods RPP 97, rents RPP 90
- Sebastian: goods RPP 96.2, rents RPP 101.6
- Coeur d'Alene: goods RPP 96.2, rents RPP 105.6
Price Index Summary
Goods
105.0
Above avg
Services
94.3
Below avg
Rents
86.6
Cheap
Metros with Similar Cost of Living
These metros have an overall RPP closest to Walla Walla, WA's index of 98.5.
Showing the 6 closest of 387 metro areas tracked nationally.
Decision peers
Metros with a similar cost mix
These metros are closest to Walla Walla'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.
Longview-Kelso, WA
Goods 105.0 · Services 98.5 · Rents 82.5 Kennewick-Richland, WA
Goods 105.0 · Services 93.6 · Rents 94.8 Winchester, VA-WV
Goods 96.7 · Services 89.7 · Rents 90.0 Savannah, GA
Goods 96.3 · Services 88.6 · Rents 86.0 Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA
Goods 105.0 · Services 91.2 · Rents 97.1 Harrisonburg, VA
Goods 96.8 · Services 88.5 · Rents 82.3
WA-relative analysis
Goods prices places Walla Walla, WA near the bottom of WA's metros
Among the 11 WA metros PlainCost tracks with reported goods prices data, Walla Walla, WA ranks #1 - the 9th percentile within the state. This is a different, narrower cut than the nationwide rank above: it compares Walla Walla, WA only against its own state's metros, not the full US field.
Goods prices
#1 of 11
9th percentile in WA
Services prices
#5 of 11
55th percentile in WA
Rent prices
#9 of 11
18th 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.
Nationwide metros with similar overall cost or rent prices
Two BEA RPP-derived peer sets for Walla Walla, WA: 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 (98.5 here).
Similar rents RPP
Nearest metros by rents regional price parity (86.6 here).
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 →
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 Walla Walla
How to read Walla Walla'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 $101,503 in Walla Walla. Salary calculator
- Start with rents: it indexes at 86.6, 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 Walla Walla 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 Walla Walla, WA?
Walla Walla, WA has a Regional Price Parity (RPP) index of 98.5, meaning it is 1.5% less expensive than the national average. Goods are indexed at 105.0, services at 94.3, and rents at 86.6. It ranks #102 out of 387 U.S. metro areas by overall cost.
What salary do I need in Walla Walla, WA to match $100K nationally?
To maintain the same purchasing power as a $100,000 salary at the national average, you would need approximately $98,519 in Walla Walla, WA. Conversely, $100K earned in Walla Walla, WA has the purchasing power of $101,503 at the national average.
How expensive is rent in Walla Walla, WA?
Rents in Walla Walla, WA are indexed at 86.6, which is 13.4% below the national average. This makes the area relatively affordable for renters.
Is Walla Walla, WA getting more expensive?
From 2008 to 2024, Walla Walla, WA's overall cost index changed by +2.9 points (from 95.6 to 98.5). The cost of living has been trending upward.
What costs the most in Walla Walla, WA?
The priciest category in Walla Walla, WA is goods at 105.0, 5.0% above the national average. The most affordable category is rents at 86.6, 13.4% below average.
What metros have a similar cost of living to Walla Walla, WA?
Metros with the most similar overall cost index include Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, Boise City, Harrisburg-Carlisle. These areas have RPP values within a few points of Walla Walla, WA's 98.5.
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.